1. Nowhere
to hide
A View white paper written by
Ann Longley Planning Director/Head of CSR
2006
Sustaining trust in the digital age

2. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Contents
Introduction
Key lessons for the networked market
In the networked market, a digital strategy is more than just having a website
The networked market means a more complex brand management challenge
Cross-sector collaboration is a tool for effective brand management
Launching ethical products and/or creating social product marketing divisions
is a further possible response
Smart companies use interactive applications to build stakeholder engagement
and improve market intelligence
Success requires a focus on content
Your brand values need to be embedded in the search engine marketplace
Conclusions and forward looking principles
2
4
4
5
7
8
9
10
12
13

3. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
In practice CSR encompasses a range of
activities many businesses now engage in
to demonstrate their commitment to positive
social and environmental impacts.
In response to a number of converging factors, including public intolerance
of perceived corporate greed and corruption, an increasing interest in
ethical consumption, and protection of the environment, Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) has emerged as a key business concept in the
21st century.
In practice CSR encompasses a range of activities many businesses now engage in to
demonstrate their commitment to positive social and environmental impacts. This is done with
a view to protecting financial performance from reputational damage and it represents a major
shift in the way businesses operate.
This change in approach is not as some say, diluting the purpose of business. Rather, many
businesses are now aware that to do well they must at least be seen to be doing good, and that
by doing good they may do even better. For consumers and investors who care, the good news is
a proliferation of ‘so called’ ethical products now on the market.
One of the most high profile of these is Bono’s recently launched ‘Red’ product line distributed
through a range of mainstream business partners including the Gap and American Express. This
is a range of products sold on ethical terms and with a substantial share of the profits going to
fight HIV/aids and underdevelopment in Africa.
Given a consistent rise in ethical consumption and investment each year in recent years, the
changes we are seeing are hardly surprising and can only be expected to accelerate. The Co-
operative Bank’s 2004 Ethical Consumerism Report found that UK consumers spent close to
£25 billion on ethical goods and services in 2004, an increase of 15% from 2003.1
Against this
backdrop, companies are now eager to establish themselves as ethical brands as a means of
gaining market share, and consequently many traditional companies are establishing social or
‘green’ enterprises to fuel their business growth.
However in the digital age, such positioning is not necessarily enough to convince consumers of
corporate integrity even when celebrities like Bono are involved. The critical business challenge
today is sustaining stakeholder trust in a highly fragmented and instant communications
environment where almost every company is trying to promote their ethical credentials and
people frequently use digital tools to share negative information.2
Introduction
One of the most high profile of these is
Bono’s recently launched ‘Red’ product line
distributed through a range of mainstream
business partners including the Gap
and American Express. This is a range of
products sold on ethical terms and with
a substantial share of the profits going to
fight HIV/aids and underdevelopment
in Africa.
www.joinred.com/red.asp
1
Interestingly, the fastest rising category is ethical investments (5.5M GBP in 2004), Cooperative Bank, Future Foundation,
NEF, 2004 Ethical Consumerism Report.
2
Research commissioned by Wirthlin Worldwide (now part of Harris Interactive) found that people were more likely to
share negative information if it impacts their personal finances, health or public security or is from a credible source,
“Online Corporate Reputation and Crisis Management”, The Wirthlin Report, V.13, No. 1, 02 2004, p1.

4. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Introduction
Use of new media allows product weaknesses
and brand inconsistencies to be exposed quickly
and in a far more public and transparent way
than in the past.
In this context, the digital age represents an opportunity but also a risk. It ushers in new channels
to market and can help create demand for products and services, but it can also be used by
consumers and others to highlight the shortcomings in a business operation. Use of new media
allows product weaknesses and brand inconsistencies to be exposed quickly and in a far more
public and transparent way than in the past. Moreover, with the aid of digital tools such as email,
blogs, discussion boards, and mobile phones, activities such as boycotts, demonstrations and
labour migrations can now be organised in a matter of minutes. When mainstream media pick
up on the issues, what started out as an isolated protest online can easily reach a critical mass
and company revenues can suffer.
These threats are real. According to the Co-op Bank research the total value of boycotts
in 2003 rose to £3.2bn, a growth of £600 million on the previous year. This represented a
significant increase in the boycotts of brands associated with poor environmental performance
or questionable labour practices. There is also evidence to suggest that companies that have
suffered damage to their reputations, may also have difficulty attracting and retaining qualified
staff, obviously a key concern in today’s knowledge driven economy.3
This paper examines some of the risks and challenges for business in today’s digitally enabled
marketplace.4
It also provides signposts to some of the opportunities relating to CSR, specifically
the integration of CSR into communications and indeed core business strategies in the
digital age.
A key argument is that while most large companies are now investing sufficiently in their
online communications strategies and to some extent on ethical product development, few are
integrating their thinking across these areas to make the most of the investments being made.
Consequently, the remainder of this paper is divided into 2 sections. The first sets out key lessons
that all business leaders now need to take on board in the new circumstances. The second sets
out five principles developed by View to guide action in the digitally networked market.
Kyptonite Locks sales were adversely
affected after a video proving that the locks
could be broken with a ballpoint pen was
shared across the internet.
http://shannonc.blogs.com/
shannonsays/2004/10/prooving_the_cl.html
www.bikebiz.co.uk/daily-news/article.
php?id=4637
www.wired.com/news/
culture/0,1284,64987,00.html
3
“Online Corporate Reputation and Crisis Management”, The Wirthlin Report, V.13, No. 1, 02 2004, p4.
4
Also referred to here as ‘the networked market’.

5. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
1. In the networked market, a digital strategy is more than
just having a web site
Digital technology has transformed communications facilitating
knowledge sharing across time and space. Those of us with
connectivity have access to more information from more diverse
sources and we can share this information across our social networks
faster then ever before. Email, search, chatrooms, SMS/MMS,
pod casting and blogs are powerful tools that have changed the
communications landscape irrevocably.
Most companies now understand the importance of digital media
at least at a superficial level. In the UK broadband penetration has
reached 60% of the population, e-commerce is no longer new and
people are using digital channels, including mobile, for a variety
of purposes. Uses include searching for information to inform
purchasing and investment decisions, enhancing one’s
social network, banking, making job applications and interacting
with government.
Not surprisingly, people are also using these tools to organise around
issues of concern often with impressive results. In the 21st century,
the potential for digital tools to empower social networks should not
be underestimated.5
Yet in spite of this situation, many companies still have a very narrow
focus to their digital communications strategies. Often they miss the
opportunity to use the web to develop deeper relationships with a
full range of stakeholders. By focusing on their own often-narrow
communications objectives, they do not effectively contextualise
their strategies within the broader context of the networked market
and other relevant online initiatives. As a result, they are missing
many chances to strengthen their brand and use the medium to
proactively shape the debates relevant to their industry.
Coca Cola
The Killer Coke campaign, for example, effectively uses the Internet as
an awareness raising tool and in combination with a range of factors,
e.g. a more health conscious society, is undoubtedly contributing to
damaging Coke’s reputation.
http://killercoke.org/
www.cokewatch.org/
www.freeradicalmedia.com/cocacolaandexploitation.htm
Coke is addressing some of the issues raised by the campaign directly
on its website -
www2.cocacola.com/presscenter/company_statements.html
but is the company doing enough to manage these issues online?
Key lessons for the networked market
5
For a full discussion of the how the Internet is being used by citizens, please refer to
Howard Rheingold’s definitive text The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the
Electronic Frontier, (MIT Press: 1993)

6. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Key lessons for the networked market
2. The networked market means a more complex brand
management challenge
In the networked market, consumers and investors are assessing
brand integrity and consistency more easily and thoroughly than
in the past. People can search the Internet for information about a
company from many sources and can pass on information to each
other informally or through organised viral marketing campaigns.
The challenge of shaping what customers think about a particular
company has never been
more complex.
A recent BP strategy provides an interesting illustration of this point.
BP has embarked on a highly visible multi-channel campaign with
the intention of re-inventing itself as a ‘green’ business. BP’s digital
strategy includes targeting ‘influencers’ within their social networks
by advertising on reuters.com, ft.com, the economist.com, and a
range of other mainstream media sites. In the past, this might have
been enough.
Now, however, it has to consider that these influencers may be
accessing a wide range of divergent views on the company based
on alternative sources of information such as Corporate Watch and
Ethical Corporation Magazine
www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=290
www.ethicalcorp.com/content_list.asp?m=s
www.thecorporation.com/index.php
Consequently, rather than take BP’s green business campaign at
face value, some in BP’s stakeholder community may accuse BP of
“greenwashing”, i.e. trying to cover up perceived environmental
misdeeds or human rights abuses with clever marketing. The same
can be said for GE whose recent investment in green power looks
good on paper and on the web
http://ge.ecomagination.com/@v=03062006_1150@/index.html,
but does not eclipse its poor environmental record as evidenced
by the millions of dollars it has paid in fines for the damage it has
caused over the years.6
In the digital age, past and current mistakes may haunt companies
far into the future making people sceptical of what they perceive to
be empty marketing messages or outright manipulation. This is not
to say companies can’t change, but that trust is difficult to establish
and maintain and is usually based on consistent good behaviour over
sustained periods of time.
Not surprisingly, the green business trend is particularly common now in
the energy sector and relevant companies are using the web as well as
other channels to communicate their environmental objectives:
www.bpalternativenergy.com/liveassets/bp_internet/alternativenergy/
index.html
http://ge.ecomagination.com/@v=02262006_0953@/index.html
www.npower.com/At_home/Juice-clean_and_green/About_Juice.html
6
Joel Bakan, The Corporation, Constable Robinson Ltd, London: 2005. P 75-79.

7. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
2. The Networked Market Means a More Complex Brand
Management Challenge (...continued)
An additional related challenge is the fact that search engines
may direct people to unexpected information sources instantly
undermining carefully crafted reputations and expensive offline
campaigns. Type Proctor Gamble into google.co.uk, and the top
entries condemn the company for its alleged animal rights abuses
urging people to boycott its products.
www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=procter+%26+gamblebtnG=
Google+Searchmeta=cr%3DcountryUK%7CcountryGB.
In the networked market, what a company says can be contrasted
with what it does and with what ‘independent’ third parties have
to say about it. If these third parties are highly trusted NGOs, a
company’s position can be seriously undermined. In this regard
the campaigns against conflict diamonds run by Global Witness,
Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have been
particularly effective eventually leading to the Kimberly Process
(designed to exclude conflict diamonds from legitimate trade) and a
commitment from leading manufacturers like De Beers not to trade
in them.7
www.google.com/search?domains=hrw.orgsitesearch=www.hrw.
orghl=enie=ISO-8859-1q=diamondsGO.x=17GO.y=12,
www.hrw.org/editorials/2000/ken-sl-july.htm
Key lessons for the networked market
Some companies never fully recover their reputations. A high degree of
scepticism greeted Nestle’s recent foray into the fair trade market with
its launch of its fairly traded instant coffee due to its poor track record
which began many years ago when it marketed nutritionally deficient
baby formula in Africa. Bad feelings towards the company are still very
much alive as evidenced by the enduring baby milk campaign and the
recently launched Bodyshop Boycott triggered by L’Oreal’s recent take-
over of this highly regarded ethical business. (L’Oreal is in part-owned
by Nestle).
www.stopanimalcruelty.co.uk/bodyshop/
www.babymilkaction.org/
7
That said, it should be noted that the story does not end with establishing the Kimberly
process – there are still many issues in the diamond trade to be overcome, for more
information see www.diamonds.net/selectednews.asp?list=4

8. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
2. The Networked Market Means a More Complex Brand
Management Challenge (...continued)
Clearly, the best way to protect a brand is to ensure the company
develops values and practices, which it consistently communicates
and upholds both internally and externally. These policies and
practices are the infrastructure of an ethical company. In spite of
the complexities of operating in global markets, people now expect
companies to behave consistently at home and abroad. In the
networked market, people will be able to find out what is going on
in different parts of the world using a range of alternative sources of
information.
Shell is an interesting example in this regard. Although Shell has
had ongoing challenges with its brand integrity8
, it has established
comparatively open communications via its corporate website about
these issues.
www.shell.com/home/Framework?siteId=royal-enFC2=/royalen/
html/iwgen/environment_and_society/key_issues_and_topics/
zzz_lhn.htmlFC3=/royalen/html/iwgen/environment_and_society/
key_issues_and_topics/dir_issues_and_topics.html
In addition, the company’s close working relationship with reputable
NGOs has to a great extent helped protect its reputation through
difficult times. For example, Shell worked with Transparency
International, a leading NGO in the field of anti-corruption, creating
Business Principles for Countering Bribery helping to enhance Shell’s
credibility with in relation to this important practice area.9
Key lessons for the networked market
3. Cross-sector collaboration is a tool for effective brand
management
Increasingly, NGOs are helping companies develop their ethical
agendas. For companies this can, as in the case of Shell, offer a
kind of brand insurance and protection since NGOs can provide
them with the insights they need into the social, economic and
environmental concerns that their own operations might be
impacting upon. Moreover, as public trust in NGOs is generally
high10
, businesses can benefit from association with them. For many
NGOs, the collaboration can offer a real opportunity to influence
business practices in a new ethical direction and have
a wider impact.
The importance of this cross sector collaboration has also increased
in recent times as the private sector has been drawn into new
practice areas. Public-private partnerships, in which the private sector
organisations play a bigger role in the delivery of public services,
expose business to accountability measures that go beyond the
shareholder community and onto the terrain of public satisfaction
and democratic accountability. Again, NGOs and their wider
social networks can help business to understand and adapt to the
challenges in these areas.11
8
For example over Brentspar, the size of its oil reserves, and its ongoing problems in Nigeria where militants claim its operations continue to contaminate water sources and keep local
people impoverished.
9
www.transparency.org/global_priorities/private_sector/business_principles
10
See www.edelman.com/insights/
11
For example, see www.oxfam.org.uk/what_we_do/issues/livelihoods/unilever.htm for an evaluation of Unilever’s impact on poverty reduction in Indonesia conducted by Oxfam

9. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Vodafone has created a new product
marketing division focusing on products
with a high social value.
3. Cross-sector collaboration is a tool for
effective brand management
The situation moreover, can be a win-win
since cross-sector collaboration is becoming
an increasingly common and effective way to
address some of the world’s most complex
social, environmental and health problems
and there are a growing number of examples
of such partnerships. An interesting one is
Pfizer’s partnership with the Edna McConnell
Clark Foundation to address the devastating
effects of the eye disease trachoma. The
Clark Foundation had spent 25 years funding
research and through its partnership with
Pfizer had an opportunity to leverage this
experience and see its research applied
in affected communities. For Pfizer the
partnership provided the opportunity to put
its value of providing care to those in need in
action. Together they’ve been able to make a
greater impact than either of them could have
achieved on their own.12
4. Launching ethical products and/or
creating social product marketing
divisions is a further possible response
Increasingly, not only are the boundaries
between the sectors becoming less clear, but
new approaches within organisations are
emerging too. Vodafone, for example, has
created a new product marketing division
focusing on products with a high social value.
While there may be clear business benefits for
Vodafone to design products for people,
in this case, with disabilities, it can also be
argued that these customer segments can
benefit from greater access to the modern
communication tools that Vodafone provides.
However, Vodafone cannot build good
reputation and social value in one area of
its operations alone. An equally pertinent
question for Vodafone, given its new direction,
is how it then deals with the brand consistency
issues relating to some of its other product
categories such as adult content. In this
regard, its child protection policies are vitally
important and provide necessary back up to
its ethical positioning and new social product
division.
http://online.vodafone.co.uk/dispatch/
Portal/appmanager/vodafone/wrp?_
nfpb=true_pageLabel=Page_BOS_
MainContentpageID=AV_0043
Key lessons for the networked market
12
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item.jhtml?id=1731t=nonprofit

10. Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
5. Smart companies use interactive applications to build
stakeholder engagement and improve market intelligence
Being responsive to people’s needs is obviously a great way to
extend good will as well as develop new business opportunities.
In practice, this means being in touch with your target audiences
through stakeholder research and other proactive engagement
strategies.
Of course, for many industries (e.g. mining, energy,
telecommunications), ongoing stakeholder engagement is the key to
retaining a license to operate and potentially to securing competitor
advantage. In short, it is simply good business. But what was
previously only seen as good business for some is now good business
for all and companies should continuously develop their relationships
with key stakeholders.
In this regard, digital channels are ideal instruments. Due to their
‘2-way’ capabilities, they can easily be used to build relationships
and gather important market intelligence. For example, targeted
opt-in subscription services (e.g. email newsletters, mobile alerts)
can keep stakeholders up to date on the availability of information
they are seeking, while online surveys can be used to inform content
strategies and validate designs to ensure positive and credible brand
experiences are provided online. Extensive use of feedback forms,
product reviews, and other interactive features including discussion
forums, polls, ratings, and referrals are mechanisms companies can
use to build both a sense of community online but also a sense of
shared ownership, commitment and brand loyalty. If people are
happy with what a company has to offer they will use their digital
social networks to spread the word.
Key lessons for the networked market
Several years ago, in response to concerns about its lack of transparency
and possible involvement in human rights abuses, particularly in Nigeria,
Shell launched an online forum, ‘Tell Shell’ to enable its stakeholders to
communicate with each other and with Shell about issues of concern.
Digital technology has helped transform people from passive receivers
of information to content creators and internet users generally expect
to be able to have their say. Having this functionality communicated a
great message about Shell’s new openness and offered the company
new sources of information about its own business and its impact
on others.
Engagement and Improve Market Intelligence Although the ‘Tell Shell’
strategy is currently being reworked, other companies can benefit
from the lessons learned. Indeed the time may now have come for
major companies to consider more structured approaches to online
stakeholder engagement including moderated online events and
consultations, giving people online access to key decision makers which
in turn can help inform company strategy and, potentially, new product
development.
To view the Tell Shell archive visit:
www.shell.com/home/tellshellen/html/iwgen/tell_shell/app_frame_
tellshell.html

