Impact of CSR on brand attention: A

study on Tesco

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Contents
Impact of CSR on brand attention: A study on Tesco...........................................................................1

Chapter 1: Introduction....................................................................................................................3

Research Background..................................................................................................................3

Research Aim and objectives.......................................................................................................3

Research Questions......................................................................................................................3

Research Rationale......................................................................................................................3

Chapter 2: Literature Review...........................................................................................................5

The Approaches of Corporate Social Responsibilities................................................................5

The Pyramid Model.................................................................................................................5

The Western Approaches to CSR............................................................................................6

Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility...............................................................................7

References........................................................................................................................................9

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Chapter 1: Introduction
Research Background
Tesco plc is a renowned retailer of groceries and lots of consumer products in the UK. This
company has been performing extraordinarily since its beginning in 1919. The firm has many
subsidiaries that make a contribution in different sections. The firm secured around 65 billion of
revenue last in 2020 maintaining proper growth. Tesco plc is a big company employing over 400
thousand employees in different countries (Tesco Plc, 2018). The company has a great reputation
in the market and among its customers for effective operation and management. The brand image
of the company can be improved through the application of Corporate Social Responsibilities in
its operations. The study focuses on understanding the use of Corporate Social Responsibility in
Tesco plc and how it can elevate the image of the brand through a systematic approach.

Research Aim and objectives

The aim of the research is to identify the effect of Corporate Social Responsibility on the brand
image of Tesco plc. The implementation of the project requires the researcher to follow some
objectives that would accelerate the achievement of the projected outcome. The objectives for
this research are given here.
 Understanding the aspects of Corporate Social Responsibilities
 Analysing the Importance of CSR in improving brand image and attention
 Realising how Tesco plc utilises the process of CSR in its operations
 Designing suggestions for the firm to develop its CSR approaches

Research Questions
This research project would answer some questions relating to the objectives. They are discussed
here.
 What are the traits of CSR?
 How does CSR impact the brand image and attention?
 How does Tesco plc manage CSR in its activities?
 How can Tesco plc develop the CSR approaches?

Research Rationale
Corporate Social Responsibilities are the approaches that a firm takes to manage proper ethics
and morale in its activities. CSR has become one of the strongest strategies of companies around

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the globe. This practice is demonstrated in the annual reports of the company and the
promotional contents of the company (Rasche, 2017). This project would analyse the aspects of
CSR and its use in Tesco plc. This study can be related to the context of business management in
this era of tenacious business practices. The outcome of this result is crucial to understand the
proper procession of CSR that can bring effective brand identification.

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Chapter 2: Literature Review
A business firm has the primary goal to gain profit and growth in the market. The core tasks of
the firm involve product management, marketing sales and others. Corporate Social
Responsibility has become a revolutionary part of firms to engage with society and make
contributions outside of their ordinary course of work, reports Fernando (2021). The main driver
behind the approaches of CSR is the perception that a business gets many benefits from society.
Therefore, CSR is considered to be a way to give back to society and the environment. In fact, a
firm can gain a better image in the market with wide opportunities to grow and develop.

The Approaches of Corporate Social Responsibilities

There are various types of CSR that a firm can follow depending on its capabilities. Some of the
prominent CSR approaches are described here.

The Pyramid Model

Professor Archie B. Carroll came up with the model of CSR with a pyramid arrangement. This
model shows the stages for a firm to take approaches to CSR and also shows the scope of
application for each level.
Economic Responsibility: As a business entity, the core target of a firm is to gain profit and
become financially solvent. The stakeholders of the company including the shareholders,
employees, editors, tax collectors, managers and others greatly rely on this aspect as they also get
benefited when the firm is profitable. Therefore, the first stage occupying the biggest area in the
pyramid is economic responsibility. According to Thacker (2019), this is important for the
company to give back o the stakeholders with money and monetary benefits. Also, this step is
essential if a company aims to contribute to society.
Legal Responsibility: The government of a country sets some regulations for firms to follow.
These regulations are directed to make firms work in an arrangement that does not hurt the
interests of others. The leaders who are elected by the people impose these laws to save the rights
of humans. Perry (2020) believes that a business that wants to contribute to society and its people
should be respectful of these laws. Also, many of these laws exist to ensure the protection of the
environment which has become one of the most crucial issues in recent days.

