Company Advertising with a Social Dimension: The Role of Noneconomic Criteria

The author examines company advertising campaigns with social dimensions and compares them to matched standard, or nonsocial, campaigns. The author investigates the managers' objectives for the campaigns with social dimensions, examines the processes creating them, and develops a model for explaining success factors. Most campaigns have mixed objectives, both economic and social, which have many implications. Although these campaigns are not particularly effective in achieving traditional economic objectives, such as increasing sales, they are highly effective in achieving company-oriented objectives, such as motivating the work force or communicating the essence of the company's mission. Drawing on research and theory related to organizational identification, the author discusses causal mechanisms underlying social campaigns' effectiveness with company-oriented objectives and presents directions for further research. Ethical considerations and managerial implications are discussed, as well.