Trust Inc. ─ How Business Wins Respect in a Social Media Age

Over the past decade there have been countless books looking at the influence of social media on marketing and also countless books contemplating the importance of sustainability. As yet, none have made the crucial connection in terms of understanding why embracing the principles and practices of sustainability is key to helping companies articulate their sense of purpose in a world where social media has eroded trust in all institutions. This book is a powerful guide for both communication and marketing professionals in business, especially Fortune 500, FTSE 250 companies and agencies, on how to use social media to communicate with their audiences and stakeholders in an authentic way. It is also a guide/text book for the growing field of sustainability communication in higher education.

We are entering the age of sustainability – a business era where every company, big and small, must adapt their ways of doing business to meet the realities of climate change, a finite supply of natural resources, increasing digitisation and automation as well as consumer behaviour and expectations that are rapidly evolving as people adjust to their changing way of life. Driving that change for the last decade has been social media – a communications revolution that has democratised society in ways never seen before.

This book explains how social media made sustainability a mainstream concern for all society; how it compelled companies to be more authentic and accountable in their actions and how it will continue to shape how companies communicate the importance of sustainability to all of society.