Social and Ethical Marketing Issues

Running head: SOCIAL AND ETHICAL MARKETING ISSUES
Social and Ethical Marketing Issues
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1SOCIAL AND ETHICAL MARKETING ISSUES
As opined by Kumar (2016), the process of globalization and the widespread usage of
different kinds of technologies had significantly changed the nature of the contemporary
business world in comparison to the earlier times. Elbeltagi and Agag (2016) are of the
viewpoint that the primary focus of the contemporary business firms is on the aspect of
profitability and thus they often take the help of the kind of business practices which are not
only unethical but at the same time detrimental from the interests of the society itself. One of
the most important practices of the modern business firms is the use of marketing or
promotional campaigns which are in contradiction to the notion of business ethics or the
ethical paradigms that the contemporary firms are required to follow for the conduct of their
business (Saunders, Barrington & Sridharan, 2015). The net result of this is that the
marketing as well as promotional advertisements or campaigns used by the present day firms
not only over-hype the products or services that they are trying to sell but at the same time
create a fake persona around the same (Mittelstadt & Floridi, 2016). The primary intention of
the firms behind the usage of such advertisements or campaigns is to enhance the sale of
these products or services and thereby earn a higher amount of profit. The majority of the
marketing advertisements or campaigns used by the contemporary firms are not only
unethical but also in complete contradiction to the notion of business ethics as well. This
essay will analyze the relevance of social and ethical marketing issues within the framework
of the contemporary business world.
Crane, Matten and Spence (2019) have articulated the viewpoint that the notion of
business ethics had gained a significant amount of prominence within the framework of the
contemporary business world on the score of the damage that the business activities of the
different firms are causing to the society as well as the environment. As opined by Crane and
Matten (2016), business ethics, often called by the name of corporate ethics, can be seen as a
kind of applied or professional ethics which analyses the ethical or moral problems faced by

2SOCIAL AND ETHICAL MARKETING ISSUES
the firms during the course of their business operations. More importantly, the idea that the
business firms need to take ethical responsibility for their actions and thereby formulate their
business activities keeping the ethical or the moral concepts into perspective had promulgated
the rise of the notion of business idea (Mittelstadt & Floridi, 2016). This concept gains
special prominence in the light of the fact that the business firms in their bid to earn a higher
amount of profit not only mislead the customers but also resort to the use of unethical
practices as well. The net result of this is that the business firms are required to take the help
of the kind of marketing strategies which would be in synchronicity with their social as well
as ethical obligations towards the society and environment had become important (Chell et
al., 2016). It is precisely here that the notion of ethical marketing becomes important.
According to Kotler et al. (2015), marketing can be seen as the study as well as the
management of the exchange relationships that the firms share with their clients or customers
or the end users of the products or the services that they offer. On the other hand, Kumar and
Steinmann (2015) have stated that marketing can be seen as the business process through
which the firms not only establish relationships with their customers or clients but also
enhance the satisfaction level of the same. The net result of this is that the process of
marketing had emerged as one of the core business processes of the different firms on which
the overall business or organizational prospects of the firms greatly depend. In addition to
these, it is seen that the effectiveness of the marketing process used by the firms also
determines the sale of the products or services offered by them (French & Gordon, 2015).
However, it is often seen that the firms in order to enhance the sale of the products or services
offered by them often take the help of the kind of marketing advertisements or campaigns
which are not only contradictory to the attributes of the actual product or service that they are
offering to the customers but at the same time greatly mislead the customers as well. More
importantly, it is seen that the different firms are increasingly resorting to the usage of diverse

3SOCIAL AND ETHICAL MARKETING ISSUES
kinds of stereotypes, ethnical issues and others for the promotion as well as marketing of the
products or services that they offer to the customers (Kennedy, 2016). Needless to say, these
are not only unethical but at the same time likely to hurt the sentiments of a large number of
people as well.
As opined by Charter (2017), social and ethical marketing is less of a business
strategy and more of a philosophy which should guide the formulation of the marketing
strategies that are being used by the firms for the marketing or promotion of the products or
services offered by them. Kopnina and Blewitt (2018), in this regard, have stated that the
primary focus of the process of social and ethical marketing is to promote honesty,
responsibility as well as fairness among the marketing campaigns or the advertisements that
are being used by a firm. The net result of this is that the concept under discussion here rather
than being seen as a set of rules is seen as a set of guidelines which help the business firms in
the formulation of the kind of marketing strategies or advertisements which are in
synchronicity with the notion of business ethics. More importantly, the concept of ethical
marketing requires the firms to not only articulate the likely benefits of the products or the
services offered by them as well as the benefits that they are likely to cause to the customers
but at the same time the impact of the use of the concerned product or service on the society
as well (Kolk, 2016).
TOMS, an Argentina based firm founded by Blake Mycoskie in 2006, which offers
shoes and eyeglasses had designed its marketing campaign keeping into perspective the
impoverished people of Argentina (Toms.com, 2019). Furthermore, the firm had donated 60
million pairs of shoes to impoverished children from all over the world in addition to the
more than 400,000 pairs of glasses that it had donated to the visually impaired people who
lack access to ophthalmological care (Toms.com, 2019). In addition to these, the firm had
actively helped more than 25,000 pregnant women to deliver babies in a safe manner by