Corporate social responsibility

A social responsability has become a theme trendy in the commercial universe, with more and more brands investing in social causes, in adapted products and in an active listening to the needs of the current and future consumers.

The truth is that more and more corporate social responsibility is a topic of debate and brands have sought to respond more directly to the needs of consumers.

Campaign changing the game from Microsoft

Microsoft launched the campaign Changing the Game (We All Win) for your Xbox Adaptive Controller project that makes it easier for children with disabilities to interact with the Xbox video game console.

The campaign video is only 1 minute long and tells the story of some children with disabilities and their experience with the new Xbox functionality. Look here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM2QJO2IDFo

This brand activation campaign was developed by McCann New York and was the big winner in the Brand Experience & Activation category at Cannes Lions 2019.

The world of video games has more and more fans and it is in them that many of the young people can make dreams come true or have unique moments of fun. While most children would be able to enjoy during one of these games, children with some type of motor disability were limited to being able to enjoy these experiences.

This is a sensitive topic that Microsoft has reflected on in order to develop an innovative project. One of the highlights of the campaign created by McCann was the organization of an inclusive tournament with the participation of players with or without disabilities.

The trend of corporate social responsibility

This new direction of brand communication dictates a trend that has been gaining ground. It is always positive to see that the advertising and marketing market has been getting closer to the surrounding communities and trying to respond to their needs.

Socially oriented campaigns, as is the case with the Microsoft campaign mentioned above, had a strong presence at the Cannes Lions 2019 festival, which reveals the growing trend of this aspect of targeted marketing.

Different opinions in Cannes

But is this a positive trend? Some argue that it is not.

Saurabh Varma, CEO of Publicis South Asia said that Cannes has become very “cause-y”And that there are more and more brands that try to stand out for the difference, supporting social causes, trivializing sensitive issues.

These campaigns are beneficial for companies at the commercial level and Microsoft is proof of this since the adapted drivers present in this campaign have been successful among consumers.

Microsoft revealed that its main concern would be the opinion that consumers have of the brand and its corporate position on social issues and not simply the increase in the number of sales.