There's nothing quite like word of mouth to boost a company's fortunes. Indeed, a recommendation can be a powerful tool in building a company's reputation and competitive edge, recent research by Ipsos Public Affairs shows.
Just over a quarter (26%) of Americans fall into a group Ipsos calls "Ethical Advocates". These are people who regularly advise friends, family, colleagues and others to patronize – or more often, not to patronize – a particular company.
On average, Ethical Advocates are more likely to know a fair amount about major corporate brands than the general population. In the case of one major retailer, nearly twice as many Ethical Advocates had discussed the company compared with the general population (59% vs. 34%). They are also critical. On average, they are nearly two-thirds (63%) more likely to be unfavourable toward companies. They are also more negative about company performance.
However, the reverse can also be true, “Certain people are more vocal and opinionated about companies than others,” according to Annabel Evans a Vice President with Ipsos Public Affairs and author of a study exploring the corporate reputation of 30 major US businesses from a variety of sectors. “They have strong beliefs – good and bad – about businesses.”
It's clear from our research that corporations need to pay attention to these Ethical Advocates," notes Evans. "They can be a company's greatest supporter or its harshest critic. They are informed, they can be very critical, and they do like to talk."
Based on its research, Ipsos has developed a Corporate Responsibility Roadmap with eight model behaviours that can help companies stand out and appeal to Ethical Advocates. These are:
All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.
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