Marketing Ethics

Marketing Ethics

The question of whether or not marketing is completely unethical is the

question most critics of marketing seem to be focusing their attention on.

Ethics provide the basis for deciding whether a particular action is morally

good or morally bad (Britt 553). But, each individual develops different

opinions, moral standards, and values. So, marketers will deal with similar

issues differently because there is no "correct" way to handle any given issue.

Marketers face various types of ethical issues in their everyday marketing

activities. Such marketing activities that require marketing managers to

utilize their moral values ethically are advertising, packaging and labeling,

and global marketing.

"Advertising is the most criticized of all micro-marketing activities

(McCarthy 643)." What is considered as unfair or deceptive advertising is very

difficult to pinpoint, because times have changed and continue to change on a

day to day basis. What one person may consider unfair or deceptive may not be

unfair or deceptive to another person. There are no clear cut guidelines for

marketing manager's to go by, so they must utilize their own judgement based on

their own moral standards. But, in the United States their is an administrative

agency that has the power to control unfair or deceptive business practices.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was created in 1914 to prevent "unfair

methods of competition in commerce (commercial trade) and...