International Journal of Bank Marketing

Corporate social responsibility to build strong Brazilian bank brand

Edson Roberto Scharf Josiane Fernandes Bruno Diego Kormann
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IJBM
30,6
436
Received 30 August 2011
Revised 8 January 2012
Accepted 7 March 2012
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International Journal of Bank
Marketing
Vol. 30 No. 6, 2012
pp. 436-451
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0265-2323
DOI 10.1108/02652321211262203
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0265-2323.htm
Corporate social responsibility to
build strong Brazilian bank brand
Edson Roberto Scharf, Josiane Fernandes and
Bruno Diego Kormann
PPGAD Administração, FURB University of Blumenau, Blumenau, Brazil
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this study is to identify and analyze the set of corporate social
responsibility actions of a Brazilian bank as support to the strengthening of an organizational brand.
The specific scope is to discuss the reflections of sustainable actions adopted for the recognition of the
organization’s brand.
Design/methodology/approach – A case study, based on Yin, and in-depth interviews with those
responsible for the sustainability department of the studied organization were adopted.
Findings – Literature and the understanding of the organization’s executives, when compared to
actions adopted by Banco do Brasil, allow the conclusion that the set of corporate social responsibility
actions reflects, in its instrumental use, the intention of managing answers to social, economical and
environmental demands, and in its conceptual use has helped in strengthening the financial
institution’s brand.
Originality/value – The paper focuses on the set of corporate social responsibility actions adopted
by the largest financial institution in Brazil and its relationship with brand strengthening. It is one of
the few studies examining the efforts of corporate social responsibility in a bank’s brand.
Keywords Branding, Corporate social responsibility, CSR advertising, Brazil, Banks, Brand awareness,
Marketing strategy
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Companies’ participation in society makes corporate social responsibility (CSR)
perspectives integral to the organizational strategy, especially when searching for
marketing competitive advantages.
Various authors (Bakker et al., 2005; Westley and Vredenburg, 1996) contend that
some studies exploring these actions find that CSR creates competitive advantage,
primarily in the manufacturing industries. However, within this context, banks have
been understudied.
Examination of CSR articles published from 1958 through 2008 demonstrated that
additional studies are required, in order to advance research, connecting marketing
with CSR (Chabowski et al., 2011). Few papers have tested the marketing assets
influenced by CSR as financial performance precursors (Hull and Rothenberg, 2008),
and for various authors (Luo and Bhattacharya, 2009; Heugens et al., 2007; Hull and
Rothenberg, 2008) the influence of multiple marketing assets focused on CSR must still
be closely examined.
Research reveals that the reliability between bank and customer may be one of the
essential factors for the organization to be consumer-oriented (Roy and Shekhar, 2010;
Liu and Wu, 2007), leading customers to value the institutional brand. In Brazil, the
image of banks presents a paradoxical dichotomy. In popular understanding, banks
 are organizations that invest money for self-benefit; however, in research like that of Corporate social
Interbrand or BrandFinance, banks usually appear as the country’s most valued responsibility
brands. For McDonald and Lai (2011) this evaluation might be due to strategic efforts
related to CSR, mostly because CSR involves a visible return to the community.
This current study presents Banco do Brasil (BB), the largest Brazilian bank, and its
marketing performance from a CSR perspective. Its purpose is to identify and analyze
the CSR actions as mechanisms for strengthening of the organization’s brand. 437
2. Method
This qualitative exploratory research is a case study, with expository classification
(Yin, 1993).
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The data were collected from in-depth interviews with two executives of BB and the
documents “Banco do Brasil’s Agenda 21” and “Banco do Brasil 200 years”, both
published by BB (Agenda 21, 2004; Banco do Brasil 200, 2008). The secondary data
were used to triangulate interview results and to resolve inconsistency with regard to
dates and facts.
The first interviewee was Mr Reinaldo Kazufumi Yokoyama, Santa Catarina State
Superintendent (SuperSC), General Director of the bank’s agencies throughout the
state. The interview occurred April 25, 2011, at the Superintendent’s office. The
interviewee has been with the company for 26 years and in his present position since
July 2010. The interview lasted 92 minutes. The second interview was with Mr
Maurı́cio Messias, Executive Manager of the Sustainable Development Unit (SDU) of
Banco do Brasil (SDUManager), who is responsible for all CSR policies of BB, in Brazil
and abroad. The interview occurred May 11, 2011, at the Santa Catarina State
Superintendence. The interviewee has been with the company for 27 years and in his
present position since January 2010. The interview lasted 127 minutes. The
interviewees’ narratives were recorded, transcribed and summarized. In agreement
with Yin (1993), this method does not allow for any statistical generalization, but an
analytical one. To develop an unstructured interview, the most important ideas from
Huang’s and Rust’s (2011) studies were incorporated.
This study has been conducted in three stages, according to the methodological
proposal of Maguire et al. (2004). The first stage is a general narrative of the
organizational history. In the second stage, there is a chronological narrative of the
achievements crucial to the attainment of corporate planning from the CSR perspective.
In the third stage, the main results emerging from the case analysis, with a general
framework relating the actions and their adaptation with respect to the conceptual
model adopted, are identified. In this part of stage three the managerial and academic
implications are verified.

