With respect to the suitable marketing ethics, a number of variables have been identified. For instance, Chonko and Hunt as cited in Palmer initially carried out a study to identify suitable ethics in marketing. Their study found a number of ethical issues which hinder the realisation of suitable practices in marketing. Some of the issues include bribery, fairness and honesty.
However, in a separate study, Smith found that pricing and product related issues add to the ethical concerns that inhibit stable ethics to be adhered to in marketing. To this end, suitable marketing ethics present a dilemma to the stakeholders whereby the demands of a company and the consumers have to be met.
The importance of ethics in marketing has resulted in several studies sprouting up to establish the actual ethical concerns that marketing experts face. The study by Hunt et al. Hunt et al. On their part Smith , found that most marketing executives engage in unethical behaviours when it comes to the marketing of certain products.
However, when such managers were reprimanded, the vices stopped. Understanding suitable marketing ethics requires insight on ethical judgments that marketers have to make.
In the study, ethical issues like labelling of products and hyped branding as the borderlines for ethical issues. Smith , on their part, found that ethical judgments are brought about by such issues as the information given to clients and the pricing of commodities. In both cases the judgments result in outlining the suitable marketing techniques. To this end, suitable marketing ethics are only realised when the marketers can make the necessary judgments from the issues raised. Labelling is seen as a suitable marketing technique with respect to ethics.
Alserhan argue that businesses that deal with goods require adherence to certain standards of labelling. Smith argues that labelling is particularly important in the food industry.
For instance, companies that manufacture processed foods are required to adhere to certain safety standards. To this end, issues like the ingredients used in the products ought to be outlined.
Proper labelling is, as a result, considered as one of the suitable marketing ethics. As already mentioned, marketing executives are faced with a dilemma when it comes to making profits at the expense of honesty to their customer.
The subject has been an issue of debate as outlined by Saucier Saucier found that most marketing professionals tend to distort certain information while describing their product.
Smith found that misinformation and misinterpretation are ethical concerns that most marketers face. The dilemma results from the claim by Packard as cited in Smith that consumers can be gullible and the need to increase sales.
Several studies outline the possibility of realising profits by avoiding the ethical issues surrounding misinformation and misrepresentation.
Gilbert and Churchill recently pointed out that companies can market their product by outlining the actual benefits of their products. The same calls for intensive research on the said benefits. Saucier found that marketing a product based on well researched issues by credible authorities increases the allure of a product.
Pricing, on its part, is one of the thorny ethical issues that most marketing executives face. The subject was an issue of research in the study carried out by Smith According to Packard as cited in Smith , marketing is seen as deceptive in the manner that a particular commodity is priced. Packard as cited in Smith found that marketers tend to associate a product with high values when in fact the same is not true.
Under such circumstances, the idea advanced by Levitt and cited in Smith argues that consumers are not as gullible as imagined, emerges. Marketers tend to price their products under an illusionary value in order to attract their customers. However, Smith point out that such a move is seen as exploiting the consumers. To this end, reform is necessary to ensure the dignity of the consumer is safeguarded. Good marketing ethics have a direct impact on the operations of a company, with respect to meeting its core objectives.
Ethics are the viewed as the principles a person or an organisation relies on, to meet its objectives. In a study carried out my Gulls and cited in Brenkert , decisions made by a company can be clear cut right and wrong. However, with respect to marketing there are exists ambiguity resulting in ethical dilemmas. In the field of marketing, there are a set of uncertain problems pertaining to product development and pricing policy. Gulls and cited in Brenkert made an observation that when it comes to distribution activities and promotion ethical dilemmas present themselves.
In this section, of the review, ethical issues in marketing are highlighted. To that extent a code of ethics, is outlined, to point out the areas where business ethics must be employed. The first ethical issue, commonly associated with marketing is the misleading of clients. The issue was subject of the study by Gilbert and Churchill and Davidson In the studies, the production of a misleading advertisement was viewed as a common ethical dilemma.
