Silver Springs Life Insurance and Facebook: An Ethics Case Study

This case study examines the ethical implications of a marketing strategy proposed by Facebook for Silver Springs Life Insurance Company, focusing on the "Good Provider" policy aimed at retaining former policyholders. The analysis covers the marketing objectives, which involve regaining former clients through a competitively priced policy, and the proposed marketing strategy, which utilizes emotional marketing and targeted newsfeeds to attract attention. The study delves into the ethical responsibilities of both Silver Springs and Facebook, emphasizing adherence to marketing ethics, including social responsibility, trust, and transparency, as defined by the American Marketing Association. The evaluation of the ethical aspects is performed using Josephson's Core Values model, examining factors such as honesty, responsibility, fairness, respect, transparency, and citizenship. The case concludes with recommendations for ethical marketing practices and the importance of integrating ethics into the overall marketing strategy. The paper also provides references to support the analysis.

Running Head: MARKETING ETHICS
Ethics Case Study
Name
Submitted To
Date

Introduction
In this paper, a discussion is represented on the Ethics Case Study dealing with the marketing
strategy proposed by Facebook to Silver Springs Life Insurance Company. The paper discusses
the data released by the company over its life insurance policyholders. Since many policyholders
of the company were reportedly found to lose and lapse their life insurance coverage. These
policyholders aged between 60-70 hold accountability of their families and children who were
totally dependent on them (Yin, 2013).
In an attempt to hold back these policyholders under the insurance covering section, a marketing
representative is brought into the team and tasked to produce and place advertisements for the
promotion of newly launched Good Provider policy scheme to hold back its former
policyholders. The paper further discusses the marketing objectives, marketing strategy, ethical
responsibilities, and ethical evaluation of the proposed marketing strategy by the Facebook
employee.
Case analysis
What are the marketing objectives of Silver Springs for this advertising campaign? Who is the
target market?
Answer - The marketing objectives of Silver Springs behind the promotion of the Good Provider
Policy are to win the favor of former policyholders by launching a more competitively priced
insurance policy. In order to meet the goal set by the company while promoting its Good
Provider Policy", a cross-functional product team is built to win the favor of at least initial 50%
of their former policyholders. The target market of the Silver Springs for this advertising

campaign is their former policyholders at which the Good Provider Policy is aimed at (Parente
and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014).
Describe all known elements of the marketing strategy proposed by Facebook for the Silver
Springs campaign.
Answer - The marketing strategy which Facebook proposed to Silver Springs was to apply
emotional marketing strategies to boost company's business. In today's world, emotional
attention has grabbed the eyeballs of marketers while they make marketing communication with
their target groups. Facebook advised the marketing representative of Silver Springs to take the
help of emotional marketing while advertising for Good provider policy, to win the favor of its
former policyholders. Emotional marketing strategies practice is seen to widely appeal the target
consumers, as these hold potential to directly appeal to consumer's emotional state, needs and
aspirations (Baker, 2014).
The other marketing strategy proposed by Facebook to help Silver Springs in its launched
scheme was to apply targets' newsfeeds strategy which has the ability to attract more attention of
the people towards the news feed. Newsfeeds which engage target audience more have the
possibility to get more hits as compared to the news feed which has no fate. The newsfeeds
designed to invoke a mood of insecurity among the target group has potential to convey a
maximum message to its customers. By citing few examples through newsfeed such as
seemingly unrelated stories about the celebrities who died in the age ranging from 60-70 due to
life-threatening illness, and the stories of helpless older people and adult children grab the
attention of target people.
Answer - What are the ethical responsibilities of Silver Springs and Facebook?

The ethical responsibilities of Silver Springs and Facebook are to duly follow marketing ethics
which include social responsibility, trust, behavior, principle, reliability, and morality. These
principles have been designed by The American Market Association as a set of guidelines or
every marketer in the United States.
The successfulness of the Good provider policy scheme launched by Silver Springs is duly
marked by its end customers if they really feel that company is doing a noble act in pursuit of
social responsibility as opposed to the clever. While providing suggestion to the Silver Springs',
Facebook must keep in mind that the market strategies proposed by it are truly following ethical
behavior in marketing (Ford and Richardson, 2013).
Conventional morality also comes under ethical responsibilities guiding marketing ethics. Both
Silver Springs and Facebook must keep in mind that ethical marketing, in general, should make a
prominent demarcation between the terms advertising and sensationalism. The ethical principle
must meet the government standards and regulations and vigorously practiced by marketers.
American ethical norms and values for marketers are honesty, responsibility, transparency,
fairness, respect, fairness, and citizenship. Following mentioned standards are one which
individuals take into account while analyzing their own business practices and those of other
marketers. Thus, following Marketing Code of Ethics and Standards and Practices should be
adopted by every marketer (Eagle et al., 2015).
The evaluation of the ethics of the proposed marketing strategy is based on Josephson's Core
Values model, which is also nicknamed as character-based decision-making model". The model
discusses several steps involving ethical judgment, such as:

