Corporate Social Responsibility as a Marketing Strategy: The Impact of CSR Initiatives on the Consumers’ Purchase Decisions

Driven by rapid economic development, a growing global population, and an accompanying increase in global production, a variety of global issues has emerged that constitute a threat to society. Consumers seem to demand ethical and socially responsible products and, as a consequence, more and more businesses have recognised the need to add value to consumers by incorporating Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in their strategies. Simultaneously, the concept of CSR and consumer responses to such initiatives have received much academic attention. While researchers agree that a shift of consumer values to more responsible products exists (Freestone & McGoldrick, 2008; Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001), others argue about the extent to which CSR initiatives play a role in the consumers’ purchase decisions (Öbersedern, Schlegelmich & Gruber, 2011; Carrington, Neville & Whitwell, 2010). This study explores the impact of CSR initiatives on the consumers’ purchase intentions. In particular the relationship between the consumers’ level of knowledge about CSR, consumer perceptions about a business’s motives to engage in CSR, CSR as a purchase criterion, and purchase intent were measured for significance. The study employs a quantitative research method, where consumer data is collected through a non-probability sampling approach and by means of an internet-mediated survey strategy. Here, the questionnaire was completed by a sample of 293 respondents. Partly consistent with the findings of existing literature, this study’s results suggest that the consumers’ awareness of CSR is relatively low, consumers have rather negative perceptions about a company’s motives to take socially responsible action, and CSR is little considered in their purchase decisions. However, only CSR as a purchase criterion as well as the consumers’ perceptions about two out of six motives for engaging in CSR programmes have a significant impact on their purchase decisions. These findings provide implications for businesses to pro-actively spread information about CSR, to increase their trustworthiness by positioning their motives to act socially responsible more clearly, and by avoiding to incorporate CSR programmes at the expense of higher prices