Gilbert and Churchill suggest that regulation creates the boundaries for what can be said in a marketing campaign. Consequently, marketers are required to consider the ethical boundaries. Davidson evaluated a number of claims with respect to how clients get misled through marketing campaigns. Consequently, to establish when a claim is taken too far companies are required to adhere to a code of conduct on matters relating to ethics.
The ethics related to direct marketing is another concern facing a number of companies in the present times. According to Davidson , direct e-mails and telemarketing amounts to the invasion of privacy. However, direct marketing should not be misconstrued to imply that it is not an ideal marketing strategy. Davidson suggests that the same is another example of the ethical dilemmas which present themselves when developing an ideal marketing strategy.
To this end, the use of promotion avenues, to market a product should be governed by sound ethical principles. The safety of consumers is an important concern that should be considered in the development of a marketing plan. Hermit as cited in Murphy carried out a study to evaluate the safety measures taken in protecting consumers from harmful products.
According to Saucier , companies, particularly in the cosmetic and food sectors, fall prey t the temptations of marketing of harmful products. Saucier went on further to point out that, industries like tobacco and fast foods are culprits in the production of products that are wholly harmful to their consumers.
To this end, marketers ought to evaluate the degree of responsibility they take due to the harm caused by the products. Although the consumers also have a responsibility, the same should be clearly delegated in the form of disclaimer alerts on the harm caused by the products. Brenkert argues that the right choice is not always clear.
The same calls for adherence to ethics. Marketers can also take their own initiative to set out ethical practices. Saucier refers to the fast food industry pointing out that, while enjoying the profits made by the easy-to-make foods they should take personal initiatives to advance ethical standards. In the field of marketing, adherence to pricing ethics is an important component in enhancing the relationship between the seller and the consumer.
Davidson evaluated the same and mentions predatory pricing as a common practice used by marketers. According to Davidson , predatory pricing is practice used to drive out competition. The same is done in a manner that the competition cannot possibly compete. Such a trend can be harmful to consumers and marketers are advised to tread carefully.
Policy designed to foster a healthy marketing environment must ensure that there is a balance between the profits and the welfare of the consumers. Cause-related marketing is an emergent ethical issue in the field. Davidson argues that cause-related marketing becomes an ethical dilemma based on how it is managed.
The society develops a perception of a company based on the of cause impact on customers. To this end, marketing departments responsible for the relationship with a cause are required to manage the same with transparency. In the current business arena, companies are increasingly forced to adhere to the environmental concerns. According to Davidson marketers are developing marketing strategies based on how their product affects the environment.
Environmentally-friendly choices can be a costly affair Saucier However, marketers must consider their responsibility to society and the environment, as they come up with strategies to sell their products. Marketing executives are often confronted by a number of ethical issues. Consumers ought to be informed of price or size changes and the same has huge cost implications.
However, marketers are also required to consider the ethics behind their policies. To this end, issues of cost result since certain ethical requirements are a costly affair. An example of cost implications on ethical demands of marketing is in the distribution of products. Fresh foods, for instance, require healthy transport conditions like refrigerators. However, marketing executives opt to ignore the requirement just to minimise on the operating costs of their company.
Ultimately, ethics relates to organisational performance in generating goodwill for a particular company. Davidson argues that such goodwill often translates into sales. Adhering to the laid down ethical concerns, of marketing, by a company turns an organisation into a more attractive place to work. Motivated, proud employees tend to improve on their performance. A good reputation is arguably much harder to build compared to sales numbers.
Stereotyping is also another ethical issue of concern in business. Advertisements are known to cast particular groups in stereotypical roles. Davidson examined washing powder advertisements across the world. Such marketing campaigns often portray women as housewives preoccupied with their laundry. Such campaigns create an opposing message that the consumer will not be part of the happy group unless they purchase the product.
Most marketing campaigns insert a hidden message meant to manipulate clients. Smith cites the George Bush Presidential Campaign. Such tactics appeal to the metal faculties of a consumer to a associating certain aspects good or bad in relation to their product. Marketing can come out as offensive, especially when it appears to create some cultural and ethnic sensitivity. Waller conducted a survey on motor vehicle advertisements. According to Waller , advertisements about luxury cars depict men as womanisers.
