Abstract
This study attempts to assess the role of the polarity of information or publicity about a company (whether positive, negative, or neutral) and two CSR activities (e.g., environmental preservation and supporting social welfare in developing countries) in the relationships between consumers and brands and also to investigate how a corporate image, as perceived by consumers, affects the formation of an image of a company or brand through the halo effect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activity. An experimental design was used to test the hypotheses. A group of subjects who were exposed to negative publicity about a company showed a change in average values in their attitudes toward the brand, purchase intention, corporate image, attitude to the CEO, and brand loyalty. The formation of attitudes or images changed more positively when the type of CSR activity involved was closely related to a company’s corporate image. The results of the analysis used to test the halo effect of a company’s CSR activity indicate that corporate CSR activity is closely related to consumer attitude formation or changes in perceptions of a company. The results of this study provide an opportunity to assess the importance of negative information about a company or product, as well as types of CSR activity that affect image formation. The study suggests that only CSR activities that are highly congruent with a company’s image or its products can produce positive and amicable reactions from consumers through the halo effect.
Highlights
Companies seek business performance success by establishing corporate images that suggest that they are sensitive to the interests of stakeholders, local residents, and organizational members, as well as enacting social values that contribute value to society
This study explores the role of the polarity of corporate information in consumer evaluation of a company’s brand and image by focusing on subjects’ exposure to negative information about a company and its Corporate Social Responsivity (CSR) activity in the context of evaluating the company and its CEO as well as eliciting subjects’ expressions of brand attitude and brand loyalty
When presented with negative information, consumer attitudes are likely to become negative, whereas being exposed to positive information about a company’s CSR activity leads to the formation of a positive attitude towards the company
Summary
Companies seek business performance success by establishing corporate images that suggest that they are sensitive to the interests of stakeholders, local residents, and organizational members, as well as enacting social values that contribute value to society. The responsibility for enhancing human value, beyond creating economic value, based on civic social awareness is regarded by some as a condition for corporate success. In this context, corporations have embraced Corporate Social Responsivity (CSR) to address industrial, societal, and cultural expectations [1]. In a business environment marked by increasingly fierce market competition, building a strategy that combines differentiated CSR tactics and specific execution plans aimed at improving a corporate image and management performance is becoming more and more difficult. The intentions, motivations, differentiation, sustainability, and friendliness of a given CSR activity must be considered if a company hopes to translate the adoption of that activity into business success
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