Marketing in Society: An Analysis of Ethics and Unethical Practices

This report provides a comprehensive overview of ethics in marketing, emphasizing its importance in building long-term customer relationships and maintaining a positive public image. It reviews existing literature on ethical marketing practices, highlighting the benefits of integrating ethics into marketing processes, such as enhancing brand value and attracting stakeholders. The report also addresses the detrimental effects of unethical marketing, exemplified by cases like Coca-Cola's misleading advertising, which can damage brand image and result in financial penalties. The analysis underscores the necessity for companies to adopt ethical marketing strategies to ensure sustainable growth and foster consumer trust, supported by real-world examples and academic research. Desklib offers this and many more solved assignments for students.

Running Head: MARKETING IN SOCIETY 1
Marketing in Society

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Table of Contents
ntrod ctionI u .................................................................................................................................................3
iterat re e ieL u R v w........................................................................................................................................3
oncl ionC us ...................................................................................................................................................6
e erenceR f s...................................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
The purpose of this report is to enlighten the reader about the ethics related in the process of
marketing. In the current business environment every organizations wants to achieve a dignified
position in the target market, the marketing activities of the companies helps them in creating an
image in the minds of the customers. The aspects of marketing help the customers in attaining
information about the products and services offered by the company and creating a brand image
as well. Further, the below mentioned paper explains a review of literature on the ethics in
marketing. It also explains about the types of unethical market along with its impact and various
examples. Ethics plays an important role in the process of marketing as looking the marketing
initiated by the companies; the customers create an image of the products and services they offer
in the market (Palmer 2015). More details about the paper are discussed below:
Literature Review
Whether a company is selling its products and services or it has hired the marketers to advertise
its products, it is very essential to understand very thin line between marketing practices with and
without ethics. Considering the importance of ethics, each and every company should
incorporate ethics in their marketing practices. However, the ethics in marketing does not covert
into increased revenues and profits; it is the responsibility of company to make sure that it is
accountable for its activities and their effects on customers and society as a whole (Haberstroh, et
al, 2017).
According to Vitell, and Hunt, 2015, business ethics is looked as one of the most controversial
subject in the external environment as it evaluates the relationship between doing good activities
and making money as well. Some companies follow the path of ethics in initiating marketing
activities however, some believes that they cannot earn well without influencing the customers
for the product. So, this is considered is as unethical marketing where the organization influences
the prospective customers by providing them wrong information about the products and the
company. Ethical marketing is less of a strategy and more of a philosophy or code of conduct of
the business as it talks about working with honesty and fairness in the business (Nill, 2015).

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Ethics in marketing states that the organization should not advertise or promote their product in
such a way that it negatively affects the sentiments of people. The company should circulate the
information that is true and it should not post such information in the market to attain trust and
long term relationship with the customers. Ethical marketing only explains that the company
should carry on their marketing activities without promoting any nuisance or wrongful
information to customers in the market. This type of marketing plays a major role in managing
the public image of the company (Murphy, Laczniak, and Harris 2016). Tanga Cement Company
has used social responsible and ethical behavior rather than a legal system on ethical issues. The
company develops a code of conduct to regulate all its marketing activities and communicate its
brand message to targeted customers.
Nowadays, marketing is an important process to approach the targeted customers and improve
brand image in the market. As stated by Kotler et al (2015), good ethics is the foundation for the
sustainable and effective marketing. In the long term, marketing without ethics can harm
company’s customers and society. A company can achieve long-run customers, marketing
objectives and business welfare via ethical marketing practices. In this context, DiPiazza (2009)
stated that each and every company needs to embrace, communicate and use basic values which
can enhance the confidence of consumers in the integrity of company’s marketing exchange
system. There are some specific values which should be included in a firm’s marketing practices
such as responsibility, fairness, honesty, citizenship, openness and respect. As per Murphy,
Laczniak and Harris (2016), ethical marketing efforts and decisions should focus and meet the
demands and needs of suppliers, business partners and customers. Unethical behaviors like
selective advertising, price wars and misleading advertisement can have adverse impact on the
relationships of company with its external and internal stakeholders. It can be analyzed by
looking at the current trends that most of the customers prefer to purchase their required products
and services from ethical firms. As an outcome of this, ethics itself becomes the selling factor
and a foremost component of company’s brand image (Murphy, Laczniak and Harris, 2016).
For some of the brands, ethics in marketing is more than an opportunity to increase their
credibility. Domino’s is the biggest example of this which implemented marketing campaign in
which it has displayed the pictures of real pizzas. They do not use the studio photography which
can make in more perfect. It was an uplifting look behind the marketing trick. It has developed