Such a marketing tactic depicts women as objects that can easily be acquired through material objects. Waller suggest that depicting a woman as dependent on financial success is offensive. Marketing campaigns of that nature ruin relationships between organisations and their clients. Racial stereotypes are the most common when it comes to marketing strategies.
Waller found that it is possible to exclude a certain group of people in a multi ethnic society. In a separate study Palmer found that marketers in the fast food industry often target children with the juicy images created.
Consequently, the children are exposed to such diseases as obesity. Marketers tend to manipulate consumer into buying a certain commodity, when in fact it is not the actual product. Waller discussed the same and refers to such a trend as post-purchase dissonance. According to Waller , post-purchase dissonance often occurs when a consumer makes a mail order. Such a scenario occurs when a client gets an inferior quality or quantity of the goods they ordered. Although the buyer may claim a refund, such tactics usually deter prospective buyers.
As already mentioned, trust and good faith are integral aspects of developing a rapport between the consumer and the seller. The implied good faith, due to marketing ethics is essential for the mutual benefit of both parties to trade. To this end, the study by Kotler established that the performance of an organisation transcends the discretion of its executives.
Marketing ethics opens up the process to include all the stakeholders in trade. The same ensures maximum benefits out of the trading endeavour. Waller suggests that marketing ethics have been legislated in certain states in America.
Gundlach and Murphy as cited in Murphy argue that courts may ensure the good faith is incorporated in any form of marketing exchange. To this end, legal institutions like courts and tribunals are expected to embody the spirit of good will. Ultimately, marketers are required to make decision but ought to be guided by the principles of ethics. In the study by Fry and Polonsky and cited in Rodwin must ensure that all the stakeholders are satisfied by the decisions made.
The input from all stakeholders is required, coupled with their specific interests to ensure that a middle ground is reached.
Homburg et al. A disclaimer is necessary to point out that. The domain of marketing ethics has a locus in the element of pricing. Customers at Wal-Mart customers often get low prices.
However, Palmer points out that the company has several critics. Unfortunately, most approaches to market orientation often opt to elevate the interests of individual stakeholders. According to Coldwell and Herbst , Wal-Mart is an example of a company that focuses on the consumer as its individual stakeholder while at the same time disregarding the plight of its workforce.
Wal-Mart disregards the workforce but lays emphasis on profits and the consumer numbers. Failure to incorporate their employees in the decision making process, gives Wal-Mart a bad image. Such a move is seen as a failure for a marketing strategy.
In recent times companies are facing immense pressure to focus on all their stakeholders. The incorporation of all stakeholders ensures that an organisation is accountable for its actions. The logic behind such an understanding is captured in the one of the many definitions of marketing. The definition places emphasis, on marketing, with respect to ethics. The American Marketing Association as cited in Coldwell and Herbst introduces the importance of delivering value while marketing.
To this end, it is the responsibility of marketers to come up with meaningful relationships that provide benefits to all relevant stakeholders.
Based in the study by Saucier , marketing ethics was, for the first time, defined to include all the necessary parties. The same is seen as a move in the right direction with respect to the development of marketing ethics. Marketing executives can make an ordinary decision or one that is bound by ethics. Saucier uses their study to point out the difference between the two decisions.
An ordinary marketing decision disregards the code of ethics while an ethical one sticks to the laid down regulations. Consequently, Saucier advices marketers to settle on a decision that satisfies all the parties. At this point, ethical dilemmas present themselves on the decision to be selected. Ethical decision making requires that marketers make decisions informed by their personal morality, laid down rules and the conviction to enhance the concept. Ethical decision making, in marketing, is not any different from other similar functions of an organisation.
Gilbert and Churchill argue that marketing ethics overlap with those of general business practices. The argument relies on the assumption that all activities in an organisation are geared at ensuring the products reach the consumer.
To this end an ethical component to business decisions, regardless of whether it is marketing or some other functional area component is important in the functionality of the organisation. There is a high possibility to generalise the average behaviour patterns in any company. Waller points out that marketing identifies the importance of stakeholders, their related issues.
