Message Framing in CSR Advertising on Social Media during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

In response to the environmental and social challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses are actively seeking ways to generate social benefits while also boosting their financial performance. Corporations are embracing corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices as a means to achieve this dual objective. This study aims to investigate how global corporations have responded to the pandemic by promoting their CSR commitments through CSR advertising. A quantitative content analysis was conducted to examine how leading global corporations promote their CSR practices on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the study examined CSR advertising posts from twelve global corporations’ Instagram accounts across the years 2019, 2020, and 2021, totaling 886 posts. The findings show that corporations immediately responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by adopting CSR practices in myriad areas of social concern and strategically framing those efforts through CSR advertising. This study contributes to the CSR literature by providing an instrument for scholars and practitioners to reevaluate the role of business and CSR initiatives during uncertain times. Furthermore, it highlights opportunities for corporations to prioritize CSR initiatives, not only during the pandemic but also in the long term, to achieve a balance between social, environmental, and economic goals.

Keywords

• corporate social responsibility advertising
• framing
• covid­19
• social media