The ROI of Social Responsibility

As a business owner, your main focus is your business. You are responsible for the success of your organization, and often the last person who gets a vacation. Being a business owner is stressful, but also rewarding. However there are more rewards besides cash flow and business. We often forget that goodness is it’s own reward.

When your company has a social impact, you become more than just an industry-specific hub for services. You become an entity that people can trust and admire. There are clear PR benefits for volunteering, but let’s look beyond the headlines.

Yes, being a socially responsible company helps your reputation. It creates loyalty among your consumers and makes employees feel good for working. But most of all it creates positive change for the community. We all know of stories about hungry children, violence that takes innocent lives, and people struggling to find hope in the world. Social responsibility restores that hope, if only for a moment. Your money and time transforms into an immeasurable gesture of compassion and empathy.

Your margins won’t suffer from social responsibility. Your bottom line doesn’t demand a return on investment on good deeds. Your contribution doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. It just simply needs to happen, no matter the scale. Business owners can make an impact by:

• Making a company donation to a charity of your choice
• Create volunteer incentives for your employees and staff leaders
• Allow employees to promote important causes in meetings
• Set up a paid day off for volunteering
• Sponsor a charity event
• Share responsible content on your corporate social media channels

Whatever you do, a little good will can go a long way. Set aside some time to make an impact. It’s well worth the investment.