Many companies around the world provide unique services or products that set them apart from others in their sector. However, in markets such as ride-sharing, food delivery, and streaming that are now saturated with several comparable products, how do companies seek to differentiate themselves? There’s no easy answer. However, it seems like building brand loyalty is becoming a more popular strategy.

According to Forbes, some ways to increase brand loyalty include delivering quality products, authenticity, and good customer service. While delivering quality products seems to be a straightforward task, that is not the case with authenticity. In fact, it’s not even clear what companies should be “authentic” with regards to. Every employee probably has a different personality, background, set of values, and way of accomplishing goals. That is why it’s really important for corporate leadership to deliberately define the company’s culture by writing a mission statement and values so that every stakeholder can align around a common corporate identity.

Mission statements can either be inspiring and guiding, or they can be a collection of words put on the ‘About Us’ section of the website that are never referred to again. In the most basic sense, mission statements should express a company’s goals and how it aims to go about achieving them. LinkedIn explained that the most effective mission statements go one step further and are “unique enough to be memorable and short enough to remember.” Some of the most powerful mission statements showcased in a LinkedIn article are:

1. “To improve its customers’ financial lives so profoundly, they couldn’t imagine going back to the old way.” – Intuit

2. “To prevent and alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.” – American Red Cross

3. “To be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices.” – Amazon

Now, compare those three mission statements to Apple’s mission statement: 

“Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad” (Inc.com).

There’s a stark difference in that Apple’s mission statement shows little of its values, culture, or identity. In fact, the statement reads like a product list, and any other tech company in the world could copy it and just replace product names. Moreover, based on the mission statement above Apple’s brand seems to derive value primarily from the quality and innovativeness of its products. On the contrary, it seems like Intuit and Amazon’s mission guide how they approach product development. Their brands add to the product instead of stemming from it which puts Apple at a disadvantage because nowadays, brand loyalty is becoming less and less about the product and more about the company behind it. 

In fact, a big part of how companies are perceived stems from the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives and philanthropic work through which they contribute to their communities. Cone Communications’ 2017 CSR Study found that 87% of consumers will purchase a product because the company advocated for an issue they cared about. Some ways through which corporations try to give back to communities include:

• Paid volunteer time off (VTO)

• Profit sharing

• Donation matching

• Volunteer bonuses

• Double or triple bottom line 

• Sustainability targets

• Sustainable and ethical supply chains

• Partnerships with nonprofits to tackle social issues

• Participation in certification programs or voluntary clubs (i.e. fair labor, fair trade, etc.)

• Tying CEO compensation to achievement of CSR goals 

Initiatives such as donation matching are great first steps, but they are not unique to any company. Moreover, the impact of this is often small because instead of pouring a lot of money into making significant progress on one particular issue such as food poverty, money is scattered across a variety of nonprofits and issues. Despite that downside, implementing donation matching is still a smart choice because it allows employees to feel like the company supports the causes they care about.

Another smart choice would be to find ways to have social impact that are unique to the mission, resources, and area of expertise of your company. First, this will create a stronger and more cohesive brand image. Second, it will allow the company to make significant progress towards resolving issues such as poverty, hunger, or gender inequality that we face today as a society. Most of the world’s social issues fall under one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations, and to find the goal that best fits your company or sector, the SDG Indicator Wizard exists. Below are a few examples:

1. Input: Online retailer and marketplace

Wizard Output: Goal 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

2. Input: Manufacture medicine

Wizard Output: Goal 3 Health and Well-Being

3. Input: Solar Energy

Wizard Output: Goal 7 Affordable and Clean Energy

It’s really important for both building brand identity, as well as communities, that each company finds a unique way to contribute to social issues. Over the past few years, some analysts have discovered that particular SDGs have been prioritized, leaving other issues unaddressed. In some cases, building infrastructure or providing decent work opportunities might be easier to accomplish than solving for gender equality. However, that doesn’t mean gender equality should be an issue that is left behind for future generations.

Additionally, helping tackle social issues is better for the company’s financial health and success. Forbes explains that the Noble Edge Effect is a phenomenon describing how companies with social responsibility earn more profit due to garnered goodwill and a perception of authenticity. In order for the good actions to not be seen as marketing plays, research has shown that social responsibility initiatives need to be anchored in corporate mission statements. Overall, it seems like one of the best ways to run a successful company is by reflecting and developing mission statements that guide business decisions as well as interactions with customers, communities, and business partners.

Thumbnail Image Credit: LiquidPlanner