PurposeThe main goal of this paper is to provide an integrative understanding of corporate social responsibility (CSR) from a corporate marketing perspective, highlighting the critical role of CSR in effective corporate marketing strategies.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is conceptual and draws on the social identification, organisational identity and corporate marketing literatures from the European and US schools of thought.FindingsThe paper integrates and builds on extant thinking in corporate marketing and CSR to provide an identity‐based conceptualization of CSR. Based on this, it positions CSR as an optimal managerial tool for promoting alignment between multiple corporate identities (e.g. internal, external), which ultimately leads to key benefits for the company.Originality/valueThe paper is the first to highlight the unique role of CSR in being able to align multiple corporate identities. Furthermore, the paper threads together diverse perspectives on corporate identity and marketing to highlight the potential role of CSR in effective corporate marketing.