2.1 Adopted conceptual framework

The field research was outlined based on Scott and Lane’s (2000) model, as orientation
for the identification of sustainability actions taken by BB that strengthen its brand.
For the authors, managers and stakeholders that are directly involved in the process
of building an organizational identity, and one of the main goals of corporate leaders is
to manage this identity (Scott and Lane, 2000). The central issue defended by the
authors is that corporate reputation is obtained through repeated interactions between
the organization and its stakeholders. Fombrun and Shanley (1990) see corporate
 IJBM reputation as the result of a process in which companies compete for social status in a
30,6 market characterized by imprecise information.
An approach of understanding entrepreneurial behavior and brand strengthening
as one of the bases for CSR is explained in Figure 1.

3. Banco do Brasil
438 Founded in 1808, Banco do Brasil operates under a mixed-economy status (public and
private) and is bound to the Ministry of Treasury. It was the first bank to operate in
Brazil and is currently the largest financial institution in the country, with a 19.8
percent market share.
BB’s 2011 Annual Report reflected 109,000 employees, 54 million customers, net profit
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of R$ 11.7 billion, total assets of R$ 812 billion, with almost 57,000 branches in 3,600 cities
located throughout Brazil. One of BB’s 2012 goals is to serve 100 percent of Brazil’s cities.
With a Basle index of 14.1 percent, Banco do Brasil presents a commercial
acquisition balance abroad of US$ 21.3 billion. It is the largest third-party resource
manager in Latin America, with R$ 360 billion. The balance of the agribusiness
portfolio is approximately R$ 75 billion.
Its brand is one of the most valuable in the country (Interbrand (2011) and
BrandFinance (2011) indexes), having received the distinction of being first in
reputation among Brazilian banks in 2006, granted by the US-based Reputation
Institute, in a survey involving 25 countries. In the US it holds the status of “Financial

Figure 1.
Adaptation of the
organizational
identity-building model by
Scott and Lane (2000)
 Holding Company”, granted by Federal Reserve Bank – FED, which allows BB to Corporate social
perform a wide range of bank activities in association with local banks operating responsibility
within North American territories.
With regards to sustainability, besides the actions pointed out in this case study, BB
was elected by Espanha Management & Excellence (M&E) consultancy as the third
most sustainable bank in Latin America. Additionally, it has adhered to “Principles for
Responsible Investment – PRI”, from BB-DTVM, in order to enable the inclusion of 439
social, environmental and corporate governance issues to analyze practices and to
manage investment.
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4. CSR and branding as brand value creators

