Marketing ethics and Societal Marketing

Concept

Marketing ethics is the area of applied ethics which deals with the moral principles behind the operation and regulation of marketing. 

Societal marketing refers that marketers should satisfy the needs and wants of their target market as such that they enhance the well being of consumers and society as a whole with fulfilling the objectives of the organization.

Definition

According to research…

• In 2002, approximately $15 billion was spent in the U.S. on marketing communications directly targeted at children.

• Estimates suggest that today’s children spend an average of 4 hours per day watching television and are exposed to about 5 hours of commercials per week, which amounts to 40,000 commercials in a single year.

• Approximately 88% of children between the ages of 5 and 14 use computers, and 53% have access to the Internet.

• According to a 2006 study , within the 4 to 6 year-old age group of children own a DVD player, a portable hand held videogame player, and a TV set in their room.

According to research…

• Recent estimates suggest that children account for about $30 billion in direct spending annually and influence an extra $600 billion in family purchases.

• marketers view children as the market of the future and often direct campaigns at them with the intent of forging brand loyalties at an early age.

Consumer Decision Making Model

THE ROLE OF TEENS IN FAMILY DECISION MAKING

• Children play an important role in influencing purchase decisions.

• Marketers across the world and in India are targeting children for marketing of their products.

• Kids represent an important demographic to marketers because they have their own purchasing power, they influence their parents' buying decisions and they're the adult consumers of the future.

• The Internet media, print and visual is an extremely desirable medium for marketers wanting to target children.

• "Pester power" refers to children's ability to nag their parents.

UNETHICAL MARKETING PRACTICES

• Marketing ethics is the area of applied ethics which deals with the moral principles behind the operation and regulation of marketing. Some areas of marketing ethics (ethics of advertising and promotion ) overlap with media ethics.

• Unethical marketing practices means not conforming to approved standards of social or professional behavior in business marketing practices.

• Unethical practices in marketing - examples

Lack of clarity in pricing

Dumping - selling at a loss to increase market share and destroy competition in order to subsequently raise prices

Price fixing cartels

Encouraging people to claim prizes when they phoning premium rate numbers

High pressure selling - especially in relation to groups such as the elderly

Copying the style of packaging in an attempt to mislead consumers

Deceptive advertising

Unethical practices in market research and competitor intelligence

Some of the Unethical marketing practices are as follows:

• Selling a sub-par product or service.

• Contacting people without their consent.

• Deliberately misrepresenting what a purchaser will get/achieve/become with a product or service.

• Refusing to respond to and correct customer complaints.

• Not having a clear and easy-to-understand privacy policy.

• The consequences of unethical marketing practices involving targeting especially vulnerable or unaware consumers are as follows:

Dissatisfied customers

Bad publicity

A lack of trust

Lost business

Sometimes, legal action.

How they target?

• Estimates suggest that today’s children spend an average of 4 hours per day watching television and are exposed to about 5 hours of commercials per week, which amounts to 40,000 commercials in a single year

• About 83% of commercials during the most popular shows for children ages 6 through 11 advertise snacks, fast food or sugary treats.

• Approximately 88% of children between the ages of 5 and 14 use computers, and 53% have access to the Internet.

• Thousands of marketing messages – from licensed cartoon characters on a favorite website.

Effect?

• Survey by the American Psychological Association, children 8 years old and younger tend to accept advertising claims as being truthful and process them as legitimate information.

• Marketing aimed at children triggers feelings of discontent and inadequacy, promotes undesirable social values, such as materialism, and causes health problems.

• The more children are exposed to consumer culture, the likelier they are to become depressed, suffer from anxiety, or experience low self-esteem.

• G.I. Joe ,Barbie, Size- Zero Kareena

Future?