Chapter 1: Introduction: Multi-Stakeholder Communication: Emerging Issues for Corporate Identity, Branding and Reputation

There has been a growing interest in the subject of stakeholders and communication in recent years amongst academics and practitioners because there is a belief that a business operating in a competitive corporate market gains reputational value from a strong corporate brand reputation which in turn influence consumer patronage and consumer decision-making. The significant role of corporate communications is to develop and maintain relationships with the stakeholders of a contemporary organization. There is an extensive belief in today's society on how the company is viewed by key stakeholders such as investors, shareholders, consumers, customers, members of the community and employees in which the company resides. The challenge is to explore new and effective ways to harness the power of the communication opportunities it presents to engage with stakeholders in interactive, immediate and innovative ways. Any successful communication campaign will include them in its strategy. We view the study of the relationship between brands, identity, internal and external stakeholders, and companies as timely topics for further investigation.