 Identifying the stakeholders - The underlying principle behind the identification of the
stakeholders is the Golden Rule which says that one must help when one can and also one
must avoid harm when one can.
 Ethical values and principles always take precedence over non-ethical ones - The
underlying principle behind this principle is that ethicality must be given more preference
by the people over non-ethical ones, and understanding and identifying rationale facts
while making a clear choice between ethical values and the non-ethical principles.
 Consider which stakeholders gain or lose with each decision – While making a
marketing strategy, sometimes a situation may arise on the preference between competing
for ethical values and principles, in that case, the marketers or stakeholders must make a
decision according to their conscience (Klein and Basik, 2016).
 Analyzing and concluding the facts by understanding which sort of decision fulfills the
greatest number of core values as compared to such decisions which have no
consequences and nullifies the core values of ethics associated with marketing strategy.
 Analyzing and determining the facts ruling which sort of decision will deliver the
maximum good to the various stakeholders involved in the business.
The core values addressed by the Josephson are listed below: -
 Honesty – The term addresses the need to be forthright and tell the truth in dealings
without being tricky. The term honesty also refers to offering value and integrity. The
offer value and integrity means keeping promises up to oneself by not violating the
principles and virtue of words.

Responsibility – It addresses the facts hovering around accepting the results and consequences
of marketing practices and thus, serving the needs of customers of all types, and being reliable
while performing the acts. The term also addresses the fact that one must hold its own
accountability and pursue excellence while doing tasks for running a successful business.
Fairness – The term addresses the facts that maintaining equilibrium between buyer needs and
seller interest fairly is essential while practicing the ethical principle associated with marketing
strategy. Avoiding manipulation in all forms while conserving the discreet information of the
consumers is also considered to one of the principle facts governing marketing strategy
ethicality.
Respect – Acknowledging and judging people on the basis of their merits protect the basic
human dignity of all the people. Such steps involve efforts require to communicate, understand
and meet needs and appreciate contributions of others, without manipulating, exploiting, or
taking advantage of others.
Transparency – The term addresses the fact that building and developing a spirit of openness
and togetherness in the practice of marketing through communication, constructive criticism,
action, and disclosure is considered to be one among many ethical values that marketers are
expected to uphold.
Citizenship – The term addresses the facts that obey laws and fulfills all legal, economic,
philanthropic and societal responsibilities to all stakeholders as well as refer back to the
community and conserve the ecological environment.

Marketing Objectives and Marketing Strategy
In context to this paper, the term marketing objective refers goals set by a business when
promoting or advertising its products or services through newsfeed or campaign to potential and
targeted consumers that should be achieved within a planned time frame. In other words,
marketing objectives sounds the same as a marketing strategy. Marketing strategy is set in an
attempt to achieve the overall organizational objectives within a definite duration of time
(Hollensen, 2015).
Ethical Responsibilities and Ethical Evaluation
It has been noticed that in some organizations there is a mutual agreement about the adoption of
particular evaluation standards and/or ethical guidelines to guide the evaluation procedure of any
code of conduct. The American Evaluation Association's hold accountability of five guiding
principles, such as systematic inquiry, competence, integrity, respect for people and
responsibilities for general and public welfare (Crane and Matten, 2016).
Recommendation
Based on the analysis made while studying the entire case study, it is highly recommended to
Silver Springs, and Facebook is to duly follow marketing ethics. Silver Springs Life Insurance
Company must upheaval the importance of acting in a more ethical way and broadcasting this
transformation to their former life insurance holders. One of the most convenient and
approachable ways to achieve this is through their best marketing practices. If a company makes
an endeavor to advertise more ethically, it reflects positively on every arena of that business
(Vitell, 2015).

Conclusion
A conclusion is drawn from the fact that the company must duly comply with its target group as
they are the end person to endorse their products or services in a better way. Coming up with a
strategic business plan to promote products and services through advertisements or news-feed are
good approaches adopted by any company to make itself more approachable or producible in the
eyes of its end customers. Commercial business adopted while implementing the effective
business plan is prime goals and objectives of marketing strategy. But while doing so,
understanding business ethics and socially responsible marketing are equally important. So, one
should make his move by integrating ethics into the marketing strategy in parallel to the business
interest of the organization.

References
Yin, R. K. (2013). Case study research: Design and methods. Sage publications.
Parente, D., & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, K. (2014). Advertising campaign strategy: A guide to
marketing communication plans. Cengage Learning.
Baker, M. J. (2014). Marketing strategy and management. Palgrave Macmillan.
Ford, R. C., & Richardson, W. D. (2013). Ethical decision making: A review of the empirical
literature. In Citation classics from the Journal of Business Ethics (pp. 19-44). Springer
Netherlands.
Eagle, L., Bird, S., Spotswood, F., & Tapp, A. (2015). Ethical Dimensions of Social Marketing
Does Try to do Good Equate to Doing No Harm?. In Marketing in Transition: Scarcity,
Globalism, & Sustainability (pp. 431-436). Springer International Publishing.
Klein, M., & Basik, K. (2016). The (New) Horizon for Value-Based Ethics: Insights and
Opportunities for Our Profession.
Hollensen, S. (2015). Marketing management: A relationship approach. Pearson Education.
Crane, A., & Matten, D. (2016). Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and
sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
Vitell, S. J. (2015). A case for consumer social responsibility (CnSR): Including a selected
review of consumer ethics/social responsibility research. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(4), 767-
774.