Organizations are being asked to take a proactive position relevant to their CSR and to
structure themselves to meet this new business paradigm (Bhattacharya et al., 2009;
Liu and Wu, 2007).
CSR is a form of management defined by the organization’s ethical relationship with
its stakeholders and the setting of goals that encourage sustainable development of
society, while preserving environmental and cultural resources for future generations
(Liedekerke and Dubbink, 2008; McWilliams and Siegel, 2001). It is composed of
several principles, such as ethics in business, organizational citizenship, sustainability,
environmental responsibility, and organizational philanthropy (Liedekerke and
Dubbink, 2008). For the authors, it refers to the actions of companies in search of
aligning their actions with the expectations of the environment in which they are
conducting business.
For several authors (McDonald and Rundle-Thiele, 2008; Gildea, 1994), consumers,
besides wanting to receive competitive prices and excellent service, want to know how
the companies they do business with behave in society. Thus, the actions addressing
CSR efforts are publicized to stakeholders through communication developed by the
companies themselves (Morsing and Schultz, 2006). According to the authors,
messages on social business initiatives have the power to evoke strong positive
reactions among the stakeholders.
Despite being rooted in corporations, communication is one of the most
controversial aspects of CSR, because while companies want their stakeholders to be
aware of their actions, they fear the criticism and heightened expectations that these
kinds of communication initiatives may generate (Heugens and Dentchev, 2007). For
the authors, miscommunication of CSR actions and the reasons for their adoption,
contribute to the feeling of anxiety in society, and it may be perceived as merely
advertising or public relations. For Van Marrewijk (2003) each company must combine
market objectives with the alignment of business strategy as a response to
circumstances in which it operates.
In research with three major TV networks in the USA, Peterson and Hermans (2004)
evaluated the use of CSR in US bank commercials in 1992, 1997 and 2002. It was found
that banks devote a considerable amount of their television advertising dollars to the
subject, especially to the areas of the physical environment, consumption,
opportunities for women, health and safety, and patriotism. In addition, the
percentage of CSR-themed ads in 1997 was significantly higher than in 1992, and in
2002, it was higher than in 1997.
 IJBM In this sense, studies suggest that CSR is positively related to the organization’s
30,6 economic performance (Husted and Allen, 2000; Heugens and Dentchev, 2007), and that
companies can gain a competitive advantage with its implementation (McWilliams and
Siegel, 2001; Heugens and Dentchev, 2007). With a sample of more than 840 banks,
Ohnemus (2009) confirmed that there is a significant correlation between the brand and
the financial performance in the industry. The survey found that banks with a brand
440 strategy have yielded up to 3 percent more for their shareholders when compared to
their non-brand strategy competitors. The analysis also reveals that in the current
strategic environment, branding continues being one of the few ways, if not the only
way, for a bank to forge a competitive advantage.
Branding involves processes related to communication with associations that
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differentiate one brand from competing ones (Ohnemus, 2009). For the author, new
approaches to branding suggest analyzing the interaction between different
stakeholders, the strategic implications of different approaches and the link between
brand and financial performance.
The benefits of CSR, such as increased profit, customer loyalty, and a positive
attitude toward the brand, have been widely studied by McDonald and Rundle-Thiele
(2008), and in the light of these positive outcomes, CSR strategies were adopted by the
international banking community.
Although the corporate world recognizes branding as an important marketing
activity, executives still find it challenging to present branding’s value in financial
terms (Madden et al., 2006). Often, executives state that marketing managers make
decisions based on intuition and on questionable data (Yeung and Ramasamy, 2007).
Reporting the metrics of brand equity enables marketing professionals to communicate
with the audiences they are typically kept at a distance from, by being able to use the
financial language that shareholders and directors appreciate (Srivastava et al., 1998;
Madden et al., 2006). To this purpose, Raggio and Leone (2007) propose a new
conceptual model, establishing brand equity and brand value as distinct constructs.
Brand equity moderates the impact of marketing activities in consumer behavior,
representing one of the many factors that contribute to brand value, which implicates a
business perspective.

5. CSR as marketing strategy in a Brazilian bank

In 1808, Brazil became the seat of the Portuguese empire and by approval of the Prince
Regent, Banco do Brasil was created. From 1905 on, BB has also taken on the function
of providing support to national development.

