Nice guys finish first

by mtippett | July 13, 2007 at 08:41 am

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Social responsibility is the new black. It turns out that consumers actually do care if you're an evil bastard. So be good. It's good for business.

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- If you don't stand for a cause, consumers may stop buying your products.

That's according to the 2007 Cone Cause Evolution Survey, which finds that fully two-thirds of Americans consider a company's business practices when deciding what to buy. It also found that 87% of U.S. consumers would switch from one brand to another if the other brand was associated with a good cause, up 31% since 1993. According to Cone, 92% of consumers value companies that promote social issues, and 83% say companies have a responsibility to help support them.

Green may be the movement to gravitate towards, but it still ranks second to Americans' leading concern: health. With the environment becoming a hot-button issue this year, however, Ms. Cone said companies should look at protecting the environment as part of their business practices, along with diversity in the workplace.