How does a business get the word out about its good deeds, without succumbing to the practice of empty corporate “virtue-signaling”?

Companies and their supply chains are scrambling to comply with a wave of new regulations that address human rights and environmental responsibility. Yet there’s a positive side effect to that trend from a business perspective. Even those who act begrudgingly can seize the opportunity to burnish their brands in the eyes of consumers.

Public relations supplies the means of telling the world. The trick lies in spreading the word without resorting to the kind of “feel good” advertising and marketing campaign that turns consumers off — and gets them questioning whether the business is really following through on its promises.

To Kim Schaefer, account supervisor with Warner Communications, it’s all about “strategic” PR. She defines the term as “focusing on important narratives, crafting messages that are relevant to potential customers, partners and what’s going on in the larger media landscape. That requires targeted thinking about what is the story you’re trying to tell, and who you’re trying to reach.”

Schaefer views that messaging effort as “almost an extension of a company’s internal team, immersing yourself in the business, learning what they do top to bottom, and making the story relevant to the larger media out there. It’s not just sending out a press release.”

One current trend that seems ripe for corporate image-polishing is the return of manufacturing from Asia, especially China, to the western hemisphere. The shift relieves supply chains of the taint of forced labor and other forms of oppressive working conditions that are widely associated with China’s Xinjiang Province and its brutal treatment of the ethnic Uyghur population. At the same time, it carries environmental benefits because of resulting shorter supply lines and fewer carbon emissions from ships and planes. And, to the extent that manufacturing capacity is coming back to the U.S., it promises more jobs to American workers.

Schaefer calls the trend of reshoring and nearshoring “one of the most significant shifts in the industrial world in a very long time.” For companies making the move, “it’s an opportunity to highlight their expertise, innovative nature and commitment to sustainability.”

The positive corporate image that comes from reshoring — assuming it’s backed by real action — is merely the byproduct of a strategy that delivers more direct benefits to the bottom line. In a time of multiple disruptions, geopolitical strife and huge economic uncertainty, companies can ensure greater resilience against future events. So why not get the message out to the marketplace?

What that message contains, and how it’s conveyed, are key to winning public trust. Schaefer says it’s vital that PR be integrated with the broader business strategy, so that it doesn’t get ahead of reality. “In any company with multiple constituencies, it’s our job on the PR side not just to encourage clients to tell positive stories, but to tell truthful positive stories,” she says. “We don’t want something good to turn into something damaging. That ultimately defeats the purpose of trying to build brand awareness.”

It's equally important that the message be consistent across corporate functions, as well as between internal and external PR, Schaefer says.

The worst outcome of a PR image campaign is to be accused of virtue-signaling and, especially, greenwashing — the latter term referring to empty promises of promoting environmental sustainability. The risk extends beyond angering the consuming public; these days it could expose companies to government action. Canada, for one, enacted this year a new regulation that subjects companies to heavy fines for making unsubstantiated claims of sustainability in their marketing and environmental reports.

“You’ve got to watch out,” Schaefer says. “There’s a lot at stake.” Sometimes, that will require the PR department to say no to a campaign that misrepresents the company’s commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) compliance.

Corporations will, of course, always seek to bolster their public image through marketing and PR. And, given the benefits of doing good for people and the environment, it’s entirely acceptable that they should do so. But such efforts need to be weighed against reality. The word “commitment” — a favorite buzzword of businesses the world round — should not be confused with action.