5.1 Understanding the CSR concept

The main axis of BB’s expansion was the agricultural credit.
Regarding the discussion on CSR at BB, one of the executives asserted:
[. . .] perhaps BB’s practices occurred long before sustainability was being defined as it is in
the present world. For example, BB has a historical commitment with the country’s
development (SDUManager).
Through the Banco do Brasil Foundation, created in 1985, BB makes resources
available to projects that support social transformation and quality of life improvement
 for Brazilians. Within the corporate intranet the web site “Voluntariado” (Volunteering, Corporate social
in English) was released offering newsletters, opportunities and also volunteer data. responsibility
In 2004, the bank assumed a commitment with the Ministry of Environment, in
order to develop an agenda of engagement with sustainable development within its
business. It was named “Banco do Brasil’s Agenda 21”, and was considered the most
extensive document of those resulting from the 1992 United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development. The document has shown the commitment of the 441
organization to the new twenty-first century development standard. The basis of which
is the synergy between environmental, social and economic sustainability. Economic
growth and environmental protection are central issues in BB’s actions and confirm
Scott and Lane’s (2000) construct “Desired Organizational Image”.
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When questioned about the concept of sustainability, one BB executive stated that
he believes that the model which BB’s actions are based on, joining the business to
social, economic and environmental factors, favors the long-term vision and the
construction of a solid basis for constant growth (SuperSC).
The SDU manager concurred:
In the corporate world, I understand that economic, social and environmental goals in
business transactions should be aligned. It is necessary to consider others, to think
collectively and to be aware that we inhabit the same house (SDUManager).
Regarding branding efforts through communication, this same executive said that BB
adopted a new format:
The communication of BB was historically only related to its product. For a little more than
ten years, three areas have been adopted: the product, which deals with goods and services
sold, the CSR, reporting socio-environmental responsibility, and action-oriented investment
opportunities for social inclusion and income generation, and more recently, sports of high
popular visibility (SDUManager).
Both executives are supportive of the corporate decision to separate the communication
areas. They understand that ongoing communication efforts already have had an effect
on the brand, but the increase in brand value will occur over the long term, and much of
this will result from CSR efforts, because it directly involves each of the stakeholders.

5.2 History of the main CSR actions

In 1995, several banks (Banco Central do Brasil, Banco do Brasil, Banco Nacional de
Desenvolvimento, Banco da Amazônia) signed the Green Protocol, in order to
undertake policies and practices aligned with a development that will not compromise
the needs of future generations.
In 2003, the Sustainable Regional Development Strategy (SRD) was created as a
way to insert less-favored communities in productive processes that assure work and
income from regional potentialities. About the main functions of the SRD project, one
BB executive defends the main functions of the SRD project:
I understand that funding is not the end but the way BB helps society. If the bank lends
money to any project presenting great chances of success, it is possibly mitigating the risks.
When one talks about SRD we mean that we are helping the customer to succeed. One cannot
think only under an economic perspective without considering social and environmental
perspectives [. . .] (SuperSC).
 IJBM The executive expands his answer, saying that:
30,6 [. . .] The concept explored within the SRD aims at helping customers and the community
where the bank is inserted in to raise their chances of success. Combined to that, the bank has
the challenge of having every agency hosting a SRD project and stimulating employees to
actively take part in the society where they live, having the conscience that we are a
transformation agent inside it (SuperSC).
442
His colleague states:
Among others, it is to generate business that contributes to local development, considering
environmental aspects and significant social impacts, productive inclusion of excluded
people, generation of work and income, to stimulate partnership, and access to new
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production technologies (SDUManager).

