Carrotmob as a New Form of Ethical Consumption. The Nature of the Concept and Avenues for Future Research

Abstract

A new form of ethical consumption has recently evolved: The carrotmob. As in a flashmob, consumers collectively swarm a specific store and purchase its goods in order to reward corporate socially responsible behaviour. The present paper introduces a conceptionalization of carrotmobs that takes into account the perspective of the three relevant parties: activists, companies, and consumers. First, the paper considers activists' objectives in initiating such a social movement. It describes how they use guerrilla tactics to foster the participation of companies and consumers. Second, the paper considers the perspective of the target company, stressing the role of corporate social responsibility and describing how companies compete in an auction to become the carrotmob target. Third, the paper highlights the consumer perspective, discussing different views on consumer power and the motivation to participate in a carrotmob. The paper also points out directions for further empirical research for each of these three perspectives.

The Relationship among Corporate Social Responsibility, Consumer-Company Identification, Brand Prestige, and Purchase Intention

“…It triggered Taiwanese consumers to organize a boycott activism spontaneously. Besides, more and more consumers chose buycotting to replace boycotting, which reflected that "Carrotmob" would be a novel form of future ethical consumption (Hoffmann & Hutter, 2012). Since consumers have the power to choose either carrot or stick, it is important to understand what factors affect Taiwanese consumers' purchase behavior.…”

Shopping for Society? Consumers’ Value Conflicts in Socially Responsible Consumption Affected by Retail Regulation

“…Both groups opposed arguments that consumers should consider social sustainability in their consumption life (5,6). While market liberalists felt that regulation of large retailers unfairly controls the market and that it is inevitable that small stores will be harmed by competition, the internally conflicted opposed these comments (18,24,25). These results show that consumers who are preferentially pursuing their own benefits and convenience in consumption can be classified into different subgroups depending on whether they consider social responsibility as a citizen.…”

“…As the networking and solidarity of consumers is strengthened by the development of the Internet and various media, the power of consumers in the market is gradually increasing [23]. Consumers are learning that they can influence markets and society through everyday consumption and are holding themselves more accountable for the consequences of their consumption behavior [24,25].…”

Fairtrade Towns as Unconventional Networks of Ethical Activism

“…More recently, interest has grown in pro-consumption activism in the form of ''buycotts'' or ''carrotmobs'' which actively encourage the patronage of particular products or firms (Hoffmann and Hutter 2012). Such ethical consumption that supports producers engaged in environmental conservation and social justice in developing countries, is seen by some as representing a new form of activism (Bryant and Goodman 2004).…”