• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, July 10, 2007

The way a company comports itself--including how it treats employees, business practices and corporate-responsibility initiatives--plays a big role in consumer purchase decisions, according to a survey from Cone, LLC.

The survey also found that employees place a high premium on their employers' charitable undertakings and social-responsibility initiatives. Both these conclusions echo recent findings from other market researchers that underscore the growing importance of such considerations in consumption choices.

The 2007 Cone Cause Evolution Survey found that more than two-thirds of Americans are concerned about the business practices of companies when they decide what to buy. Eighty-three percent believe companies should support social causes, and 92% said they have a more positive image of companies that support causes.

All things being equal in terms of product quality and price, 87% said they would switch brand preferences if the competing brand was associated with a good cause. (That's a 31% increase from 1993). Finally, 85% of American consumers say they would switch to a competitor's products or services if unsound business practices were revealed.

As consumer ideals shift, the way to affect social change has been transformed too, principally with the rise of the Internet. The Net is expanding and accelerating the word-of-mouth phenomenon for social causes. Here, the Cone survey found that 22% of respondents have used the Internet or related technology to participate in grassroots activism, and 37% have used it to research issues. Thirty-eight percent forward information and messages to family and friends.

Julia Hobbs Kivistik, executive vice president of Cone's "Cause Branding" division, remarked: "Good business primarily used to be about providing fair value, decent service and high quality. Then it expanded to include a company's societal role and contributions. Now, companies have a strategic imperative to also consider their operating practices and how they impact their social commitments."

The new Cone survey complements other recent research from firms like Alloy Media and Marketing, which in 2006 found that college students rank social responsibility higher than celebrity endorsement as factors in their choice of consumer brands. This demo also focuses on contributions to social and environmental causes. Fully 33% of respondents said they prefer brands known for involvement with not-for-profit causes, community activism or environmentally friendly practices. Overall, 24% of respondents said they had purchased a product in the last year because it was "socially conscious."

Social responsibility is complicated terrain, however, as individuals may prioritize corporate do-good initiatives differently. Thus, a 2006 a study from the National Consumers League and Fleishman-Hillard International Communications found that 76% of respondents ranked a company's employee welfare ahead of all other considerations--including environmental stewardship and corporate philanthropy.