Social Media Goes Green
General Electric, IBM and Starbucks are among the brand owners most effectively utilising social media to engage consumers with issues like sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Custom Communication, the consultancy, assessed how 287 major companies from across the globe were adapting their activity in this area to meet the requirements of the digital age. Overall, 244 members of its sample promoted products and advertising via sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, but only 65 ran dedicated accounts covering initiatives relating to the environment and CSR.
Some 55 firms relied on general social media feeds to discuss such matters, and 167 - or almost half - had "no conduit whatsoever."
More specifically, 36% of North American enterprises constituted early-adopters in this field, falling to 33% for their European counterparts.
Organisations in the tech sector displayed the greatest take up, contributing a fifth of the leading American operators, while oil and gas specialists were the worst performers. Custom Communication also ranked individual companies based on factors from providing "engaging content" to offering channels for consumer feedback. General Electric, the conglomerate, led the list on 98 points, having "raised the bar" with its clean energy "Ecomagination" platform.
To read more about organizations' use of social media, click here.
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Citizenship at GE is more than a program or a set of good intentions - it is a full-time commitment built upon cultural behaviors and actions. These actions are integrated with business strategy and have defined goals, strategies and metrics that make it actionable and accountable. GE16092
