Sustainable Marketing and Green Finance: Integrating ESG Metrics into Financial Reporting and Strategic Branding

  • Authors

    • Sireesha Nanduri Faculty of Management Studies, CMS Business School, JAIN (Deemed-to-be University), Bengaluru, 560009-Karnataka, India
    • Elizabeth Chacko School of Business and Management, Christ University, Bengaluru
    • Srinivasa Rao Dasaraju Finance and Accounting, IBS Hyderabad (Under IFHE, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
    • SreeLakshmi Moorthygari Department of Business Management, Mahatma Gandhi University, Nalgonda, Telangana, India
    • Ravi Kumar Bommisetti Department of Commerce, Akal University, Talwandi Sabo, Bathinda, Punjab, India, 151302.‎
    • Mahadevan M. Department of Management Studies, School of Commerce and Management, Mohan Babu University, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India
    • Venkata Raghu Babu Nallamalli Department of Management studies, RISE Krishna Sai Prakasam Group of institutions, Andhra Pradesh – India
    • Mohan Pathuri Principal, SKIM, Khammam, India
    https://doi.org/10.14419/9pp6rt15

    Received date: August 12, 2025

    Accepted date: September 23, 2025

    Published date: October 11, 2025

  • Brand Trust; ESG Metrics; Financial Reporting; Green Finance; Strategic Branding

  • Abstract

    As sustainability gains significance in the global business landscape, an increasing number of companies are adopting Environmental, Social, ‎and Governance (ESG) frameworks to enhance transparency and strengthen stakeholder relationships. This study looks at how using ESG ‎metrics in branding and financial reporting affects the creation of long-term corporate value. The main goal is to find out how combining ESG ‎initiatives with marketing plans and financial disclosures affects brand equity and financial credibility. There are both qualitative and quantitative ‎parts to the study. This involves a qualitative analysis of ESG reports from 150 multinational corporations and the utilization of quantitative ‎regression methods to examine the impact of ESG integration on brand performance and financial metrics. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) ‎set the rules for ESG scores. Return on Assets (ROA) and Tobin's Q were the most important financial measures. The results show that ‎companies with high levels of ESG integration saw a 12.4% increase in ROA and a 0.38 average increase in Tobin's Q compared to companies ‎with low levels of ESG activity. Both changes were statistically significant at p < 0.01. Survey data also showed that companies that closely ‎linked their ESG disclosures to their branding had a brand trust index that was 22% higher. These results show that strategically branded, ESG-focused reporting not only improves financial performance but also makes consumers feel better about the company. Ultimately, the study offers ‎a framework for integrating ESG metrics into financial and marketing strategies, emphasizing ESG's function as both a moral obligation and a ‎source of competitive advantage in the context of responsible capitalism.