11. 10 Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Key lessons for the networked market
If you work in a controversial sector, why not try to help shape and
stimulate debate by hosting topical forums on your site? The French
nuclear energy company Areva provides expert views on topical energy
issues from their own company as well as other organisations. They also
invite interested stakeholders to register to join their discussion forums.
This enables them to use the digital channel to develop relationships
and gain insights without having everything played out in public. By
publishing summaries of these discussions they could take this process
a step further providing a greater degree of transparency while creating
interesting content for their site.
www.areva.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=arevagroup_en%2F
Opinion%2FOpinionFullTemplatecid=1052727346067theme=1052
727345296
6. Success requires a focus on content
Taking full advantage of the new opportunities while managing
the new risks to corporate brands requires effort and ongoing
investment. Many companies launch their corporate websites
and then leave their content to stagnate. However, people expect
dynamic and interactive content on the web and a digital media
savvy approach is required if companies really want to extract value
from their corporate web sites. Moreover, research suggests that if
companies proactively use their web sites to deal with challenging
issues, they can potentially minimise reputational damage as most
people will seek to validate negative information by visiting a
company’s website.13
Given the exponential impact email forwarding can have, use opt-in
email newsletters or SMS alerts to communicate on an ongoing
basis and not just during times of crisis is highly recommended.
In addition, dynamic, accessible and topical content capturing the
hearts and minds of stakeholders is essential on digital channels,
especially for non-transactional sites, as people not only need to be
able to find what they are looking for, but also to have a reason to
come back.
13
“Online Corporate Reputation and Crisis Management”, The Wirthlin Report, V.13,
No. 1, 02 2004, p3.9.

12. 11 Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
6. Success requires a focus on content
An editorial strategy should be developed and suitable resources
allocated. It is not enough though to reproduce printed materials
online. The real power of the web is through digital storytelling.
That means providing contextual links, cross-referencing to relevant
external sources, and the appropriate use of interactivity
and multi-media.
Most companies have vast amounts of interesting and relevant
content buried too deeply inside their corporate web sites for
anyone to take notice of it. However, with the right approach, it can
quite easily be adapted and enriched for the online environment.
That said, ideally content should be created on a bespoke basis with
the unique features of digital channels in mind.
Most companies miss the opportunity to give their perspective
on controversial issues in spite of the fact that many people go to
corporate websites to find out about corporate positions on the key
issues. British American Tobacco is an exception in this regard:
www.bat.com/oneweb/sites/uk__3mnfen.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO6
HADSB?opendocumentSID=DTC=TMP=1
Large companies need to devise responsible content and editorial
strategies that will reinforce brand integrity and transparency and
help build trust. Efforts should be made to demystify the company
and its activities within its industry sector (including lobbying) to
facilitate a broader understanding of its public policy positions.
Explaining the way the business works in an open and transparent
manner will bring rewards in terms of brand integrity. Inclusion of
the perspectives of consumers, local communities and independent
third parties will further enhance transparency and credibility.
Key lessons for the networked market
14
The Global Reporting Initiative, for example, is aiming to standadise reporting:
www.globalreporting.org/
This process is beginning to happen. CSR reporting online is on the
increase. Indeed some companies including Rio Tinto and GSK only
report online. It is therefore vitally important to make the most of the
online medium by providing frequent updates relating to progress on
key issues. Reporting is an area where forward-thinking businesses can
break new ground. In the digital age, reporting need not and should
not be an annual event. Moreover companies should consider providing
their report information in more engaging and interactive formats. All
the effort that goes into reporting to expert audiences can be leveraged
to enhance corporate reputations with the right editorial approach for
more general users.
In addition, to give the report greater substance and make comparisons
easier, clear targets should be established and reported against on a
sector wide basis.14
CSR reporting online is on the increase.
Indeed some companies including Rio
Tinto and GSK only report online.

