Corporate citizenship: Challenging the corporate centricity in corporate marketing

Abstract

This study explores how corporate citizenship challenges the notion of corporate centricity underpinning the corporate marketing discipline. Theoretically, the argument is developed with reference to the concept of corporate citizenship and cultural branding theories. Methodologically, the study applies a discourse analysis to Instagram posts and comments associated with Bodyformuk’s cultural brand campaign #bloodnormal as an illustrative case of corporate citizenship. By focusing on the interplay between the micro-processes of individual consumers’ brand interactions and macro-level cultural discourses, the study shows that a) users hold active agency in rearticulating the corporately conveyed cultural discourses and, hence, claims of corporate citizenship; and b) the brand actively uses these user-driven counter discourses as source material for continuously rematerializing corporate citizenship. The study contributes to the corporate marketing literature by highlighting the challenges of corporate centricity when the brand becomes part of a politized discourse and enacts corporate citizenship.