Should Companies Speak Out About Current Events? Experts Offer Advice

Over the last two years support has declined among nearly every American consumer demographic group when it comes to corporations publicly weighing in on social issues in the news, according to this year’s Bentley-Gallup Business In Society Report. Only 38% of respondents generally thought businesses should speak publicly on current events in this year’s survey.

The fall has been precipitous even among those most receptive to the mixing of business and issues. In 2022, for example, three-quarters of Democrats thought businesses should weigh in, but that view has declined by 22 percentage points.

This trend is no secret to those who counsel companies on how and when to take stands. It has led agency leaders to think deeply about how to best advise their clients.

To begin, leaders must decide what, if any, issues companies should address publicly.

Executives should evaluate which issues are of greatest concern to their employees and consumers, but “it is imperative the issue is of direct relevance to the business,” said Phillip Haid.founder of Public Inc., a 15-year-old social impact agency. “The further out the issue is to the mandate of the company the more trouble it could cause.”

If companies pick and choose wisely and demonstrate long-standing cause commitments then “speaking out becomes a no brainer,” said Haid whose client list has included such firms as Johnson & Johnson, NBCUniversal and Tiffany.

Narrowing a company’s issue focus is also beneficial because it can enable the enterprise to dedicate the funding, time and staff needed to be effective, explained Mollye Rhea, president of For Momentum, a firm she founded in 2003 to help businesses and nonprofits prosper through partnership.

“To maximize effectiveness and limited resources, we advise clients to prioritize initiatives that directly support core values. While it’s tempting to respond to every breaking news story, focusing on issues closely tied to your brand and key stakeholders will yield more sustainable results,” Rhea said.

Deciding what your company should speak out on and how should not be a spur of the moment decision, counseled Mark Feldman, managing director of Cause Consulting, a social impact and communications agency that has worked for such clients as Adobe, GoDaddy and Harman.

“Take the time now, during a non-crisis moment, to prepare for what is inevitably coming your way,” Feldman said. “Develop a customized decision framework and process with business, brand and values-based criteria to inform the necessity, type, and scale of action required. Align your team around what you stand for, and what is non-negotiable to your reputation and business.”

Picking issues and communicating about them effectively is a formidable, but not insurmountable task in the opinion of Andrew Bleeker, president of Bully Pulpit International which describes itself as “an outcomes agency at the intersection of business, politics and policy” that serves clients as different as Patagonia and Walmart.

“America is not as divided as the headlines lead most of us to believe,” Bleeker said.“Our politics might make it seem like we are in a 50/50 country. We aren’t. On virtually every issue that seems fraught, from reproductive rights and gay rights to immigration, climate change, and gun safety nearly 80% of Americans largely agree. The role of a communicator is to galvanize these audiences in a way that advances your brand.”

It will be fascinating to see how next year’s poll captures the impact of this year’s presidential election on how people think businesses should react to current events.