In our increasingly consumer-conscious world, it is vital for your brand to demonstrate the social and environmental value it is creating, effectively and authentically. Those that fail to go beyond ticking the box, risk falling behind and losing trust.
Social value is all about the importance we place on the experiences in our lives. These are not monetary values. These are the well-being values we embrace, for example, green spaces, learning new skills, and improving people’s quality of life and their communities.
The UK public sector is placing increasing importance on social value in the way they plan and implement projects and placemaking. Making social value central to improvements increases the efficiency of public services, and results in healthier, happier communities. Social value can also contribute to decreased demands of public finances and long-term sustainable outcomes.
Adopting social values at the heart of your projects makes good business sense, particularly for those developing services and solutions. By authentically taking social values into account as part of your communications and marketing strategy, brands can set out clear and tangible objectives in their project proposals to define positive outcomes for people, society, and budget management.
What’s more, collaborating with end users provides more assurance that projects will deliver what people need.
If your project, product, or service takes social values seriously, it will take on board the views, opinions and requirements of the people who will benefit most from the outcomes – your stakeholders or service users.
Business leaders and brands are increasingly realising the benefit of listening to stakeholders, both internal and external, bringing them closely on the journey, to help shape and steer outputs which ultimately deliver what people need and want.
Service providers also feel more connected to the customers and communities they serve. By working side by side with end users, providers obtain a greater understanding of the challenges, needs and desires of their customers. They might gain an acute understanding of the little things that can make a huge impact on people’s lives. As a result, providers can feel more confident that they are getting it right for their customers, making for happier employees who deliver more and feel their work is valuable and relevant.
Preneur helps our members understand and better communicate the social, environmental, and economic value you are creating and position your organisation as a key player in today’s purpose-driven world.
We’d love to talk to you about your ESG plans.