As if things weren't interesting enough. . .

If it doesn’t drive revenue, create efficiencies, or enhance the brand in a tangible (read: measurable) way . . .

We all know how that sentence ends. It always takes place during budget discussions and strategy sessions. If a company is smart, then the strategy discussion will come first, rather than the other way around. If a company is really smart, then purpose will be a part of the equation. The companies that truly excel are the ones that understand the rapidly changing nature of the expectations of their audiences. 

Make no mistake, expectations are changing for everyone: customers, employees, journalists, investors — everyone! Credit or blame technology, just don’t doubt that people are no longer necessarily looking for price, promotion, product and placement. Today, stakeholders are looking for an environment that drives engagement, which creates an experience that results in an exchange. Simply put, they are looking for partners, not providers, and that’s a game changer. But how do you quantify it?

Return on Reputation is something we at Aflac feel we have cracked the code on. Through external benchmarking and a highly proprietary internal means of calculation, we are able to prove correlation, and by going the extra mile through multivariate regression analysis, causation can actually be proven to a statistically significant degree. This helps us connect the dots from purpose to profit in ways that our C-suite and board of directors can understand and bank on — literally.  

The transformation of Corporate Social Responsibility into Environmental, Social and Governance — in large part at the request of the investor community — presents a new opportunity to bolster a company’s authentic narrative around purpose in a way that may not yet be regulated in some cases outside of the governance piece. It also opens the door to materiality, codifying efforts in a way never before seen. That is important and will get communicators a lot closer to providing more direct endings to the statement that begins this piece.

Another area where communications teams have an opportunity to leverage the digital world is by engaging the aggregators to enhance reputation. Call it the new search engine optimization. If bots can pick up key words in a piece of content and then digitally activate a related, but unflattering, article from decades ago about a person or company, then why can’t communicators leverage artificial intelligence to generate a steady stream of positive content in a way that the aggregators further carry it forward for lists and accolades? The answer: We can, and some of us already are. The same rules must apply regarding disclosure and transparency. Fortunately, communicators, having served for decades as the ethical corporate conscience, are uniquely suited for this role. 

As budgets continue to tighten and expense ratios continue to experience pressure, the communicator’s ability to tie their efforts to revenue generation, streamlining expenses and brand health in ways that are factual, rather than intuitive, will set the course for the future of our industry. How are you driving revenues, creating efficiencies and enhancing your brand?