  • References

    1. World Economic Forum. (2020). Toward Common Metrics and Consistent Reporting of Sustainable Value Creation. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org.
    2. Khan, M., Serafeim, G., & Yoon, A. (2016). Corporate Sustainability: First Evidence on Materiality. The Accounting Review, 91(6), 1697–1724. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr-51383.
    3. Du, S., Bhattacharya, C.B., & Sen, S. (2010). Maximizing Business Returns to Corporate Social Responsibility: The Role of CSR Communication. International Journal of Management Reviews, 12(1), 8–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00276.x.
    4. Fatma, M., & Rahman, Z. (2016). Consumer Perspective on CSR Literature Review and Future Research Agenda. Management Research Review, 39(11), 1310–1337.
    5. Leonidou, C.N., Katsikeas, C.S., & Morgan, N.A. (2013). Greening the Marketing Mix: Do Greeners Lead to Greener? International Journal of Business and Social Science, 4(7), 1–17.
    6. Eccles, R.G., Ioannou, I., & Serafeim, G. (2014). The Impact of Corporate Sustainability on Organizational Processes and Performance. Management Science, 60(11), 2835–2857. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1984.
    7. Fatemi, A., Glaum, M., & Kaiser, S. (2018). ESG Performance and Firm Value: The Moderating Role of Disclosure. Global Finance Journal, 38, 45–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfj.2017.03.001
    8. Connelly, B.L., Certo, S.T., Ireland, R.D., & Reutzel, C.R. (2011). Signaling Theory: A Review and Assessment. Journal of Management, 37(1), 39–67. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310388419.
    9. Khan, M., Serafeim, G., & Yoon, A. (2016). Corporate Sustainability: First Evidence on Materiality. The Accounting Review, 91(6), 1697–1724. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr-51383.
    10. Eccles, R.G., Ioannou, I., & Serafeim, G. (2014). The Impact of Corporate Sustainability on Organizational Processes and Performance. Management Science, 60(11), 2835–2857. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1984.
    11. Friede, G., Busch, T., & Bassen, A. (2015). ESG and Financial Performance: Aggregated Evidence from More than 2000 Empirical Studies. Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment, 5(4), 210–233. https://doi.org/10.1080/20430795.2015.1118917
    12. Fatemi, A., Glaum, M., & Kaiser, S. (2018). ESG Performance and Firm Value: The Moderating Role of Disclosure. Global Finance Journal, 38, 45–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfj.2017.03.001.
    13. Du, S., Bhattacharya, C.B., & Sen, S. (2010). Maximizing Business Returns to Corporate Social Responsibility: The Role of CSR Communication. International Journal of Management Reviews, 12(1), 8–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00276.x.
    14. Fatma, M., & Rahman, Z. (2016). Consumer Perspective on CSR: Literature Review and Future Research Agenda. Management Research Review, 39(11), 1310–1337.
    15. Leonidou, C.N., Katsikeas, C.S., & Morgan, N.A. (2013). Greening the Marketing Mix: Do Greeners Lead to Greener? International Journal of Business and Social Science, 4(7), 1–17.
    16. Martínez-Conesa, I., Soto-Acosta, P., & Palacios-Manzano, M. (2017). Corporate Social Responsibility and its Effect on Innovation and Firm Performance. Journal of Cleaner Production, 142, 2374–2383. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.11.038.
    17. Reichelt, H. (2010). Green Bonds: A Model to Mobilize Private Capital to Fund Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Projects. The World Bank Treasury.
    18. Velmurugan, Palanivel Rathinasabapathi, et al. "Strategic Approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development: Integrating Leadership, Marketing, and Finance." Navigating Corporate Social Responsibility Through Leadership and Sustainable Entrepreneurship. IGI Global Scientific Publishing, 2025. 373-406. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-6685-1.ch013.
    19. Singh, Abhishek K., and Maryam Vaziri. "ESG Reporting and Strategy for Sustainable Marketing." Developments in Corporate Governance: Emerging Market Perspective. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2025. 509-525. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-6366-8_25
    20. Emmanuel, Apooyin Agboola. "The future of management reporting and sustainability reporting: Integrating ESG metrics for strategic decision-making." World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews 25.2 (2025): 748-61. https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2025.25.2.0423.
    21. Gopal, Sucharita, and Josh Pitts. "ESG Integration: Unveiling Risk and Driving Innovation in Sustainable Finance." The FinTech Revolution: Bridging Geospatial Data Science, AI, and Sustain
    22. Liang, Liang, et al. "ESG Performance Evaluation and Reporting." The ESG Systems in Chinese Enterprises: Theory and Practice. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2025. 213-242. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-5459-8
    23. Vukasović, Tina, et al. "Integrating ESG and AI in higher education: a conceptual framework for curriculum innovation." Mednarodnoinovativnoposlovanje= Journal of Innovative Business and Management 17.1 (2025). https://doi.org/10.32015/JIBM.2025.17.1.3.

  • Downloads

  • How to Cite

    Nanduri , S. ., Chacko , E. ., Dasaraju, S. R. . ., Moorthygari , S. ., Bommisetti, R. K. . ., M., M., Nallamalli, V. R. B. . ., & Pathuri , M. . (2025). Sustainable Marketing and Green Finance: Integrating ESG Metrics into Financial Reporting and Strategic Branding. International Journal of Accounting and Economics Studies, 12(6), 438-448. https://doi.org/10.14419/9pp6rt15