8 Brands That Advocated Social Causes and We Loved it!

For a company, showing concern for social issues is no longer just a branding or marketing activity, but is a commitment and upholding the company’s position on these issues.

From the 2019 Sprout Social report, it was found that 70% of consumers believe it’s important for brands to take a public stand on social and political issues.

Taking a stand should become the “new normal” for the brand. Besides creating a better image for the brands, it could also educate their customers and audiences about certain social issues.

In the same report, it is stated that there are several steps taken by brands to take stands, for example collaborating with NGOs, advertisements, social media posts, releasing CEO statements, and others.

And it is not just for promotional or marketing purposes, brands are becoming more conscious about social and environmental responsibility.  

There are several brands that advocate social causes and can be an inspiration for us and other brands.

1. Airbnb – being home for people who have trouble finding a place to stay

The brand, which is known for renting homestays and travel activities, raised the hashtag #WeAccept in 2017. This hashtag not only represents Airbnb as a brand that welcomes everyone to visit every villa or homestay that uses its platform.

But also in response to many people who’ve been displaced, whether because of war, conflict, or other factors, or are acutely vulnerable to not being accepted.

They started by providing housing for natural disaster refugees and asylum seekers. In this campaign, they invite us to provide houses or temporary shelter for these people or donate to organizations that work on this issue.

2. Patagonia – environmental long-term commitments

Patagonia is an American brand known for sportswear and outdoor clothing. It is known as one of the brands that are vocal on environmental issues. This also made them win the UN’s Champions of the Earth Award in 2019.

Their famous mission statement is “We’re in business to save our home planet”. Patagonia’s activism is manifested through several commitments, such as: donating 1% sales for grassroots environmental organizations (Earth Tax), campaigning about stopping all new fossil fuel projects in the US, urging the US government to protect water and land for Native American tribes, and many more.

3. Nike – anti racial issue

Famous for the tagline “Just Do It!” – in 2020 Nike announced the tagline “For Once, Don’t Do It” on social media. This tagline is a form of Nike’s support for #BlackLivesMatter anti-racism campaign.

Through social media posts, Nike invites the public not to turn a blind eye to the discrimination that often occurs around us. The brand encourages us all to create a more inclusive world for everyone.

The campaign was very successful in drawing attention to the violence to African Americans, that is still prevalent. This post received appreciation from netizens by getting 91.4K Retweets and 216.8K Likes on Twitter.

4. Jansport – promoting mental health awareness

Based on data by Pew Research, 7 out of 10 young people say mental health issues burden their lives. In response to this, in 2020 the backpack brand, Jansport, launched #LightenTheLoad campaign, a mission to connect youth and teenagers with tools and resources to support mental health.

Through this campaign, Jansport provided therapist services, hotline contacts for suicide prevention, and a donation platform.

Through YouTube as a media, they started a campaign to let young people tell about their anxieties and struggles. This video received a positive reaction and helped youth to be more courageous in sharing their burden.

5. Fenty Beauty – embracing women diverse skin tones

Not only through campaigns or social media posts, but the form of social cause advocation has also been with product innovation, by Fenty Beauty.

Popstar Rihanna’s cosmetic brand is trying to break the stereotype that being pretty must be white, or having flawless skin without acne, by creating a foundation with 50 shades representing various skin tones.

Fenty Beauty knows that many women are dealing with subjective beauty standards, which makes them unable to find confidence in their skin tones.

By creating various colors of foundation, Fenty Beauty also embraces women’s confidence and power through self-acceptance of what they look like.

6. Lush – animal conservation and rehabilitation

Just like Fenty Beauty, the face and body care brand, Lush, also combines social values with its products.

Known for its 100% vegetarian product, no animal testing, and sustainability, Lush also shows their concern for animal conservation and rehabilitation.

In 2020, Lush donated 100% of profits from Koala Soap products to koala conservation in Australia.

In addition, Lush has been collaborating with several organizations such as Heaven’s Wildlife Rescue, The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, and many more.

7. LEGO – education for children, helping children in need

Not only making children as target consumers, LEGO, children’s toy manufacturers, also make children one of the social causes in every CSR opportunity. Through the LEGO Foundation, LEGO provides development programs that hone children’s sensory and creative abilities. This program intends for humanitarian purposes for Rohingya and Syrian children refugees.

“Play to Learn” is LEGO’s tagline which is also a fun learning method for children. Until now, LEGO has been actively collaborating with UNICEF to support children’s rights and well-being.

8. Hello BC (British Columbia) – COVID-19 prevention and stay at home movement

This initiative is probably not coming from a brand or company, but from a tourism institution in British Columbia, Canada, with their Instagram account: Hello BC. A post on their social media entitled #exploreBC received a lot of attention and praise. It created awareness to follow COVID-19 protocols.

Hello BC and tour operators in British Columbia raised the hashtag in response to the global Covid-19 pandemic. In the post, Hello BC encourages people to stay at home first and return there when conditions are better. For those who work in the tourism business, it is difficult to shift the business model. Hello BC then chose to share the sights of British Columbia through online channels that attracted the attention of potential visitors.

The companies and brands above are probably only a few examples of many companies that advocated social causes. Nowadays, doing social causes should become our nature as human beings.

At UPDEED, you can find more companies, NGOs, influencers, who are doing social causes with various noble causes. These people need to get more appreciation for inspiring and making the earth a better place. If you, your company, or NGO are doing similar things, let’s network, share stories and find more connections on UPDEED.

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