Marketing also enhances information gathering. The same is meant to respond to the constituent elements of the marketing domain. Secondly, in the decision-making process, marketers are required to settle on the most important issues. Based on this argument, Waller suggests that marketers should focus on the intensity of the issues at hand. The fast food industry, in the US, is under immense pressure by government agencies, consumers, and special interest groups to develop menu options that consider the health of their consumers.
While discussing the same, Smith makes reference to children as the main interest group. Children, as already mentioned, are not in a position to make informed health choices. The evaluation and resolution of ethical dilemmas in marketing requires an ideal theoretical framework as a point of reference. Churchill and Lacobucci point out that moral philosophy is an ideal point of reference in the development of a theoretical framework.
An ideal theoretical framework is one which encourages internal discipline. Such lenience allows top sales performers to further unethical practices without fear of the repercussions. The process of advancing a theory of marketing ethics has been the subject of numerous studies. The following agencies are an example of how the US intends to enhance an ideal theoretical framework due to policy making:. The agencies mentioned above have come up with comprehensive codes of conduct meant to tackle the ethical risk in marketing.
According to Baragona , the recent regulatory changes in America require marketing executive to take the onus of implementing ethics in the field. A theoretical framework that promotes the culture of ethics in an industry will ensure marketing becomes a respectable entity.
The General Theory of marketing lays the ground for a more comprehensive framework. Increasing trends in the field of business support new trends of ethical issues in marketing. According to Smith , most emergent ethical concerns arise from consumer psychology.
In this section, of the review, some fundamental consumer behaviours are outlined. Marketing strategies, and ultimately, marketing strategies are developed with the understanding that consumers perceive certain ethical concerns.
Whereas such an understanding was seen as a definition of ethical consumerism, there is distinction from consumerism as defined by Kotler and cited in Smith Based on the definition, given, it is possible to have a negative ethical consumerism.
In a separate study Gilbert and Churchill point out that, consumers develop an attitude towards a product, based on the ethical connotations associated in its marketing. To this end, Smith found that certain customers make a decision to purchase a product based on the ethics of its production and marketing. There are cases when a product is associated with a company that is reputed for unethical practices Waller Similarly, consumer decisions have been developed based on the ethical perceptions.
Understanding ethical consumerism is largely focused on the consumer decisions with respect to purchases. According to Smith , when a consumer refuses to make a purchase, the same can be considered as an ethical boycott.
In a separate study Bellizzi and Hasty and cited in Smith found that organised consumer boycott often results from a negative perceptions to the ethical concerns of marketing a commodity. The same applies for cases when there is a positive ethical consumerism. The current chapter highlights the previous studies on the issue of ethics in marketing. Some of the areas of interest include a historical outlook on the subject followed by an overview of some of the unethical perspectives of marketing.
In this chapter theoretical perspectives on the subject of ethical marketing standards are outlined. The review of literature highlights the general thoughts on the subject from various scholars. The next chapter provides the results from the actual research undertaking carried out through the administration of questionnaires. In this section of the study, the outcome of the interview is illustrated. The participants were administered with questionnaires, randomly.
The questions in the questionnaire are closed. Participants are only required to respond with a No or a Yes as the case may be. The questions on ethical marketing practices are posed in a fast food industry setting. The results, outlined, give a general bearing of the objectives of the study. The results act as responses to the questions raised in the introductory section. Based on the results outlined, a suitable discussion on the ethics of marketing in the fast food industry suffices.
In terms of gender, of the participants were female while were male. The females were mostly between the ages of 19 to On the other hand, the males were selected between the ages of 20 to Prior to the study all the participants filled out the consent forms. Participants to a study are required to exhibit an understanding of the subject intended for evaluation.
In this regard a series of questions were posed to the participants to establish their understanding of ethical standards. All the participants were given the questionnaires to fill out. Table 1 is an illustration of how the participants responded. Based on the figures represented in Table 1, a total of 27 participants failed to respond to the question posed.
