How Corporate America Blurs the Line Between What We Buy, Who We Are and Those We Help

Pink ribbons, red dresses, and greenwashing—American corporations are scrambling to tug at consumer heartstrings through cause-related marketing, corporate social responsibility, and ethical branding, tactics that can increase sales by as much as 74%. Harmless? The answer is a resounding “No!”

In Compassion, Inc.: How Corporate America Blurs the Line Between What We Buy, Who We Are and Those We Help, I outline how cause-related marketing desensitizes the public by putting a pleasant face on complex problems. We look at the unseen ways in which large sums of consumer dollars go into corporate coffers rather than helping the less fortunate. I end by pointing out companies that truly do make the world a better place, and those that just pretend to.