How to Determine a Company's Political Leanings

The ideological position of a company is more important to customers in today's society than ever before. But how do you figure out what a company's political convictions are? Is it easy to find out? No, and that is why I use a combination of free tools and methods outlined here to learn what the most popular brands (of any size) stand for politically.

3 tools that will tell you where a company stands politically

Finding out what a company's political views are can be difficult sometimes. For instance, there's not always a way to tell exactly where companies and brands stand politically. Having this information can be helpful, however. If you're a Republican living in California and want to avoid purchasing from companies that support higher taxes and abortion rights, then knowing what the political convictions of companies are is an invaluable tool. It can even get down to the level of understanding how much executive leadership contributes to Democrat or Republican politicians.

Here are 3 tools that will allow you, the average citizen, to have a better understanding of where a company stands on key political topics.

1. Opensecret.org: Ever wish that you could find out how much a company is donating to which political causes? That is what this site will tell you, spelling out how much they gave to which political entity (Republicans or Democrats) and which year they did it in, as well as several other useful analytics. This site really does their research to show you which companies are in whose pockets.

2. Followthemoney.org: Following the money has always been the surest way to find out where a company puts it values and what agendas is wants to promote. Public statements and internal policies are minor considerations compared to whose agenda the company is literally handing money to in order to support, and you can find out most of those details on this site. Similar to OpenSecret, this site lays out the political contributions of a company, you just have to know which company owns which brands to take it to the next level.

3. Articles, Videos, News Clips, Official Statements: Of course we can't compile a list without including this as a factor at a high level at least. One thing to mention here is to be careful where you get this information. Find out the political leanings of the media outlets themselves, the places that report on all of these items. These days the blatant political bias portrayed by media companies can cast doubt as to the accuracy of their news reporting on even the most basic things. Stick with neutral sources (if that is even a thing) and find out what "the other side" is saying to perhaps add some perspective to the so-called facts.

So there you have it, use these tools to investigate all of the companies and brands that you shop for and keep up with their political stance on everything... OR, you can use one more final tool that has already gone through all of this information to compile an easily searchable list. That company is www.shophowyouvote.com. Their website is a search directory for all this information and they have an app you can download to your mobie device.

In these polarizing times, we are all striving to be more aware a lot more of our social, political and even economical affiliations. We want to know who we are supporting when spending money. Are they aligned with our values? Are they fair-minded? Or are they actively subverting our progress? The impact of your purchases have been shown time after time and we have now the ability to make more conscious decisions than ever before! As consumers, we demand more transparency and brands need to provide it in order to resonate with us. As we navigate the consumer scene together let us urge one another to take a more active role in supporting the brands that support the things we believe in. Why would any of us settle for anything less?

ShopHowYouVote.com is a search engine that keeps tabs on the political donations and leanings of over 2,500 companies, making it easy for you to hold those companies accountable while you shop. ShopHowYouVote.com is all about making consumer awareness simple. With our free and easy-to-use brand/category/store search tool on our website, Android app, and iPhone app, you can send a powerful message to the many brands you shop for. Are you tired of the mess that our nation is in? Do you want to put your money where your own values are? Then by all means, shop how you vote! Please do us a favor and share this tool with a friend.

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