This same year, an important CSR initiative was undertaken by the bank: the creation
of a unit called Employee Relations and Socio-environmental Responsibility (SER). In
May 2004, the SER was transformed into the Board of Employee Relations and
Socio-environmental Responsibility, and in 2009, the Unit of Sustainable Development
(SDU) was created, unifying SER and SRD.
Referring to the SDU, it was asserted:
I believe BB is firmly progressing in this project. We have created a unit of sustainable
development, with board status, which has neither the responsibility of reaching credit goals,
nor projects linked to profitability, but is responsible for thinking about the long and
short-term future of BB [. . .] (SuperSC).
In Scott and Lane’s (2000) model, these assertions are related to the constructs “Desired
Organizational Image” (the process by which the brand becomes unique in the
stakeholders’ minds), “Stakeholder Value Judgment” (shared beliefs in the
organization’s values) and “Organizational Process” (highlights the long-lasting
aspects as the corporate identity).
In March 2005 BB took part in the internationally supported carbon emissions
survey sent to the world’s top 500 companies. As this information request was formally
supported by the world’s largest institutional investors participation would typically
be considered a “Stakeholder Value Judgment”.
The corporate sustainability index of São Paulo Stock Exchange (BOVESPA) was
created in 2005. BB, since its foundation, has been part of a group of companies
selected to comprise the Corporate Sustainability Index.
In 2005, the Concept and the Letter of Socio-environmental Responsibility Principles
was developed and approved by BB’s board for the purpose of directing actions
focused on the internalization of a socio-environmental responsibility culture within
the conglomerate. One of the difficulties faced by organizations when they apply CSR
is the need for behavioral changes (Shackeroff and Campbell, 2007). The importance
and challenges of promoting a sustainability culture within the organization are
understood, as expressed by one executive:
We need to change our behavior, our concepts and forms of relationship. People’s natural
tendency is to repeat what performed well, what is believed to be correct. Behavioral and
cultural issues need time for maturation and I see it as one of the greatest sustainability
challenges (SuperSC).
 The SDUManager shares similar sentiment, justifying that “there is a period of Corporate social
investment, in education, for example, that cannot be faced as an expense”. responsibility
BB offers higher education through distance education for employees living in
remote areas. There is also improvement of relations with suppliers and competitors
through a policy that makes these relationships more transparent. The SDUManager
says “I believe that sustainability can lead companies to build long-lasting
relationships with their stakeholders, through a sincere interest for common things”. 443
On the relationship with their suppliers and competitors, SuperSC stated:
BB is a living organism connected to other organisms present in the society. The bank has
well-defined values and seeks to associate with other companies that share the same
understanding (SuperSC).
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“Stakeholder Value Judgment” has been addressed in the statements above, because
for Scott and Lane (2000) the organization is a reflection of the understanding of its
internal and its constituent groups.
The same year, BB, along with 54 other companies, joined the Pact for the Eradication
of Slave Labor:
At BB we work with concepts of social justice, environmental respect and economic growth.
When the bank performs a financial operation, even viable under a financial perspective, it is
necessary to analyze the environmental and social perspectives, too, since they can make the
operation unfeasible. For example, if the bank approves a financing for a company using
slave labor or occupying irregular land, the press and the society tend to repel this kind of
attitude and condemn the financial agent who made that operation possible (SuperSC).
When creating the Popular Bank of Brazil in 2005, the organization invested in credit
democratization, expanding its activities in micro-financing. As it represents the
development of processes that recognizes society’s needs, it relates to the topic
“Organizational Process”, from Scott and Lane’s (2000) model.
In 2006, BB joined the Pro-equity of Gender program, determining the inclusion of
homosexual partners of the bank employees as dependents in BB’s health insurance
plans. Regarding aspects of its employees’ quality of living, the company strengthened
the Program to Assist Victims of Robbery and Kidnapping. Regarding physically or
mentally impaired people, the bank has countless actions aimed at assuring better
work conditions. One BB executive defends:
People are more and more willing to be part of projects linked to collective wellbeing. When
people realize they are inserted in a consistent project, they offer their best in order to achieve
the desired results (SDUManager).
Accordingly, the perception of the stakeholders’ power in relation to social issues,
which form Scott and Lane’s (2000) construct “Stakeholders”, is present in the
following statement regarding competitive advantage related to the CSR:
BB’s history and experience in contributing with the development of communities where it
acts, allied to the available banking solutions for all market segments, give credence to BB to
be different, since the banking sector is extremely regulated by laws (SDUManager).
In 2006, the BB Biodiesel Program was created to support the production,
commercialization and use of biodiesel as a renewable source of energy, and the
generation of employment and income; while the BB Forest Program is designed to
 IJBM increase forest production. Actions for the proper management and appropriate
30,6 commercialization demonstrate strong initiatives toward sustainability (Scharf and
Cunha, 2011).
In the role of public policy agent, BB participates in cluster projects, providing
employment and income generation. One executive said: “Is necessary to be clear that
BB is a living being in the society. Its acts have positive and negative consequences.
444 Goods and services must benefit society and environment (SuperSC)”. In this sense, the
participation of several stakeholders helps the organization adopt more adequate
procedures, according to how the ongoing actions occur (Bhattacharya et al., 2009).
In 2009, partnering with the non-governmental organization WWF-Brazil, BB
launched the Agua Brasil (Water Brazil, in English) project, to propagate new social
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technologies that allow for more sustainable ways of field production and to promote
behavioral changes regarding mindful consumption and the treatment of solid residue
in cities. One executive asserts:
At the moment, we firm partnerships with entities alien to BB, though it sounds unusual, it is
not. Everybody has common interests that may favor society and environment, and there is
no reason for this kind of partnership not to happen (SuperSC).
The SDUManager understands:
The theme “water” was adopted as a main acting axis in its sustainability actions. The choice
arose from reflecting that BB, as the largest bank in the country, should, in a more specific
way, embrace a cause having an importance as significant as the company’s size
(SDUManager).
Constructs related to Scott and Lane’s (2000) model are the “Desired Organizational
Image” (with the construction of an image that provides mechanisms to demonstrate
the organization’s values and beliefs) and the “Stakeholders” (the influence received or
issued by corporate behavior). For several authors (e. g. McDonald and Rundle-Thiele,
2008; McWilliams and Siegel, 2001), when the organization has a reputation of
reliability and consumers believe that this reputable company produces high-quality
goods, CSR is seen as a way to create product differentiation. Consumers assume that
products from a reliable honest company will be of high quality (McWilliams and
Siegel, 2001).

