Explicit Donations and Inferred Endorsements: Do Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives Suggest a Nonprofit Organization Endorsement?

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, while not necessarily intended to constitute and endorsement of the brand by the participating nonprofit organization, may nonetheless be perceived by consumers as such. Our experimental findings of two common types of CSR initiatives (licensing associations and cause-related marketing) suggest that not only can the method of presentation of CSR initiatives in advertising result in perceptions of nonprofit endorsement, but also may be entirely confused with explicit seals of approval. Heightened processing motivation either fails to correct the misperception of nonprofit endorsement or may even enhance its perception as a result of the presentation of the CSR initiative in an advertisment. Level of fit between the nonprofit and for-profit brand may also result in increased perception of endorsement. Given the positive effects of third-party endorsements, our results suggest that some CSR initiatives may result in consumer inferences that are inaccurate but desirable for the company, even while these inferences have potentially negative consequences for the nonprofit.