Social value is no longer just a line in a sustainability report or a requirement for public sector tenders; it’s becoming central to how businesses define their purpose, connect with audiences, and build lasting trust.

And marketing plays a vital role in that shift.

From the way organisations talk about their impact, to the stories they choose to elevate and the messages they share across platforms, marketers are helping shape how social value is understood and whether it feels credible or performative.

This article explores what social value really means in 2025, why it matters in the context of business and brand, and how marketing can help turn good intentions into clear, human-centred communications that resonate. Whether you're supporting a bid, running a campaign, or writing a report, there’s an opportunity to put purpose and impact at the heart of your strategy — and to tell that story well.

What do we mean by social value?

Social value refers to the wider benefit an organisation creates for people, communities, and the planet beyond its core commercial function. It can take many forms, including:

Creating jobs or training opportunities
Supporting mental health and wellbeing
Reducing environmental harm
Improving social inclusion
Helping local economies grow

While the concept isn’t new, its role in business is evolving. According to the Social Value Portal, 82% of social value professionals expect their organisations to spend more time on social value over the next three years. It signals a growing importance across both public and private sectors.

This shift has been accelerated by the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, which requires all public sector bodies in the UK to consider how the services they commission and procure can also improve the economic, social, and environmental wellbeing of communities. Since 2021, central government contracts over £5 million have required a minimum 10% social value weighting in tenders and many local authorities go well beyond this.

For businesses looking to sell into the public sector, this makes social value non-negotiable. Robust strategies, the ability to evidence social impact, and a clear narrative about how you contribute to wider social outcomes are now essential for successful bidding and contract delivery.

Social value is also becoming a key pillar of many organisations’ broader ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) strategies. ESG frameworks encourage businesses to be transparent about how they’re managing their environmental impact, contributing to society, and operating responsibly and social value plays a central role in demonstrating that social commitment in action.

Clients, partners, employees, and investors increasingly want to understand how an organisation contributes to broader goals whether that’s net zero, inclusive growth, or community resilience. This shift means social value is becoming a core part of brand reputation, employee engagement and long-term resilience.

The risks of a tick-box approach

With growing demand to “show impact,” there’s a temptation to reduce social value to a set of metrics or standalone initiatives. While measurement is important, it doesn’t always reflect the full picture and when social value is treated as an afterthought or compliance task, it risks feeling inauthentic.

Some of the common challenges companies make include:

Generic claims (“we care about our community”) without evidence
Over-reliance on reporting tools that focus on quantity over quality
One-off activities that aren’t integrated into wider business strategy
Lack of alignment between what’s promised and what’s delivered

To avoid this, it helps to shift the mindset: social value isn’t a separate workstream. It’s a way of working that runs through the culture, strategy, and everyday decisions of a business.

What good social value looks like

There’s no single template but effective social value approaches often share a few characteristics:

1. Intentional and specific

The most successful social value strategies are clear on where the organisation can make the greatest contribution based on its people, skills, and relationships. Instead of trying to tick every box, they focus on where they can make a lasting difference.

The National TOMs (Themes, Outcomes, Measures) Framework recommends aligning commitments to business strengths to avoid overpromising and underdelivering.

2. Informed by stakeholders

Social value is stronger when it’s shaped around the needs of the people or communities it aims to support. That might mean consulting employees, listening to partners, or working with local stakeholders to understand where support is most needed.

3. Built into everyday work

Whether it’s inclusive hiring, supporting suppliers, mentoring, or reducing emissions some of the most effective social value outcomes come from embedding change into business as usual.

4. Measured and shared transparently

Clear goals and data help to track progress, but stories and context are just as important. Combining quantitative and qualitative insight gives a fuller view of the value created.

Taking it further: The rise of B Corp

Some organisations are going even further by embedding social value into their legal structures through certification schemes like B Corp. Becoming a B Corp signals a deep, company-wide commitment to people, planet and purpose, with accountability baked into governance and operations.

