As my internship tenure
drew near to its last days, I asked my supervisor the above question and was
intrigued by it. The reason why I asked him was because throughout my time in
the Corporation, whenever we go for CSR project handovers, members of the
public would pass remarks that we have come to give them free t-shirts and
other incentives (more like enticements in this case) then find the next
victimized family to build a house for or groceries. That kept me wondering
whether such is a complaint or compliment.
My supervisor then
asked me to ponder whether it would be best to stop giving out the freebies
during CSR handing over ceremonies or just continue. Well, for some time I
thought it depends on the kind of people you are giving to; whether they are
grateful or ungrateful. Then finally, I realized it is not about who is being
given what but how loyal are you to your key publics. Yes, critics will be
there, but they are meant for the Corporation to realize its flaws and create
room for improvement.
The Corporation is
known to give out goodie-bags whenever they go out to the public during events.
On the other hand, the public always expect the Corporation to bring some
goodies for them, so their expectations are always met. Such comments can mean
two things;
1.
The comment is a complaint,
therefore there is need for improvement, for instance – change t-shirts to
umbrellas or water bottles.
OR
2.
The comment is a compliment, which
would suggest loyalty of the Corporation to its key publics so much that they
already understand how it operates with its loyal clientele.
Nonetheless, it is the
duty of the Corporation to carry out research in order to decide what to do,
but for this discussion, I would like you to ponder on the scenario and ask
yourself as a PR student whether we can say there are times when Organizations
should just lay back and not do much for the public (whether it is big CSR
projects or just mere giving of small corporate gifts)? Can we ever say a deed
is too little to be appreciated and stop doing it? Or should the Corporation
remain loyal to its cause and do it anyway? Ponder on that.