5.3 The main CSR actions

In the document “Banco do Brasil’s Agenda”, the main goals related to sustainability
until 2020 are listed, which one executive endorses:
In years to come, we will possibly see several companies collapsing, not for exclusively
economic issues, but due to issues derived from social and environmental problems.
Companies need to clearly understand that they cannot do anything at any cost, aiming at
larger profits. I believe the way sustainability is inserted in BB’s long-term planning,
disseminating its values and principles, allied to ethics and respect, will promote life benefits
to the society (SuperSC).
Another executive defends:
Several actions are being defined by the “Banco do Brasil’s Agenda 21”. We are focusing on
business related to sustainable development, to corporate and negotiating practices with
socio-environmental responsibility and to private social investment (SDUManager).
 When referring to businesses aiming at sustainable development, SuperSC predicts: “In Corporate social
the long run, sustainability will stop being something different to become a premise to all responsibility
companies. Organizations that are not properly supported in the tripod of sustainability
will go through difficulties to stay in the market”. And he complements this by saying:
Goods and services from the financial market will tend to encourage those who care for and
practice sustainability. The great challenge is not to penalize those who do not practice it, but
to encourage and award companies who present good sustainability practices with more 445
attractive financial products (SuperSC).
The SDUManager equates sustainability to sustainable growth of the organization:
I believe we are entering a new era, yet not totally characterized or decoded, but that has
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sustainability as its driving power. Companies that perceive and bet on this new way of
seeing things and the new proposed values will be able to reap the many rewards in their
relationship with society (SDUManager).
This statement complements the assertion made by Powers and Hahn (2002), that
brand recognition can have a decisive impact for consumers when selecting a retail
bank: the marketing activities are designed to have a significant impact by looking at
aspects such as sales, technology, and others. In a context of expansion, according to
Wright (2002), brand recognition is necessary to compensate for market gaps when the
corporation does not have a physical presence within the community.
The summary below presents BB’s main CSR activities were extracted from
interviews and data collected from “Banco do Brasil’s Agenda 21” and “Banco do
Brasil 200 years” (Table I).

6. Conclusions
The purpose of the study was to identify and analyze the set of corporate social
responsibility actions as a support for strengthening an organizational brand.
In 2003, with the creation of SDU, BB formalized its interest and willingness to adopt
marketing processes that could involve CSR concepts. After examining the literature,
identifying the actions taken by BB, and the comprehension of BB key executives, it has

