Running a socially responsible and ethical company isn’t just the “right” thing to do – it’s often the best thing for your business. By creating a company that stands for ethical values, you show people integrity and empathy, characteristics that many seek in the people they do business with.
Why is social responsibility and ethics important in business? Here are three good reasons.
People Want to Buy from Ethical Businesses
Take the wholesaling industry for example. This is typically a cut-throat industry with razor-sharp profit margins, often under 10%.
Yet still manufacturers of green and eco-friendly products are finding that more and more wholesalers are placing orders from them rather than their more established competitors.
Why? Because more and more people are choosing to buy socially responsible products and not purchase from companies that damage the environment.
Socially responsible and ethical products don’t cost much more than their socially irresponsible counterparts. More and more smart consumers are switching to socially responsible products.
People Want to Work for Ethical Businesses
Would you rather work for a company that stands for something benefiting humanity as a whole, or a company that just stands for its own profits?
Employees in ethical businesses are often willing to work harder, with more passion for the same or even sometimes less pay than their more cut-throat counterparts.
Not only will people give more to your business without you having to ask, but you’ll also enjoy working there more! When the people around you love their work, you’ll naturally enjoy your working environment more.
People Want to Partner with Ethical Businesses
Socially responsible and ethical businesses often find that other businesses come to partner with them before they look to partnering with other less socially responsible companies.
Take Kiva for example, a non-profit micro-loan facilitation website. They get literally hundreds of thousands of dollars every year in free legal and organizational work that they’d never get if they were primarily motivated by money.
You don’t need to be a non-profit company to get the same treatment. If your company as a whole conducts business in a way that benefits the greater good, people will generally want to do business with you rather than the other guy, all else being equal.
The bottom line is, people want to be associated with businesses that are moving towards being socially and ethically responsible. The days when businesses can walk all over their employees, trash the earth, destroy the long-term health of the economy and still prosper are over.
Today consumers, employees and business owners alike are becoming very aware of the many social and ethical issues that abound in today’s world. Building a business that caters to this awareness is not only the right thing to do – it’s smart business.
photo credit: markhillary
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