Appraising Corporate Social Responsibility as a Strategy for Enhancing Brand Value: A Study of Zenith Bank Plc

Abstract

Corporate Social Responsibility is both a statutory as well as voluntary commitment of a corporate organization to the sustainable development and well-being of the society. When corporate organizations go beyond the law and exceed their minimum obligations to the society; there is no doubt that the profit available to the company reduces. However, the goodwill a company receives as a result of its CSR initiatives and projects is also believed to engender brand equity. The main objective of this study is to appraise Corporate Social Responsibility as a strategy for enhancing brand value. To achieve this, Zenith Bank PIc. one of the leading new generation commercial banks in Nigeria was picked as a case study. Victoria Island and Ojota areas of Lagos and Mokola area of Ibadan were specifically selected because of the visible presence of Zenith Bank CSR projects in these areas. To ascertain the impact of CSR on the brand value of Zenith Bank PIc, survey method was adopted to ascertain if the people were aware of, and appreciates Zenith Bank's CSR projects, and if the CSR initiatives influenced the way the people perceive and relate with the bank. Findings revealed that the people residing and working in the areas where the CSR projects are located, are aware of, and appreciate the projects and contributions of Zenith Bank Plc to their area. The study equally revealed that the selected Zenith bank's CSR projects did influenced the bank's brand value. However, CSR as a strategy came third behind Brand Name and Customer Service.