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Ethical Responsibility: At this stage in the pyramid of Carroll, firms try to express their morale
through their actions. There are many situations where a company fall into a moral dilemma and
falls into difficulty to find the correct decision. Sometimes, following all legal aspects might
become hard. In those cases, firms need to follow the ethical aspects properly, states Tipton
(2019). For example, if any employee gets harmed physically on their way of coming to the firm,
the legal directions might not allow any sort of compensation to the company. But the firm can
act ethically and provide financial and psychological support to the injured employee. An ethical
approach is a great way to serve society and stakeholders.
Philanthropic Responsibility: The final stage of Carroll’s pyramid of CSR contains
philanthropic responsibilities. This stage has the most direct relation to CSR where firms put
efforts and resources keeping the target of helping others in mind. Peppemexpect companies to
do something positive for the community. There are many ways for firms to become
philanthropic, report Lee, Kim and Roh (2019). This includes supporting charities, leading
movements for social and environmental issues and others.

The Western Approaches to CSR

Another famous approach to Corporate Social Responsibilities is the Western method. This
method has five different branches. They are discussed here.
Classical: This approach is motivated by the economist Milton Friedman who believed that the
main way of executing corporate social responsibility is to invest in the development of
strategies and products through the resources that would allow firms to become more productive
and profitable. This practice keeps the competition among firms alive and beneficial, says
Monachino (2016).
Social Contract: The second approach named Social Contrast is the idea saying a firm relates to
society while completing the CSR tasks. This supports the idea that companies mainly devise
their CSR plan in a way that would satisfy people in the society, not the approaches that are
necessary beyond others perception, according to Fernando (2021).
Instrumental: This approach is used by many firms where the firm develops the CSR plan while
keeping the stakeholders in mind. This is a great approach that satisfies every party and helps
firms complete the process with less time, effort and money.
Legitimacy: This strategy is used by firms to gain public trust and legitimacy through the ways
of CSR. Tipton (2019) says that the firms utilise this approach in the beginning stage of their life

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or in times when any specific incident hurts the reputation of the company to gather support from
people.
Stakeholder Theory: The last part of the western approach is the stakeholder theory. This
process solely concerns the rights and demands of the stakeholders. The firms identify the need
of stakeholders and focus on making them happy which can also lead to better support from
people.

Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibilities is not just some activities that a firm execute to help people
and society. This practice can bring much good for the firms and improve their brand position in
the market. The core importance of CSR in business development is described here.
Employee Contribution: Employees play a crucial role in the betterment of a firm. They perform
their jobs and express productivity that helps firms gain effective results and outcomes.
Employees are motivated by the internal and external conditions of the workplace. According to
Heyward (2020), If a firm maintains CSR, it also takes care of the rights of the employees. They
make sure the workers are getting paid properly and receiving extra benefits out of their
extraordinary contribution. This practice can help employees feel connected to the firm. It also
ensures employee retention and satisfaction. When employees feel safe in a workplace, the
overall brand image of the firm gets elevated.
Customer Outlook: Customers go through many steps of psychological evaluation before
making any purchase decision. Murphy (2019) believes that if a firm establishes itself to be
beneficial to its stakeholders and society, customers feel safe to buy from it. Again, the CSR
activities of the company also create a perception in the mind of buyers that the products and
services of the firm would be top-notch and effective. This creates a positive customer reaction
and response which is essential for the brand image and attention of a company.
Investor Trust: Coleman (2019) says that a firm that has a reputed contribution to society and
philanthropic activities is considered to have an extensive financial condition. They are
perceived as a firm that executes its duties properly and maintains accountability to the
stakeholders. Again, CSR helps a firm show its responsibleness to current and potential
investors. Investors give money to the firm and expect reasonable returns. They put their money
to profitable and trusted firms that show proper contribution and projections. CSR activities are

