Generating global brand equity through corporate social responsibility to key stakeholders

In this paper, we argue that corporate social responsibility (CSR) to various stakeholders (customers, shareholders, employees, suppliers, and community) has a positive effect on global brand equity (BE). In addition, policies aimed at satisfying community interests help reinforce the credibility of social responsibility policies with other stakeholders. We test these theoretical contentions by using panel data comprised of 57 global brands originating from 10 countries (USA, Japan, South Korea, France, UK, Italy, Germany, Finland, Switzerland, and The Netherlands) for the period from 2002 to 2008. Our findings show that CSR toward each of the stakeholder groups has a positive impact on global BE. In addition, global brands that follow local social responsibility policies in communities obtain strong positive benefits through the generation of BE, enhancing the positive effects of CSR toward other stakeholders, particularly customers. Therefore, for managers of global brands, when generating brand value, it is particularly effective to combine global strategies with the need to satisfy the interests of local communities. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.