The effects of corporate social responsibility activities on brand associations and corporate reputation and a business application

Today, the focus of the marketing concept is ?the value-based approach?. What makes an institution or an organization valuable is not only the quality of its productions or services; but also the values they incorporate into the society. In order to create such a value, the institutions should bear social responsibility spirit.Corporate social responsibility within the value-based marketing approach enables the creation of brand value which is one of the main objectives of marketing management. Corporate social responsibility activities create positive brand associations so the brand value is raised. The reliability and reputation of institutions increase as a result of this process. The main objective of this study is to explain the effect of corporate social responsibility activities on brand associations and corporate reputation.The study consists of three sections. In first section, corporate social responsibility concept is explained theoretically. Also marketing ethics, social marketing and cause related marketing concepts are described. In the second section, brand value and brand associations are informed and the effects of corporate social responsibility activities on brand associations and corporate reputation are discussed. Eventually in the third section, applications on the above mentioned subjects are stated. In this study; a qualitative research is conducted by using case study method. In accordance with the framework and the abjective of the study; a research question is defined and possible answers are sought. The data acquired by the document analysis is encoded by using index analysis method. In addition; the data is analysed and interpreted according to these codes.