Ethical Branding: 3 Ways to Attract the Modern Customer

Today’s customers are becoming increasingly aware of and biased towards companies that prioritise their ethical impact. A survey from Accenture found that 62% of customers want companies to be more ethical, and a 2022 ecommerce report from Salsify found that some customers are willing to pay 50% more for a product that they consider to be making an impact. Therefore, ethical branding is not only good for attracting a new customer base, but also for maintaining customer bases. So how do you succeed at ethical branding? We’ve listed three tips below.

Pushing your human impact

When it comes to your branding, no matter what business you are in, your first message to the customers should be how you are improving the world around you. One way to do that is by pushing your human impact. For example, REAC Group is a Swedish high quality linear actuator production company. Amongst other things, their linear actuators are used for powerful industrial purposes, such as boat engines and other heavy-lifting industrial equipment. However, they have made their main point of organization purpose to help disabled people live a more comfortable and value-filled life.

In other words, even though wheelchairs and disabled accessibility is only one part of their focus, they have set the human aspect in focus and therefore stand out as a caring company. As such they are not only likely to reach better clientele, but also likely to have an advantage in the recruiting process, as many workers are also seeking out companies that are valuing ethical aspects highly.

Increasing your local ethical presence

Whether you are a large global company or a small local one, showing that your company puts its values into real action is a great way of conducting ethical branding. By doing community service or making other public appearances at ethical events such as charity races and such, your company builds credibility and the eye of the consumer.

A great example of this is British world-leading game developer Microgaming. Microgaming has made the most out of its office on Isle of Man, by seeing it as an opportunity to build its ethical brand. On their webpage, they’ve included a whole section to their “Play It Forward” programme, in which they have tracked and described how the company and its employees help make an ethical change for people, places, and the planet. By being transparent, the company has been able to build customer trust, despite being in a relatively controversial market.

Choosing your ethical impact

If your company is only now deciding to increase your ethical branding it may be difficult to start, especially if your company is geographically placed outside of cities where charity events and organisations are frequently found. A good starting place for brainstorming what impact you’d like to make is by looking at the UN 17 global impact goals. These 17 goals are crises that the world is facing today, and the United Nations has even compiled some information on how businesses around the world can work for their cause.