The Responsible Consumer is becoming King

Never before has brand value been so intrinsically linked to the term corporate responsibility as during the recent global health crisis.  Businesses are focusing all efforts to link their activities towards responsible causes.

Despite the global lock-down, the “responsible consumer” is far from powerless and in fact is a driving force behind the unprecedented changes taking place by business. With the economic down turn expected to follow the pandemic, business has no choice but to listen and act. Business growth is driven by consumer demand and consumers are demanding, more than ever, that businesses act responsibly.

Responsible Consumers have been viewed as a rather niche segment, primarily focused on purchasing environmentally friendly or responsibly sourced products. The pricing policies of “green” products has been a detriment from turning the responsible consumer into a mainstream customer but it appears this tide is turning as more consumers are rewarding companies whose activities are actively aligned with their values for more “people-centric” sustainable economies and  healthy environments.

In a recent US brand study, 65 % of surveyed consumers indicated that their likelihood of purchasing a brand would subsequently be based on how well the brand responds to the crisis while 37 % of consumers indicated that they had recently started using a new brand as a result of their crisis-related marketing efforts. (2020 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report).

Responsible consumption is also linked to ethical purchasing behavior and the pandemic is highlighting how businesses can play an important part in educating customers about issues such as unnecessary hoarding, reducing materialism, discouraging food waste, supporting the elderly and understanding product safety.

The role of the Sustainability Professional is to become an advocate for the Responsible Consumer and support businesses carve the path to a more sustainable future for all.

To this end, we would like to invite you to join Nikos Avlonas, CSE President, in a live FREE webinar on Thursday April 16 at 10:00amCT, for an open discussion about:

What Consumers Expect of Corporate Responsibility during the Pandemic

The topics that will be covered include:

• The role of corporations during the pandemic towards their employees and society
• What are Consumer expectations and how their behaviors will be affected
• Best practices applied from leading companies
• Challenges and disruptions facing business in the year ahead
• The opportunities presented for a more sustainable future

 Register here for the webinar

Contact CSE team at [email protected]