Sharpen Your Corporate Communication Skills! [1]Elements of Today's Attractive Companies as Seen Through Corporate Appeal Surveys
Trust, the fundamental principle of business, remains as vital today as it was in the past. We now live in an era where not only the brand power of the product itself, but also the "trust" and "reputation" of the seller further enhance the product's added value and brand.
This series, titled "Hone Your Corporate Communication Skills!", will be based on various surveys and research conducted by the Corporate Communications Strategy Institute at Dentsu Inc. Public Relations.
The first installment will report over five parts, starting with the findings from the second "Corporate Attractiveness Survey 2017" conducted in March 2017.
Point
Corporate actions directly translate into appeal.
・"Corporate appeal" originates from within the company and is recognized externally through its actions.
・Corporate appeal consists of three elements: "human appeal," "company appeal," and "product appeal." ・Based on pure recall results, consumers evaluate companies not just by products/services, but holistically.
・A company's response after scandals or issues significantly influences its appeal.
Corporate Actions That Capture Consumer Attention
In recent years, consumers increasingly evaluate not only a company's products and services but also its actions (Fact※) from various angles. Their consumption and investment behaviors often change based on these evaluations.
※Corporate actions themselves and the fact-based corporate elements associated with them.
For example, when a company causes a scandal, not only the scandal itself but also the company's response and stance spread widely on social media. This often leads to a decline in product and service sales and a direct hit to the stock price, which reflects corporate value.
Conversely, when a company takes positive actions, this often spreads on social media, increasing its fan base, boosting product and service sales, and driving up its stock price.
These examples demonstrate that future marketing requires not just products or services, but the corporate entity itself—with its corporate personality—to earn consumer support. Consequently, it has become crucial for companies to understand what actions consumers find appealing and supportive.
Focusing on the Increasingly Important "Charm"
"Charm" means "the power to attract and captivate people."
The Corporate Public Relations Strategy Institute defines "corporate appeal" as something that arises from within the company and is recognized externally through its actions.
The increasing use of the term "appeal" in media coverage also underscores the growing importance of "corporate appeal."
Three Elements of the Corporate Appeal Model
The Corporate Public Relations Strategy Research Institute conducted its second annual "Corporate Appeal Survey," focusing on the "appeal" that bridges the actions of companies and organizations with the evaluations of consumers.
*Reference: Features of the Appeal Survey and 2016 Survey Results
This survey is an internet-based study of 10,000 consumers aged 20-69, with 1,000 respondents from each of 10 industries. It asks about industries perceived as attractive, companies perceived as attractive, the elements that make them attractive, and information sources. The target companies include 150 firms across 10 industries. Starting this year, the survey also asks about expected future actions from companies and industries, as well as social issues.
The Corporate Attractiveness Model was developed by examining SDGs, governance codes, various brand and reputation evaluation metrics, and incorporating insights from our institute. It classifies the actions consumers and investors expect from companies (Fact) into 3 axes (People, Company, Product) × 6 domains (Leadership, Risk/Governance Response, Solution Capability, etc.), analyzing them through three elements: "Human Appeal," "Corporate Appeal," and "Product Appeal."
For each of the 150 surveyed companies, analysis of these three elements is possible by consumer demographic.
Elements of Attractive Companies Based on 10,000 Pure Mention Responses
Before explaining the survey results using this model, we examine what consumers perceive as the "Fact" of attractive companies based on the results of 10,000 people's pure recall.
Without presenting any industry or company names, we mapped the top 30 words derived from text obtained by asking respondents to name companies they found attractive and provide their reasons (free-form responses). A closer look reveals that appeal can be broadly divided into two categories.
The first relates to the president's management skills, philosophy, corporate culture, employees, compensation, work environment, and industry positioning (e.g., being a representative Japanese company). In the corporate appeal model, this corresponds to words associated with "human appeal" and "corporate appeal."
A current characteristic is the appeal found in the active participation of women and the work styles of employees featured on TV programs.
Television commercials also form a significant category, with consumers clearly perceiving corporate appeal directly from the ads themselves.
The second category centers on the products and services themselves, featuring words that correspond to "Product Appeal." Here, the characteristic is that consumers derive appeal from tangible facts—such as design, taste, or user experience from personal experience, quality, or the application of cutting-edge technology in products.
A notable point is the mention of staff interactions. It suggests that appeal may reside in the details of corporate behavior.
This year's top-ranked company in corporate appeal is in the food industry. What we discovered by unraveling the reasons behind this
As mentioned in the recently released 2017 appeal survey results, consumers tend to value "human appeal" (particularly leadership). Here, we examine why the "food industry," ranked 6th last year, surged to 1st place this year.
The primary driver boosting the food industry's appeal in this year's survey was again the growth in human appeal. However, within specific items, "After-sales service and inquiry handling are thorough" saw a significant increase of 245 points compared to last year, reaching 178% of the previous year's score.
This result stems directly from the industry-wide scandals criticized by the public from 2015 to 2016. Nationwide reports of incidents like "foreign objects in instant cup noodles," "resale of discarded frozen foods," and "major food chain ingredient fraud" significantly impacted the results of the first Corporate Appeal Survey.
Reflecting on these issues that shook the food industry, companies have sincerely addressed problems over the past year or two, prioritized consumer needs, and improved corporate conduct. The results of the second survey reflect this progress.
This trend is also evident in media coverage from 2016 through February 2017, following the first survey. The past year saw numerous corporate actions: companies proactively initiating voluntary recalls immediately after problems emerged; treating issues originating in one part of the organization as company-wide problems and publishing response rules; and directly incorporating consumer feedback into websites and products.
Of course, companies in the food industry that had long practiced proper conduct were recognized anew as attractive enterprises within this trend, and their enhanced evaluations were a major factor in pushing their rankings upward.
Summary: Corporate actions directly translate into appeal
● "Corporate appeal" arises from within the company and is recognized externally through its actions.
● Corporate appeal is composed of three elements: "human appeal," "corporate appeal," and "product appeal."
● Based on pure recall results, consumers evaluate companies holistically, not just by their products or services.
● A company's response after scandals or issues significantly influences its appeal.
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Author
Ryōsuke Hashimoto
PR Consulting Dentsu Inc.
After engaging in research on public policy and public communication at a major think tank, he joined Dentsu Inc. Public Relations. Since joining, he has focused on life sciences, handling planning and consulting for government agencies, academic organizations, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and food and beverage manufacturers. During this time, he was also involved in introducing initiatives like social listening within the concurrently managed business development section. Currently, his work centers on data-driven content development, information distribution design, and corporate communication strategy.
