DO GOOD: Embracing Brand Citizenship to Fuel Both Purpose and Profit

Having worked with Anne Bahr Thompson when she did pro bono branding work for our UK team's participation in 2005 UN Year of Microcredit, I was keen to see the fruit of her years of research into authentic branding. 'Do Good' fulfilled and exceeded my expectations as it's a down-to-earth, no holes barred (excuse the pun) view of how profit and purpose work together. From my experience of working with corporates it's easy to spot the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) window dressing and those who see the bigger picture, knowing that purpose has to be more than lip service. Being pro-actively responsible citizens pays dividends in customer and employee respect and loyalty, not to mention performance results. Anne's done her branding reputation as well as the wider business community a service by pointing out the elephant in the room. It's said that common sense is not that common, and Anne's done a good job in making common sense obvious, backed up by extensive research. (And I don't mean trawling through a lot of academic papers. She went to the horses' mouths.) Excuse the cliches, Anne's done a remarkable job with her making this topic that should be at the forefront of corporate leaders' minds accessible to them and others keen to make the world a better place by being authentically purpose-led.

Great book, full of data and real live examples of how companies consciously engage with increasingly broad societal issues along the Brand Citizen model – learning to see the world like consumers – moving along the scale from being ME to WE centred.Do Good is one of the few books I have read slowly to savour every word, so rich and interesting is the material.I was also struck by the similarity in how similar the learning journey for companies and individual executives is - as I found in my own research and book about to be published April 25.

Anne Bahr Thompson is suggesting a new model for doing business, which taps into the business and societal direction of the future. Throughout the book, numerous examples from successful brands bring the concepts to life, making this a pleasurable, intuitive read. As an academic I was happy to see that the model is backed by solid research, integrating the consumer perspective into a management-driven discipline. The new direction brings together branding, csr and management in a fresh way that creates both financial and social impact. I look forward to when this new movement becomes the norm for brands and companies.

Finally a book that lays out a clear path for businesses to embrace a more thoughtful, caring yet profitable way of brand building. The book is written beautifully, with clear and simple language, easy to understand and apply - a must read for every busy brand owner. Make no mistake, the fact that doing good and well can lead to better results for businesses is no fluffy thinking, it is based on rigorous data and supported but inspiring case studies. A welcomed guide to 21st century business!

‘Do Good” emphasises why companies need to do much more than just focus on profits if they are to succeed. High sounding corporate pronouncements are insufficient. Anne Bahr Thompson’s well written book is based on thousands of interviews and provides compelling reasons why corporates need to embrace strong ethics throughout the organisation to ensure sustainable profits