If you’re exploring whether this route is right for your business, read my blog on what it means to become a B Corp and how to get started.

What social value means for marketing

Social value has a growing role in marketing — not just in terms of how organisations communicate their impact, but how they build brand trust, shape campaigns, and align with audience values.

As expectations around purpose and accountability rise, marketing teams are increasingly responsible for bringing social value messaging to life in a way that’s credible, consistent, and human. It’s not about adding buzzwords to a brochure, it’s about helping organisations walk the talk.

Here’s how marketing contributes to the social value agenda:

1. Telling the right story

Marketing has the tools to turn complex strategies into clear, engaging narratives. From ESG reports to social media campaigns, the role of marketing is to connect impact with audiences using language, visuals and formats that resonate. That includes developing content strategies that put people, purpose and outcomes at the heart of the story.

2. Ensuring consistency across channels

Social value shouldn’t only appear in the ESG section of a website. It should flow through brand messaging, tender responses, thought leadership, recruitment campaigns and client communications. Marketing helps ensure that the story is joined-up and reflects the organisation’s real values across every touchpoint.

3. Avoiding greenwashing and purpose fatigue

Customers and clients are increasingly sceptical of vague or performative claims. Marketing can play a protective role; stress-testing messaging for credibility, grounding campaigns in evidence, and helping businesses avoid reputational risk. This is essential in sectors where social value is linked to procurement scoring or investor relations.

4. Supporting bids and frameworks with clear value propositions

In public sector procurement, social value is often worth 10% or more of the overall bid score. Marketing teams can help shape compelling, evidence-led value propositions that demonstrate real alignment with buyer priorities, not just brand ambition. This might include case studies, impact stats, or social value-focused bid content that’s both strategic and audience-specific.

5. Positioning brands around long-term purpose

In competitive B2B markets, purpose-led marketing is increasingly important. Buyers are influenced by how an organisation contributes to society, not just what it sells. Marketers can help define and express this purpose, ensuring that social value is not an add-on but a differentiator. That includes aligning brand positioning, tone of voice, and campaign strategy to social impact goals.

Turning impact into words that work

Telling the story of your social value matters; not just for reporting, but for engaging people with what you’re doing and why.

That could take the form of:

A social impact report
A stakeholder or tender submission
A narrative for your website or ESG strategy
A briefing for internal teams

Having supported businesses with this — including writing AHR’s 2024 Social Impact Report — I’ve seen how valuable it can be to bring together data, design and storytelling in one place. The report highlights how an organisation can measure its contribution to people, place and planet across a wide range of activities, from education and employment to decarbonisation and community engagement.

Personal perspective: What I’ve seen first-hand

I’ve also seen the value of social value embedded in day-to-day business. During my nine years working in marketing at Bruntwood — and continuing to support them as freelance marketing consultant — I’ve seen how social value runs through everything they do. It’s not a campaign theme; it’s part of how they build places, invest in partnerships, support local enterprise, and foster inclusive growth.

That approach has delivered meaningful outcomes; not just for the communities they serve, but for the long-term strength of the business. It’s shown me what it looks like when social value is not just talked about, but truly lived.

Looking ahead

Social value is no longer just about “doing good.” It’s about doing business in a way that creates shared value; where profit, purpose and people are all part of the equation.

Done well, social value builds resilience, trust and long-term relationships. It strengthens your ESG positioning, supports responsible growth, and helps futureproof your business in a fast-changing world. And as reporting standards, investor expectations and social priorities continue to evolve, the ability to communicate this impact clearly will only become more important.

Want to tell your social value story better?

If you’re looking to develop your first social impact report, improve how you communicate value to stakeholders, or simply need help bringing your achievements into focus — I can help.

I work with organisations to shape credible, clear, and engaging social value narratives that reflect who they are and what they stand for.

View AHR’s 2024 Social Impact Report