Beyond Profit: Why Measuring Social Impact is Good for Business
Contributed by Susie Fife, CEO, Red Orange Studio
If revenue is vanity, profit is sanity, and cash is king…then impact is heart. Business leaders know that there’s more to measuring the health and success of a company than dollar signs. That’s why we focus on culture and values, brand reputation and employee satisfaction – these are the heart of the business. We want to create an organization that does good in the world, not only for our bottom line, but also for our teams and our communities.
But how do you measure the good a company does? And how do you tell that story in a way that generates positivity – and ultimately contributes to making the business more successful?
The business case for social impact is simple – when you do good work in the world, you build trust, create community and leave a legacy.
Build Trust: Being transparent about how you monitor and measure social impact builds trust within a team as well as with clients and the community. Whether your goal is to reduce your carbon footprint or serve an underserved community, quantifying and sharing those efforts creates accountability. If we measure the things that matter, then let’s put some metrics to the good our companies are doing. And as we all know, people are more likely to do business with companies they trust.
Create Community: If you’ve recruited talent who share your company’s core values, then chances are they will rise to the challenge if asked to structure and measure the impact they’re making. As leaders, our role is to cast the vision and create the opportunity. But our teams are the ones who ultimately create impact through their passion, relationships and dedication. An engaged community is great for recruiting and retaining the best talent.
Leave a Legacy: Most leaders think about what kind of legacy they want to leave. We work hard in our businesses and we want that to matter in the end. How do you want to be known and remembered as a leader? Social impact is an opportunity to create that legacy and take your leadership role beyond the spreadsheets and board rooms – and into the heart of your community.
Sharing Your Impact Story
From food drives to recycling efforts, most businesses are engaged in some socially responsible initiatives. Once you start measuring your impact, and focusing those efforts in a specific direction, you’ll be eager to share your stories. Here are some tips to help communicate your social impact authentically:
- Brand your social impact efforts. Develop a unique brand for your CSR initiatives so that employees, customers, clients, and other stakeholders can easily recognize the good work your business is doing. You may recognize some branded programs such as: Cox Conserves, Sentara Cares or CarMax Cares.
- Publish a report. You don’t have to create a full CSR report or a detailed sustainability report, but find a way to document and share the success stories of your social impact. It could be a simple blog post or email, or a video report shared on your website. Focus on the stories of the people who benefit from your company’s impact initiatives.
- Create a signature event. Hosting a 5k race for charity or a clean-up day can be as simple or as complex as you want to make it. Just find an activity or create an event that can become a central focus for your social impact. This approach channels goodwill and positive energy into a single, high-impact effort that tells a more compelling story. At Red Orange Studio, our signature event is the PIP Nonprofit Award, an annual pro-bono award for Virginia nonprofit organizations. It gives us a focus and a structure that allows us to include other agency partners to help multiply our impact.
- Find your B Keepers. As a Certified B Corp, we are encouraged to have designated “B Keepers” to help us stay the course as we use our business as a force for good. If your company is already engaged in social impact, you most likely have team members who are natural ambassadors for the cause. Equip them and empower them to tell the story!
Measuring and communicating your social impact isn’t just a feel-good exercise—it’s a strategic imperative that builds trust, strengthens community, and secures a lasting legacy. By quantifying the good your company does, you not only reinforce your commitment to doing good but also create a roadmap for sustained business success. As leaders, let’s embrace the power of transparency and purpose, and show that when we invest in making a difference, everyone benefits.
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