Year CSR activities Connection with Scott and Lane’s (2000) model

1985 BB foundation Desired organizational image

1985 Volunteer program Stakeholders
2003 Creation of SER, later SDU Desire organizational image þ stakeholders
value judgment þ organizational processing
2004 BB’s Agenda 21 Desired organizational image
2005 Popular Bank Organizational processing
2005 Joined Bovespa Sustainability Index Stakeholders
2005 Joined the Pact for Eradication of Slave Labor Stakeholders
2005 Letter of socio-environmental responsibility Stakeholders value judgment
principles
2006 Pro-equity of Gender Program Stakeholders
2006 BB Biodiesel Stakeholders
2007 BB Forest Stakeholders Table I.
2009 Agua Brasil Desired organizational image þ stakeholders BB’s main CSR activities
 IJBM been shown that these CSR actions reflect the intention of managing responses to social,
30,6 economic and environmental demands. These actions and the performed communication
give support to the theory that they strengthening the brand among stakeholders.
This strengthening can be seen through brand rankings. In BrandFinance’s ranking
(Table II, using the royalty relief method) BB’s brand has risen in both the overall
assessment and the specific evaluation of banks. The period coincides with the
446 beginning of its CSR actions. At this ranking, especially the position of BB became
consolidated. Although it cannot be credited solely to communication of CSR actions,
according to its executives a representative part of brand development is due to these
efforts. Communication of CSR activities helps to strengthen the brand (Ohnemus,
2009), because there is significant correlation between brand and financial performance
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in the banking sector.

In Table III, (which uses the financial performance and the role of the brand in the
purchase intent) Interbrand’s ranking demonstrates the highlighted position of BB’s
brand. Two facts are important:
(1) brands from all sectors are included within these rankings; and
(2) BB is the first among banks.

Throughout this study, customers commented on the connections they had with their
banks, and BB’s achievements were highlighted specifically. The organization has
three distinct areas for investment in advertising:
(1) product;
(2) sports; and
(3) CSR actions.

Year Global 500 ranking Banking 500 ranking Net profit in billion (R$)

2005 - 52 4,15
2006 - 52 6,04
2007 224 45 5,05
2008 224 45 8,8
2009 233 36 10,14
2010 118 26 11,7
2011 95 22 9,15
Table II. Note: The 2011 profit is composed by the three trimesters of the year available at this paper’s
BB’s position from 2005 completion
to 2011 in two rankings Source: Compiled from the BrandFinance web site by the authors (BrandFinance, 2011).

Yeara Best Brazilian brands ranking Net profit in billion (R$)

2010 4 11,7
2011 4 9,15
Table III. Notes: aThe consultancy started this ranking in 2010. 2011 profit is composed by the three trimesters
BB’s position from 2010 of the year available at this paper’s completion
to 2011 Source: Compiled from InterBrand’s web site by the authors (Interbrand, 2011)
 According to its executives, a significant portion of BB’s communication promotes CSR Corporate social
actions. Thus, the construct “Stakeholders”, which deals with perception and responsibility
organizational reputation, as well as the construct “Organizational Process”, which
deals with the perception of stakeholder power within Scott and Lane’s (2000) model,
inform understanding of how BB’s brand has been strengthened by CSR actions.
The respondent executives are aware that the knowledge obtained by the internal
work teams and those in the external group, customers or not, is vital to the success of 447
activities approaching CSR. This became clear due to the investment made by the
organization in awareness training, in communication with the various levels involved,
and in personnel development.
BB, as the main financial institution in Brazil, assists several stakeholders aiming at
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more wide-reaching CSR initiatives. Mutual support between the organization and
society as a way of valuing the people involved and the organization’s brand, directly
addresses Scott and Lane’s (2000) construct “Desired Organizational Image”. BB has
taken an extensive agenda of commitments to society, acting directly on the basic
education system, on slave labor or discrimination of any kind. These initiatives have
cultivated a positive brand assessment by Brazilians, as shown in Tables II and III, and
are supported by the “Stakeholders” and “Stakeholders Value Judgment” constructs,
the studied model, which defend that perception and social pressure give greater or
smaller credit to the organizational reputation.
Scott and Lane’s (2000) model, adopted with adaptations in this study, has confirmed
that the organization, from the stakeholders (the understanding of the bank’s reputation
and its connection with social, environmental and economic issues), the perception of
stakeholders (the value given to the organization, based on the pressure that the company
charges the market, through actions and communication) and internal processing (acting
directly geared to sustainability issues), has met the requirements that a brand requires in
order for the construction of an identity based on attitudes toward CSR.

