Let's Talk About Social Responsibility

One of the environmental factors that affect businesses and in turn affect the way businesses market is social responsibility. I'm a big believer of investing part of a business's resources to the greater good of the local, national or global community.

I also understand that photography is an incredibly powerful marketing tool and that people and problems that affect us directly or indirectly and it is our responsibility to lend our skills to those who may not have the resources to hire a professional photographer.

Many photographers (of all kinds) will take on the task of devoting part of their year to shed light to a cause that they are passionate about. Here are some examples:

-Locally, photographer & professor John Willis of Southern Vermont founded the Insight Photography Project and provides subsidized photography classes for young residents of surrounding towns.

-Celebrity photographer, Jeremy Cowart started the Help Portrait project to connect photographers to people in their communities that may need photography services but can't afford it.

-Commercial photographer Chase Jarvis founded the website CreativeLive as a way to democratize learning. For the past year they've had free video lessons on how to build your website, on photography and on watercolor. He's brought some of the best photographers in the industry (including above-mentioned Jeremy Cowart) to teach anyone with a computer and internet connection to improve their skills.

-And finally, photographer Chris Jordan paid a visit to Midway Island to photograph birds who died from consumption of the bitsand pieces of plastic we litter and throw into the ocean every year.

This kind of social responsibility accomplishes two things: 1. It sheds light on an important issue and brings a solution 2. It is a way of marketing.

Knowing that you are hiring somebody who is not simply interested in profits but also cares about the community will give clients added satisfaction when using their services. This is why this is an important thing to consider when marketing a brand or product.

Can you think of any other companies that use social responsibility to complement their marketing strategies or their business plans?