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honest and open relationship between the brand and pizza buyers. It was the best marketing to
get the attention of targeted customers. Ethics plays a significant role in the marketing practices
and processes (Ferrell, et al, 2014).
According to Nill (2015), there are various benefits of integrating the ethics in marketing
processes. The author stated that ethics is specifically significant in the situations of economic
downturns, when the unethical processes become appealing. Moreover, the emphasis on the
consumer value can enhance the value of organization. If the company will use ethics in its
organization and marketing practices, it will be able to enhance the quality of recruitment and
retention rate. Ethics is a significant factor which can assist the companies to attract suppliers,
customers, investors and employees. Ultimately, it helps the company to attain its overall
business objectives (Rawat, et al, 2015).
Dokoupil (2015) stated that there are various companies who engage in the unethical marketing
and advertisement. The impact of unethical advertisement is totally opposite of the above
benefits of ethics in marketing. The biggest example of unethical marketing is Diet Coke where
Coca Cola Company has made false advertisement claims to customers. In order to advertise its
product, the company has attracted the people by delivering a wrong message. They are told that
obsessive dieting is adaptable and this product is the best way to become beautiful and thin. It
was very harmful for the young girls because it had adverse effects on their body image and self-
esteem. Coca Cola should not use these ways to promote its product. It has affected the brand
image of Coca Cola among its targeted customers.
According to (Jackson, et al 2015) there are different situations where the companies do not
integrate ethics in marketing. Many times, the marketers over exaggerate about the advantages of
products in a diplomatic way that customers go emotionally under pressure of the influence of
advertising and they decide to purchase respective product. They use false claim about the
popularity and quality of their product. For example, a tagline like; “have coverage anywhere on
the globe” markets the features which cannot be provided to the final consumers. Karasheva and
Tilekeeva (2015) explained that other ethical issues in market include hidden perception, women
exploitation, deceptive marketing, marketing to kids and other issues that can cause moral
weakening of the society and its people (Jackson, et al 2015). The firms without using ethics in
marketing may face various issues and monetary fines also. For example, Apple has agreed to

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pay $2.25 million fine for advertising its iPads “4G” even these products do not support the 4G
networks in Australia. Additionally, the companies emphasize on the negative aspects of the
competitors’ products so that they can turn their customers towards own products (Nusca, 2012).
Along with the monetary penalties, it had an adverse impact on the sales of Apple. In this way, it
is clear that marketers think that they can earn benefits by using unethical advertisement and
marketing but it has opposite impact on company’s brand image. This affects both financial and
strategic position of company. The major impact of this advertising is on the brand image of
company in the eyes of targeted customers (Palmer, 2015). In this way, it is very important for
all the companies to integrate ethics and developing ethical practices in their marketing and
promotion processes.
Conclusion
Thus, in the limelight of above mentioned events the fact should be noted that ethics in
marketing is one of the most important aspects that help the business in managing long term
relationship with the customers and managing good public image as well. The above mentioned
review of literature states that the marketing concept helps the business in attracting customers in
the company and ethics in marketing helps the business in satisfying the customers and creating
good brand value as well. The paper covered the benefits of ethics in marketing along with its
role and impact of unethical marketing as well. The above mentioned illustrations explain the
impact of unethical marketing on the image of the company. Ethical activities are important for
the business to follow and it can help the company to run and maintain sustainable growth in the
target market.

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References
Armstrong, G., Adam, S., Denize, S. and Kotler, P., 2014. Principles of marketing. Australia:
Pearson Australia.
Dokoupil, T., 2015, Coca-Cola’s misleading anti-obesity campaign also targets kids, Available
from http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/coca-colas-misleading-anti-obesity-campaign-also-targets-
kids [accessed on 1 September 2018].
Ferrell, O.C., Niininen, O., Lukas, B., Pride, W.M. and Schembri, S., 2014, Marketing
Principles, Cengage Learning.
Haberstroh, K., Orth, U.R., Hoffmann, S. and Brunk, B., 2017. Consumer response to unethical
corporate behavior: A re-examination and extension of the moral decoupling model. Journal of
business ethics, 140(1), pp.161-173.
Jackson, M., Harrison, P., Swinburn, B. and Lawrence, M., 2015. 17. Marketing ethics in
context: the promotion of unhealthy foods and beverages to children. Handbook on Ethics and
Marketing, p.354.
Karasheva, A.A. and Tilekeeva, U.M., 2015. Manifestations of Unethical Marketing In Health
Care of The Kyrgyz Republic. Clinical Therapeutics, 37(8), p.e131.
Murphy, P.E., Laczniak, G.R. and Harris, F., 2016. Ethics in marketing: International cases and
perspectives. UK: Taylor & Francis.
Nill, A. ed., 2015. Handbook on ethics and marketing. UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Nusca, A., 2012, Apple penalized $2.22 million for misleading iPad 4G ads, Available from
https://www.zdnet.com/article/apple-penalized-2-22-million-for-misleading-ipad-4g-ads/
[accessed on 1 September 2018].

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Palmer, D.E., 2015. Conceptions and Misconceptions of Virtue in Marketing. Handbook of
Virtue Ethics in Business and Management, pp.1-9.
Rawat, S.R., Bhatia, K., Hegde, M., Bhat, N. and Tewari, S., 2015. The Importance of Ethical
Marketing Practices. Journal of Business Management and Economics, 3(2), pp.23-30.
Vitell, S.J. and Hunt, S.D., 2015. The general theory of marketing ethics: the consumer ethics
and intentions issues. Handbook on ethics and marketing, pp.15-37.