Notes on Marketing Ethics and Responsibility

Introduction to Marketing Ethics

• Marketing Ethics: An essential aspect of marketing which combines ethical practices with marketing strategies.
• Sustainable Marketing:
  • Definition: A philosophy that emphasizes socially and environmentally responsible marketing.
  • Meets current consumer needs while preserving future needs.

Key Concepts in Ethics

• Values, Morals, and Ethics:
  • Values: Personal standards about what is important.
  • Morals: Defines what actions are right or wrong.
  • Ethics: Generally accepted principles that govern good behavior, based on moral values.

The 3 Pillar Framework for Ethics

1. Principles: Includes fairness, justice, do no harm, and adherence to proper behavior.
2. Virtues: Personal characteristics like courage, self-control, patience, and truthfulness.
3. Consequences: Consideration of the effects of actions and the goal of achieving the greatest good within social responsibility and legal frameworks.

Social Criticisms of Marketing

• High Prices: Various factors contribute to increased product prices.
• High Costs of Distribution: Affects final pricing for consumers.
• High Advertising and Promotion Costs: Reflects in overall product pricing.
• Excessive Markups: Common practice leading to consumer dissatisfaction.

Specific Issues in Marketing Practices

• Deceptive Practices:
  • Misleading pricing, promotion, and packaging.
  • Greenwashing: Misrepresentation of environmental practices.

Case Study: Keurig Coffee Pods

• Keurig misled consumers about recycling their coffee pods.
• Result: $3 million fine and mandate to revise their recycling claims.

Other Social Criticisms

• High-pressure selling tactics.
• Offering unsafe products.
• Planned Obsolescence:
  • Using inferior materials.
  • Timing the release of new features to encourage new purchases.

Legislation Against Deceptive Practices

• Legal consequences include penalties from agencies like the Competition Bureau and adherence to the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (CCPSA).

Role of the Consumers Association of Canada

• Aims to raise awareness regarding marketplace issues.
• Facilitates coordination to address marketplace difficulties and advocate for consumers' best interests.

Consumer Rights and Activism

Sellers’ Rights:

• Freedom to introduce products of any kind.
• Authority to charge prices and promote products as they see fit.

Buyers’ Rights:

• Right to opt-out of purchases.
• Expectation of product safety and performance.
• Consumer advocates call for:
  • Better-informed purchasing decisions.
  • Protection against poor-quality products.
  • Influence on product quality and preservation of future resources.

Sustainable Marketing Principles

• Consumer-Oriented Marketing: Focuses on marketing activities from the consumer's viewpoint.
• Customer-Value Marketing: Investment towards enhancing customer value.

Innovative Marketing Principles

• Emphasizes innovation in product development and marketing strategies to meet customer demands while maintaining ethical respect.

Ethical Decision-Making Steps

1. Recognize a Problem: Identify when an ethical issue arises.
2. Gather Relevant Facts: Collect information that affects decision-making.
3. Determine the Actors: Identify all stakeholders involved.
4. Test Decisions Against the 3 Pillar Framework: Evaluating principles, virtues, and consequences.
5. Make the Decision: Choose the best ethical course of action, possibly looking for alternative solutions.
6. Revisit and Reflect: Evaluate results after decisions are made.

Integrating Ethics into Marketing Plans

• Organizational Planning:
  • Mission statements, ethical climate, and ethical codes.
• Strategic Marketing Planning:
  • Define objectives and target markets with ethical considerations.
• Marketing Mix Planning:
  • Address ethics in advertising, product selection, pricing strategies, and distribution methods.
• Implementation and Evaluation:
  • Focus on stakeholder impact and identify any potential ethical lapses.

Corporate Marketing Ethics Policies

• Companies create policies to guide staff in ethical practices covering:
  • Relationships with distributors.
  • Standards in advertising.
  • Customer service protocols.
  • Pricing strategies.
  • Principles in product development related to ethical behavior.