Filed under: Going Green, Green Facts | Tags: car dealer, Community, environment
Large businesses are very visible when it comes to Corporate Social Policy and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and we see that most of the Fortune 500 businesses publish a CSR report at least annually. After all it is good to have a policy but the results are what really matters. Examples of some of these report are:
- General Motors: http://www.gm.com/company/aboutGM/gm_sustainability.html
- Walmart: http://corporate.walmart.com/global-responsibility/environment-sustainability/global-responsibility-report
- Toyota: http://www.toyota-global.com/sustainability/report/
- GE: http://www.geappliances.com/corporate-social-responsibility/
- Ford: http://corporate.ford.com/our-company/sustainability
- Apple: http://www.apple.com/environment/
- AT&T: http://www.att.com/gen/corporate-citizenship?pid=8506
When asked how important CSR is to these companies the answers were that it is important with almost 90% saying that it was at least somewhat important:
But what about smaller businesses like car dealerships. A study by Business4Better indicated that 66% of smaller businesses say they want to establish or improve their CSR efforts, believing it can increase business performance, drive employee participation and improve brand reputation.
Some of the ways businesses can begin to build a profile as a good neighbor in the community are through:
- Sponsorships
- Donations
- Pro Bono Service
- Volunteering
When businesses do this kind of thing their customers love them for it; 85% of consumers say they have a more positive image of a product or company when it supports a cause they care about and 90% want companies to tell them ways in which they are supporting causes.
Where to Start
A good place to start is to develop a mission or purpose statement that defines your environmental interest. You can take a look at how you can advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves and then narrow it down and determine what you can offer.
Employees play a big role by being encouraged to support the company pet project. This can increase morale, teamwork, employee retention and satisfaction.
What is the payoff?
When a business is woven into the fabric of the community, everyone wins. The business is recognized as a good place to work and the is aligned with the beliefs and values of the community, employees and customers.
Filed under: Going Green | Tags: car dealer, Community, environment, Green, involvement, marketing
Business everyday are moving toward being more involved in their communities. Here we will address specifically being involved in their community with a “green” flavor. Being involved with the community in an environmental way simply directs the resources that might otherwise be spent on marketing or other community involvement activities toward a focus on efforts and organizations that are doing things that have a positive impact on sustainability. These efforts will then align with the dealerships desire to act in a more environmentally responsible way.
Many business and especially car dealers are already contributing to the efforts of groups who are concerned
about the environment and it’s sustainability. Identifying the involvement with these groups as part of the businesses activity helps to point out tha the dealerships is making a concerted effort to be “green”.
Working with organizations that have a local impact is always a good idea because the community also has affiliations with these same organizations or benefits from activities that the dealership is a part of. Adopt a Highway is a good example of this. Thousands of people each day could be traveling a section of highway that the dealership has agreed to keep cleared of trash. These impressions are always positive and for a member of the community to see that the dealership is involved in a manner such as this is always positive.
Here are a few things to consider before become involved with a community organization:
- There are 2 million nonprofit organizations nationwide. The best way to become involved is proactively, not reactively. Take time to think about what you really want to support. What is really important to you and the dealership. A nonprofit mission statement should be clear and it should speak to you.
- To be considered a nonprofit organizations must file an IRS Form 990 for threee consecutive years to maintain their tax exempt status. The website guidestar.org tracks IRS documentation and independently verify compliance.
- After you find the organizations mission statement, look for information on programs that detail how the mission statement is achieved. It is a good sign when organizations present specific, measurable goals and concrete criteria for describing successes.
- If an organization is pressuring you to become involved that could be a reg flag. If in doubt say no.
Most nationally recognized groups have local ties. These groups because of their recognitions factor will provide more impact than a less know organization. While there are thousands of organizations that a dealership could partner with or in some way become involved with, normally limiting that to 5-10 organizations is about the right numer most most car dealerships. On the other hand a manufacturer such as Subaru might have an association with many more. To see a list of affiliations compiled by Green Dealer Support click here.
Green Dealer Support 