Partner Article

Fairtrade bringing CSR to the forefront for UK business

It’s corporate social responsibility focus week on Bdaily. Here, Bradley O’Mahoney PR affirm the importance of businesses developing a CSR culture.

Many have little time for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) with their only goal being to increase their profit margin. However, by developing a CSR culture not only will your business have a positive impact on society, it will also be creating the opportunity to increase profit.

Being a responsible business is now the key to both saving and making money, appealing to potential employees and winning customers. Whilst, on the surface it may sound as if CSR is purely ethical and for the gain of others and the environment, it is actually a real influence in the success of a business in today’s world.

The importance of CSR within the work place should not be overlooked or underestimated. It is an excellent way of engaging with staff who will take a sense of pride in helping their community to excel and, within this, businesses can use it as a way to sharpen their employee’s skills in areas such as communication and team leadership.

All skills which are transferable and integral to any business and employee development. Ultimately, when an employee feels good about what they are doing in the work place, the quality of their work and their eagerness to excel increases. A happy work place is a profitable work place.

With so many businesses competing in the same market, customers now have more choices. There is no customer that would claim a business scoring highly in CSR is a bad thing. It is, therefore, hard to comprehend why many businesses still see CSR as a side project rather than something that should lie at the heart of their operations.

As customers are increasingly ‘clued’ up on the importance of sustainability within the community and the environment, CSR is one of the first things they are drawn to when investing in a brand.

It is no coincidence that companies such as ‘The Body Shop’ have been around and profitable for so many years. Another hugely successful corporation, ‘Fairtrade’, has made a business almost purely out of tapping in to consumer responsibility and in 2007 reached an estimated retail value of £493 million. Around 20% of roast and ground coffee, and 20% of bananas sold in the UK are now Fairtrade. A coincidence? Not likely.

Engaging in CSR is no longer something that companies can be seen not to be involved in. Now is the time to cease perceiving CSR as an add-on but rather as a cultural issue that needs to be embraced within every business and celebrated for the benefits it provides both within the community and the work place.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Bradley O’Mahoney Public Relations .