6.1 Research implications

As Bhattacharya et al. (2009) noted, the dearth of research on psychological
mechanisms, by which stakeholders interpret and react to CSR actions, suggests
further research into where attitudes can predict behavior. From this case study, it is
suggested that the strengthening of the brand can be achieved by CSR initiatives and
the communication of these initiatives, and that Scott and Lane’s (2000) model provides
researchers with a consolidated starting point for this type of analyses. Future research
can address other sectors of the economy, especially if different stages of CSR
communication are observed. For example, the oil industry has been communicating
its CSR activities more often and for longer periods than retail stores.
Another implication refers to the fact that BB has a formal status with the board to
administer CSR actions and to communicate these actions. When an action is
championed by top executives, according to Andersen and Buvik (2002), the
commitment of human resources, the necessary communications budget, and the
integration of propositions within the corporate strategy are more easily obtained.
Developing “Organizational Desired Image”, for example, is a goal that should be
initiated and undertaken by professionals who have decision-making autonomy. When
an organization adopts a corporate strategy that addresses CSR actions, it is essential
to have a formal space for making these decisions. This is an implication to be
 IJBM discussed by researchers in future works, since it may be associated to a chain of
30,6 interdependent actors (Andersen and Buvik, 2002), i.e. following the lead of one person
can mean following other actors, such as advertising agencies, multiple suppliers and
government agencies in the process of CSR actions and communication.
Investments in training internal BB teams, and in basic education are important to
researchers. The orientation of actions to enhance the culture of environmental
448 responsibility goes through behavioral changes, according to Shackeroff and Campbell
(2007). This may suggest other results in future studies and implies that researchers
give different treatment to the work in communities in which education is already
structured and those in which education is still being built.
Finally, acknowledging that some organizations claim that their brand depends on
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CSR’s brand strengthening effects working in tandem, with other actions, researchers can
apply studies measuring this interdependence, in a quantitative form. This will allow the
development of new concepts concerning strong brands, branding and brand awareness.

6.2 Management implications

As the positive impact of BB’s CSR actions are felt by society and thus value BB’s
brand, there is a trend towards developing more communication to further elevate the
brand awareness with the use of CSR.
The results demonstrate that the actions already meet an advanced level of
measuring, and provide a benchmark for future analyses. Moreover, BB’s participation
in the BOVESPA, specifically in the enterprise sustainability indices, allowed
measurement of its set of action in relation to all other organizations considered leaders
in this field. These results indicate that investments in CSR and their later
communication are effective strategies for strengthening corporate brands.
There exists a general negative attitude of the Brazilian population towards banks.
However, at the same time, BB’s brand is valued by the main global brand ranking
agencies. The results have shown that CSR actions, adopted by BB, generate positive
recognition of its brand, for both BB’s capacity to modify the environment and its
direct involvement with specific populations, balancing economic or social distortions
found there. The correlation between CSR actions and brand strengthening has been
demonstrated, therefore a significant volume of the investments in advertising
concerns CSR actions. The results have also shown that controls can be performed in
indirect ways, for example, by means of influencing rankings produced by the top
brand valuation consultants.
It is necessary to remember the exploratory nature of this study, it being inadequate
to measure hypotheses or to generalize results. The fact that other major banks
operating in Brazil (Bradesco, Santander, Itaú) have incorporated CSR practices into
their advertising campaigns suggests collaborating evidence. In this context, this
study has limitations which future research can address. First, as a case study, the
answers of executives from only one bank were incorporated. The study can thus be
repeated with other banks. Second, the studied bank is Brazilian, which suggests
possible study replication with banks from other countries. Finally, the executives
from BB are considering the Brazilian economy, which is in development. This
suggests that new research conducted with in developed countries will allow
comparisons of brand strengthening by means of the CSR in countries at different
stages of economic development and with different national education standards.
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 About the authors Corporate social
Edson Roberto Scharf is a Researcher from PPGAD at FURB University of Blumenau; Professor
of Marketing Strategies in Business and Administration Masters Program; PhD in Knowledge responsibility
Management and Engineering (UFSC). Edson Roberto Scharf is the author of the books
Knowledge Management Applied to Marketing (2007) and Advertising Management (2006).
Edson Roberto Scharf is the corresponding author and can be contacted at: artigoes@gmail.com
Josiane Fernandes is a Master’s pupil from PPGAD at FURB University of Blumenau;
CAPES/FURB scholarship student; and marketing researcher. 451
Bruno Diego Kormann graduated from FURB University of Blumenau and is an account
executive of Banco do Brasil.
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