Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Why It Matters

Check out the approaches companies are taking to improve and uplift their local communities, and how these efforts have distinguished them as game changers in the business and philanthropic sectors.

Three brands that take CSR to new heights

How to build social responsibility into your marketing strategy

Corporate authenticity has become the norm. This is good news because, without it, even the most well-crafted corporate social responsibility marketing strategies ring hollow and ultimately breed cynicism. Authenticity ensures that CSR efforts stem from a company’s core values, not just predicted year-end profit margins. When done well, CSR initiatives connect with both consumers and employees, building stakeholder trust and loyalty, as well as a positive reputation for the company as a whole.

Over the past decades, CSR in the business sector has been evolving away from lip service and toward real-world results. Having seen the quantitative and qualitative results of effective CSR, many companies are now driven to form and foster genuine relationships with the cities and towns they’re a part of. 

Customers, too, believe businesses should stand for something meaningful and back it up with measurable action. Here, we’ll look at some of the approaches companies are taking to improve and uplift their local communities, and how these efforts have distinguished them as game changers in the business world.

Three brands that take CSR to new heights

It’s standard for customers to be loyal to companies that represent their interests. But today, consumers have higher standards; they seek out brands that act on their values and beliefs. Socially conscious and environmentally motivated companies have a lot of street cred, and people who want to support and associate themselves with those efforts will go the extra mile to buy their products and services.

The following well-known brands have blazed trails that have garnered plenty of consumer interest. Other corporations would do well to follow their example.

Wegman’s: When values drive community-mindedness

Today, businesses and consumers are seeing themselves as part of a larger values-driven network of influence. Wegman’s Food Markets, Inc., for example, manifest their values in community-attuned actions, like providing seniors free rides to medical appointments and dedicating resources to relieve food insecurity. 

In 2024 alone, Wegman’s allocated 96.5 million dollars to local communities and donated more than 36.6 million pounds of unsold items (the equivalent of 30 million meals based on an average daily intake of 3.6 to 5.5 lbs per person) to neighbors in need.

The company’s sustainability initiatives focus on eliminating waste and reducing its carbon footprint, resulting in an average recycling rate of 87% and a heavy-duty truck fleet that is now 76% diesel free.

Top that off with a 50-million-dollar investment in employee training and development, and you begin to see how Wegman’s makes a difference in the lives of everyone it serves. These impressive stats are an inspiration for shoppers whose values align with this work.

The Wonderful Company: Emphasis on employee health and lifestyle

The first thing you read on The Wonderful Company’s website is a vision-driven tagline that doesn’t mince words: “Healthy products harvested by healthy people for a healthy planet.” 

Scroll down and you’re presented with a 3-tiered mission, as holistic as it is idealistic, claiming that the company “makes the world a better and healthier place through…the development and well-being of our employees, and our unique philanthropic efforts in the communities we serve.” Bold claims, and both are true. 

The Wonderful Company mission underscores how each of these economic levers (high quality products, workforce wellness, and corporate citizenship) are connected and, in fact, cannot function independent of one another. Placing a high value on the very people who keep the company running seems like a no-brainer, but this hasn’t been the norm in the history of corporate culture. Not every founder would agree that empowering employees is the key to corporate success. This prioritization of the health and happiness of Wonderful Company workers distinguishes their business strategy. 

The Wonderful Education initiative strives to break the cycle of generational poverty and improve career prospects for students in California’s Central Valley, the company’s home base. Career development programs offer internships, early career building, and leadership training. The Center for Health Innovation gives workers and their families access to urgent care, annual checkups, physical therapy, and nutrition counseling, as well as free prescriptions at their on-site pharmacy. 

For an entire segment of the community, working at The Wonderful Company is more than a job; it means a healthy, supported, nurturing lifestyle. And everyone, even locals who don’t work there, can get behind that.

Microsoft: Leveraging tech for social impact

Microsoft’s CSR efforts aim “to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more through its technology and initiatives” through digital education, environmental sustainability, employee matching, and using tech as a tool for social betterment.

The company employs more than 220,000 people across the world and offers corporate matching gifts up to 15,000 dollars per employee annually. Each worker also gets a week of paid VTO (Volunteer Time Off) plus 25 dollars for each hour spent volunteering.

Environmental efficacy is woven into Microsoft’s core business strategy and includes initiatives that address environmental sustainability and humanitarian crises related to climate change. The company has also taken a leading role in promoting ethical AI and data privacy best practices, while offering free and reduced technology services and software for local nonprofits and schools.

Microsoft’s 2025 Impact Summary cites the company’s “immense opportunity and responsibility to help shape the world’s future.” As it turns out, this is not hyperbole. They stand by their promise to ensure the tech they build is innovative, safe, and accessible to all while also beneficial for the planet at large.

The report’s list of accomplishments reads like a how to in saving the world: signed contracts for 29.8M metric tons of carbon removal; 34GW of carbon free electricity across 24 countries; funded 37K nonprofits in 110 countries; volunteered more than 1.2M hours with said nonprofits; totaled $263M in employee giving; and donated $4 billion in cash and AI cloud technology.

In the coming five years, Microsoft plans to invest $4 billion dollars to K-12 schools, community and technical colleges, and nonprofits. They’ll also partner with UNICEF, Code.org, and labor unions “to extend skilling opportunities that protect the humanity of work.” At the end of the day, is there anything more central to social responsibility than protecting humanity? 

How to build social responsibility into your marketing strategy

Authentic CSR success stories have taught us that the greatest strides can be achieved when company values align with customer values. There are many ways to embrace corporate social responsibility as part of your company’s marketing strategy. Here’s how we recommend laying the groundwork:

• First, define a single, overarching purpose or goal that will guide all your company’s ethical and sustainable efforts. The values that fuel your company vision and mission will be at the root of this goal.
• Align this overarching goal with your core business objectives so that they build upon one another. 
• Decide what your company’s societal impact will look like, making sure your CSR goal remains front and center.
• Research opportunities within your local community as well as established national and global organizations known for doing a good job rallying around specific initiatives.
• Strategize how your team will individually and collectively contribute to these initiatives. 
• Restructure your long-term marketing strategy by incorporating your team’s planned commitments into relevant editorial calendars. 
• Keep track of CSR success stories, progress, and results, adjusting approaches for best results.
• Use existing communications channels to share, explore, and discuss your team’s efforts with your audience. 
• Celebrate your successes and share best practices with other businesses motivated by creating positive change.

Exhibiting a commitment to your CSR North Star will open up new opportunities for engagement. Best of all, you’ll tap into the aspects of life that move people the most while forging new and meaningful connections. That ought to keep you fired up for work every morning!

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