13. 12 Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
7. Your brand values need to be embedded in the search engine marketplace
Search engines, however imperfect, are still the most widely used tools people use to find
information online. It is therefore important to understand how to create content and code to
optimise your search engine results.
In addition, basing promotion and content strategies on how people actually search for
information will help make them more effective. So in addition to monitoring search engines
for ‘sabotage’ as with the PG example sited earlier, it is important for a business to identify
the subjects and key words it wants to be associated with and to align itself accordingly. This
alignment can then be strengthened through the provision of balanced editorial content online
and other relevant online resources.
If, for example, a company can legitimately claim to help a certain condition or provide
substantial relevant online information resources in relation to it, then it can optimise for high
rankings or even purchase sponsored links for the most commonly used related search terms.
Such efforts can be extended to social marketing campaigns and other sponsorship activities
that can be advertised on search engines and other high traffic media sites as a means of raising
public awareness about issues as well as company profile.
www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=c
lean+%2B+coalbtnG=Google+Search
meta=
www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=fai
r+%2B+tradebtnG=Searchmeta=
Key lessons for the networked market

14. 13 Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Conclusions and forward looking principles
In the networked market, companies need to move away from simply ‘managing’ perceptions
and reputations and actually ensure their values, actions, and indeed core product offers are in
alignment with their ethical positioning. It is pointless developing great policies unless they are
going to be consistently implemented. Because today, people will use their digitally enhanced
social networks to speak out and potentially take action against your company.
The best defence is to make good products, provide good services, and behave consistently in
an ethical and responsible manner while using new media to bring the full range of stakeholders
into what is in effect an extended version of the enterprise. You can then employ someone to
evangelise on your behalf without being accused of hypocrisy. Moreover, your customers will
become your advocates and do the job of selling for you.
Getting there is a challenge but one most companies can meet if they stick to the following
principles developed by View:
Principle 1: Practice responsible communications
In the networked market, your stakeholders can cross check information from many sources.
Whenever possible, your company should address controversial issues proactively and holistically.
Don’t be afraid to include the perspectives of your critics. Moreover, independent evaluations
should be conducted for all community engagement and environmental programmes to ensure
that positive claims are credibly validated. Ideally, these trusted third parties should also help you
set meaningful targets. Finally, always include testimonials from your intended beneficiaries; don’t
just use their pictures. You do not want to be accused of mis-appropriating their images.
Principle 2. Communicate to the highest common denominator
Keep ethical consumers, activists and discerning prospective employees in mind when devising
communications strategies. These influencers are the people who will cause your business the
most damage in the new environment, so make sure you understand and cater to their needs
and expectations. Market awareness of ethical issues is on the increase and you need to position
yourself accordingly. You will also be seen to be helping to develop the ethical market if you take
the lead.
Principle 3: Meaningfully engage with stakeholders
In order to understand the needs of key stakeholders and influencers, leverage the potential
of digital channels to develop relationships and gather market insights. Conduct regular online
surveys and face to face interviews to ensure that your strategies are effective otherwise your
online investment may be wasted. It is equally important to invest in tools (e.g. subscription
services, editorial content, discussion forums) that will help you build relationships with
stakeholders based on their information requirements as well as your need to get your
perspective across to them.
Robert Scoble, for example, has
done a great job blogging for
Microsoft but his impact would be
even greater if his employer had
fewer anti-competitive lawsuits in
the courts, that is greater
brand integrity.
http://scobleizer.wordpress.com/

15. 14 Nowhere to hide - Sustaining trust in the digital age
Principle 4: Make sure your digital communications objectives are joined up with your
broader corporate strategy.
Due to the inherent challenges of managing brand consistency in the networked market, it is
essential that company departments work together effectively. That means integrating CSR into
digital communications and core business strategies. It is essential to have a good infrastructure
in place to ensure you have positive and credible stories to communicate.
Principle 5: Invest appropriately in your digital strategy and use channels to their
full potential
Digital tools are incredibly powerful, are evolving rapidly, and enjoying increasing uptake and
penetration. Digital strategies therefore need to befluid and responsive to evolving stakeholder
expectations and new technological developments that can enhance communications and
support your business objectives. It is therefore essential for you to monitor developments and
trends to ensure you are making the most of the potential of digital channels and investing
accordingly. The internet has a key role to play in shaping as well as managing your corporate
reputation, in the digital age you cannot afford to ignore it or let your strategy stagnate.
Conclusions and forward looking principles