15 Things Brands Can Do To Be Kinder

It is important for brands to be more accountable to society, from investing back into the communities they serve, reducing single-use plastic and waste, to creating people-first organizations that are diverse and inclusive. Many brands are looking to reduce their environmental impact, including industry leaders that are B-Corp-certified. Others are focused on humanizing business and putting people as their core priority over profits. No matter where your brand sits today, here’s a list of things you can do to make your brand kinder.

15 Things Brands Can Do to Be Kinder. It features 15 practical things organizations can do to be more ethical, sustainable and to have a people-first culture.

1) Give employees paid time off to volunteer

When people do good, they feel good. Helping others gives us a mood boost, so providing employees with an opportunity to give back to their communities can be a great way to boost morale and help others while you are at it.

2) Develop eco-friendly brand assets

For brand activations, mailers or any other brand asset, consider a digital version or one that is made of sustainable materials that can help reduce waste. Plan to create assets that can be used over a long period of time. Where possible, choose materials that are recyclable. If they are not recyclable, consider whether they may be donated or repurposed. Taking the time to get the right event strategy in place can mean you have a brand activation that can be used over multiple events. This helps reduce the waste of each activation.

3) Develop a corporate social responsibility strategy and empower staff to contribute.

Many companies have a CSR strategy in place, but not all companies have ways for their teams to actively contribute. Getting employees to rally behind a cause can significantly increase the overall impact and create a stronger connection to your company's good work.

4) Support the arts and partner with artists

Brands have a unique opportunity to raise awareness in the arts community. The arts are consistently struggling for funding, and brands have an opportunity to help bring arts and culture to our communities. From hiring a local artist to paint a mural on your building to incorporating musical talent into your events or ads, supporting artists is a great way to give back to your community.

5) Remove pain points for your customers

Take time to think about the brand experience. What pain points do your customers face when working with you? If it’s a retail environment, how can you customize your services to meet your customer where they are? For example, Sephora offers shopping baskets that identify whether you’d like help or prefer to be left alone. Consider what your customer may want or need at that moment and enhance their experience. Taking a customer-first approach can help demonstrate you are a company that is thoughtful and kind.

6) Partner with a charity

Next time you plan a brand activation, look for opportunities to give back to a local charity that aligns with your corporate vision or values.

7) Support taking mental health/personal days

While many organizations are adding mental health/ personal days to their benefit plans, it’s helpful for leaders to model taking these days. It’s easier to express the need to take a mental health/personal day when you know your manager/leadership team will support you.

8) Take a thoughtful approach to employee onboarding

This might seem obvious, but what is second nature to you as a brand, might be news to a fresh hire. Taking time to develop systems for onboarding that include social time for meeting the team, training on processes and procedures, and a dedicated buddy to answer questions during those first months can be invaluable. New employees can become brand advocates if great care is taken to help them with their sense of belonging within the organization.

9) Provide anti-racism & discrimination training

People run brands, and people innately have biases whether we like to admit it or not. Take the time to develop a strategy to educate teams on how to be anti-racist. Anti-racism training will help brands uncover where they are falling short and the actions they can take to be more inclusive. Non-inclusive workplaces are in the highest for toxic culture which contributes to attrition. Help fight toxic culture by holding company-wide training with professional diversity and inclusion consultants.

10) Invest in your people

When you invest in your people, they are more likely to be engaged and invest in their job. Putting people first provides the foundation for long-term employees. Long term employees are good for business.

11) Work with partners that are as accountable as you are

As a brand, you may be doing a great job, but are the vendors, partners, and clients you work with holding themselves to the same standard? Take the time to vet the processes, policies, procedures and values of your partners. When we hold ourselves to a high standard, we can push for others to meet or exceed our expectations. This can be anything from sustainability practices, to equitable workforces, to ensuring they don’t do business with businesses that are negatively impacting our planet/health (Tobacco, fossil fuels etc).

12) Offer paid internships

Starting your career is hard. Starting your career with debt and no paycheque is nearly impossible. Help people get experience in your industry while helping them pay for their living expenses. If your company takes on internships, pay them. They bring value to your company and should be compensated for their ideas and contributions.

13) Measure and correct gender pay gaps

It takes courage to evaluate your biases and recognize where you’re falling short. Take the time to audit your pay structures and amend them as needed. There should not be a pay discrepancy based on gender. Take action to ensure your business isn’t one that has a gender pay gap.

14) Provide internships and mentoring programs for marginalized or racialized groups and new Canadians

Gain new perspectives in your company by hiring and mentoring talent from multicultural backgrounds. Our businesses need to reflect our societies and should include diverse perspectives and backgrounds.

15) Remember, every dollar spent is a vote for the type of business you want to be

Remember that your dollars provide support for other businesses’ health. Where do you want to put that support? Consider supporting local, not only does that reduce the carbon footprint to get the items to you, you are also supporting the local economy. Use your money to support businesses that align with your values. Perhaps you might choose to support other businesses that are taking a sustainable approach. Or ones that are helping others in need. Sometimes working with a local or new business might require a little more effort but the payoff of having a personal connection to the company you are supporting is well worth the extra effort.

As we look for ways to be kinder to each other and the planet, we must consider how we can show up as better brands. Is there room for more kindness in your organization?

About KindCo

KindCo is a Vancouver-based brand engagement consultancy that specializes in employee engagement and corporate events. We bring people together through the art of gathering.

Founder, Nikki Hedstrom, has over 15 years experience as a brand engagement and event specialist.