However, an overwhelming responded in the affirmative. It is unclear whether the 27 had no clue or the question was skipped accidentally. That notwithstanding, there is a general view that a majority of the participants have a general idea of the concept. The need to establish whether the participants truly understood the subject was followed up by this question.
Table 2 illustrates the responses based on the proposed set of answers. Responses to the question posed, in this section were varied. On the other hand, 53 view the subject as genuine business practices. In general, the participants have an idea of the entails of business ethics. Ethical standards in the field of business are coupled by a series of practices.
The participants were given a number of options to select from in regard to their view on the ethical practices demanded by a business. Table 3 outlines the responses given. There are a number of practices that a company can carry out to conform to ethical practices.
In this study a total of 6 different opinions were surveyed regarding ethical practices of an organisation. Table 3 illustrates the results of the study in which the representation of ethical principles was the most common opinion among the participants.
The least popular view was that competence should be a core principle in organisation. That notwithstanding, the responses given illustrate a general willingness among the participants for ethical practices. However, ethical practices cut across various business organisations. Table 4 outlines the results of this survey.
According to Brubaker , the fast food industry is laced with several instances of unethical practices. To this end, the study decided to involve a well known brand in the industry.
On the other hand, 67 of the participants were of the view that the company was selected owing to its huge client base while 65 suggested that the company was a common brand. A paltry 15 supported the view that it was an easy company to evaluate. In the fast food industry, there are a number of issues which constitute unethical practices.
In this regard a number of those issues were posed as questions to the participants. Figure 1 is a representation of the unethical practices and the percentages of their occurrence, according to the participants.
Participants in this study were provided with 8 different issues related to unethical practices in marketing. Misrepresentation, as already discussed in the literature review, is the most common unethical practice in the food industry. Participants were asked of the degree at which misrepresentation occurs. Figure 2 is an illustration of the responses given. Figure 2 illustrates that the participants view that misrepresentation is an often occurrence in the fast food industry.
A significant percentage of the participants perceive that the same rarely occurs. The disparity in the responses can be attributed to the various issues of misrepresentation.
There are a number of instances where marketing makes use of misrepresentation. In the current study, participants were provided with three options that would suggest misrepresentation. In this regard, figure 3 illustrates how the participants responded. The participants perceive that the misrepresentation commonly occurs when fast food companies associate their products with celebrities.
An equally overwhelming number of participants perceive that fast food companies create the impression that their products are healthy. In addition, more than of the participants are of the opinion that an inaccurate representation of ingredients is a common occurrence in the fast food industry. Figure 3 is a clear indicator that misrepresentation is a common occurrence in the fast food industry.
From the literature review section, it was clear that fast food companies do not necessarily come up with safe products. In this regard, the consumers were surveyed on their opinions regarding consumer safety in the marketing strategies used by fast food companies.
Figure 4 is an illustration of the responses. Participants were polled on their opinion regarding prioritisation of consumer safety in marketing strategies. Based on the results outlined in figure 4 it is clear that there is little priority given to safety standards.
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Some ads are good and helpful while others are unethical and annoying. An individual will see advertisements for food, sanitary products, prescription drugs, and lawyers, to name a few, but this list could go on and on. All of these companies are trying to get you to use their service or purchase their products.
A marketing campaign tries to sway the consumer by trying to satisfy a. To what extent unethical marketing techniques could damage the sustainable business environment.
Marketing is like a double-edged sword, if it is adopted properly, it will give profits to a company; however, if it is used inadequately, it will give harm. Marketing plays the key role in making products. The film is based on the origins of the fast food giant McDonalds. It follows the story of Ray Kroc an ambitious, persistent and motivated entrepreneur and salesman. He is desperately searching for restaurant owners. Practical and Ethical Consideration of Marketing to Children Introduction: In , the National Association of Marketing Teacher adopted the first definition of marketing, which was ' the performance of business activities that direct the flow of goods and services from producers to consumers.
The definition of marketing has changed many times since The main aim of this report is to consider the reasons why McDonalds has been criticized by most of its consumers in terms of its pollution to its environment and the destruction natural rain forest, furthermore this report will discuss the nutrition.
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