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great strategies to gain attention and trust from the investors which help the company in the long
run.
Smart and Efficient Business: Business firms use CSR as the core strategy of their brand
recognition process. Almost all big firms are now contributing through CSR and being
considered as role-model for others. For example, Coca-cola has got succeeded in being one of
the global leaders in employing women and empowering them. This has made the firm more
noticeable than ever, reports Grosser, Mccarthy and Kilgour (2016). Unilever is going green in
almost every section of its activities and contributing to the environment. This helps the firm
stand out among competitors.
Competitive Advantage: Competitive advantage indicates having some specific trait and aspect
that is uncommon in the market and allows firms to overcome the competitors in the race.
Corporate Social Responsibility works as the source of gaining a competitive advantage in the
market. According to Grover (2014), Firms can attract customers, satisfy stakeholders, reatain
employees and promote CSR as the main strategy of their marketing campaign. Therefore, firms
can gain more attention and praise than their competitors through the proper utilisation of CSR.
The planning and implementation of CSR must be effective so that the contribution of the firm is
noticed by all to gain a competitive advantage.
Brand Awareness: Brand awareness indicates the level of recognition of a brand among the
customers and how people think of the firm by hearing its name. According to Blaszkiewicz
(2017), Corporate Social Responsibility can help firms gain brand awareness which is important
for increased sales and profitability. The process can also make a negative impact on people’s
minds. For example, Volkswagen promoted environment-friendly cars but knowingly avoided
the emission control regulation which actually harms the environment so much. This led to so
many criticisms and lower market value. Therefore, it is important for companies to be honest
with their CSR strategies and applications if they want to gain long-term positive brand
awareness.

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References
Blaszkiewicz, S. (2017). Do good, be great: 5 competitive advantages of corporate social
responsibility. [online] GetApp. Available at: https://www.getapp.com/resources/advantages-of-
corporate-social-responsibility/.

Coleman, A. (2019). The importance of corporate social responsibility in business. [online] The
Telegraph. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/ready-and-enabled/why-
corporate-social-responsibility-is-important/.

Fernando, J. (2021). Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). [online] Investopedia. Available at:
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/corp-social-responsibility.asp.

Grosser, K., Mccarthy, L. and Kilgour, M.A. (2016). Gender equality and responsible business :
expanding CSR horizons. Sheffield, Uk: Greenleaf Publishing.

Grover, A. (2014). Importance of CSR in Inclusive Development. Procedia - Social and

Behavioral Sciences, [online] 157, pp.103–108. Available at:
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Heyward, C. (2020). Council Post: The Growing Importance Of Social Responsibility In

Business. [online] Forbes. Available at:
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social-responsibility-in-business/?sh=261cb9752283 [Accessed 27 Jul. 2021].

Lee, S.S., Kim, Y. and Roh, T. (2019). Modified Pyramid of CSR for Corporate Image and
Customer Loyalty: Focusing on the Moderating Role of the CSR Experience. Sustainability,
11(17), p.4745.

Monachino, M.S. (2016). The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) approach as a framework
for business involvement in health promotion in the welfare state. Linköping University.

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Murphy, C. (2019). Why is social responsibility important to a business? [online] Investopedia.
Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/041015/why-social-responsibility-
important-business.asp.

Perry, P. (2020). Understanding & Applying Carroll’s Pyramid of Corporate Social

Responsibility. [online] Submittable Blog. Available at: https://blog.submittable.com/carrolls-
pyramid-of-corporate-social-responsibility/.

Rasche, A. (2017). Corporate Social Responsibility. Cambridge Univ Press.

Tesco Plc (2018). Tesco PLC. [online] Tesco plc. Available at: https://www.tescoplc.com/.

Thacker, H. (2019). Understanding the Four Levels of CSR - The CSR Journal. [online] The
CSR Journal. Available at: https://thecsrjournal.in/understanding-the-four-levels-of-csr/.

Tipton, F.J. (2019). What are the Different Approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility?
[online] My Law Questions. Available at: https://www.mylawquestions.com/what-are-the-
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