Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Marketing Plan
Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues in Marketing
It is crucial to consider ethical, legal, and social issues when making marketing decisions. Considering these issues is even more important in the context of international marketing. In the international context, considerations are made to not only the domestic market, but also the foreign market. This section highlights the ethical, legal, and social issues affecting the marketing of laundry detergents in the U.S. (the domestic market) and the UK (the foreign market).
Ethical issues basically relate to the moral principles that govern marketing (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2009). Major ethical issues in marketing include consumer safety, personal autonomy, stereotyping, market exclusion, selective marketing, pricing ethics, deceptive advertising, negative advertising, sexuality, and so forth. Two important ethical considerations in the marketing of laundry detergents relate to consumer safety and deceptive advertising. As laundry detergents are made of chemical compounds, hazardous ingredients and additives can pose a risk to the health of consumers.
It would be unethical to market detergents that are hazardous to consumers through deception or obfuscation. Deceptive advertising entails making exaggerated claims about the effectiveness of the detergent in terms of removing stains in an effort to trick customers into buying the detergent. This is not an uncommon practice. It will be important to avoid misleading marketing messages. Taking into consideration consumer safety and advertising ethics is particularly important in both the U.S. and the UK. In the two markets, adherence to marketing ethics is critical. Indeed, ignoring ethical issues can result in negative brand image, consumer boycotts, and expensive lawsuits.
Closely...
Indeed, ethical and legal issues are significantly intertwined. Marketing practices are considerably governed by the law (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2009). In addition to consumer safety and advertising, the legalities address issues encompassing privacy, intellectual property, distribution, competition, direct marketing, packaging and labelling, pricing, and environmental protection, among other issues. All these have important implications for marketing. For instance, as data collection comprises a significant aspect of marketing, marketers must gather data in accordance to the relevant information privacy guidelines. Both the U.S. and the UK have stringent requirements governing data privacy, which every business organisation that collects and holds customer data. In both countries, regulations also prohibit the use of phosphates in laundry detergents and other domestic products, and recommend the use of biodegradable ingredients in all detergents. Further, the marketing of laundry detergents must comply with laws relating to intellectual property. It is illegal to use the names, trademarks, and copyrights of other firms in marketing. It will also be important to avoid anti-competitive pricing and ensure proper packaging and labelling. Ignoring these issues would make the organisation vulnerable in both the domestic and the international market.
Business operations are affected by not only ethical and legal issues, but also social issues. Social issues relate to consumer demographics, tastes and preferences, attitudes and perceptions, consumption patterns, cultural factors, and other such factors (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2009). These issues have important implications for the marketing mix. They influence product attributes, pricing decisions, delivery channels,…
The importance of monitoring marketing performance is critical to evaluate and control the effect of the activity in reaching its desired outcomes. This entails determining the extent to which the formulated marketing objectives are achieved. In this case, the objectives include increasing awareness of the brand in the U.S. and UK markets, expanding the customer base, and raising brand loyalty in the next three years. Accordingly, marketing performance ought to be evaluated on the basis of these aspects. After the three years: What will be the level of brand awareness? How many customers will the organisation have? How many of those customers will be loyal or repeat customers? What will be level of customer satisfaction? Answering these questions will project the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the marketing initiative. As the achievement of the above objectives is tied to the bottom line, marketing performance can also be monitored by tracking changes in sales performance. Increased sales would be an indication of the effectiveness of the marketing initiative. Though the strategic objectives are to be achieved within three years, it is important to note that monitoring marketing performance is an ongoing process. Rather than waiting for the end of the three years, the tracking should be broken down into shorter periods, for example quarterly and annually.
Reference
Lamb, C., Hair, J., & McDaniel, C. (2009). Essentials of marketing. 6th ed. Boston: Cengage Learning.
Ethical Dilemmas & Marketing Ethical Dilemmas Ethical dilemmas in international marketing Background of Marketing Ethics Ethical Issues in Marketing Modern Debate in Stakeholder Theory Ethical Theories Teleological Theories Virtue Ethics Ethics in Marketing Ethical dilemmas in international marketing Humanity has long struggled with the question of what constitutes ethical behavior. The answer to this question has not always been simple or easy especially in the midst of conflicting interests. Businesses desire and need to sell products to consumers but serious issues
Social Media in Marketing The four components of a legally astute social media-marketing manager In this paper, I will look at Facebook as the leading social networking site. The four components of a legally astute manager include the knowledge, judgment, proactive and the attitudinal component (Bagley, 2006). A legally perceptive manager must acknowledge the importance of law to company success and accept responsibility for being in charge of legal factors of the
The concentration on action and violence draws larger audiences, yet is not effective in selling products Pechmann, Levine, Loughlin, Leslie, 2005). Researchers have also found that the brains of pre-adolescents and adolescents have low levels of inhibitory control and therefore pursue reckless and risky activities due to their judgment not being fully developed (Cauffman, Steinberg, 2000). Adolescents who have seen reckless and risky behavior online or on television advertising are
Apple's Current Position On Its Ethical And Social Responsibilities Corporations are increasingly seeking a vision in maintaining social responsibility alongside a vision in business. There are also demands for greater accountability and transparency in corporate actions of organized consumers, state representatives and grass movements (Garsten, 2003). Many corporations aim to engage in corporate citizenship and to be socially responsible by adhering to social accountability standards and voluntary codes of conduct. This
Ethical Challenges Faced by Multinational Businesses Ethical Challenges Faced by Multinational BusinessesI. Introduction: Ethical challenges faced by Multinational businessesA business organization that expands internationally does not only need to understand the organization�s goals, vision, strategies, policies, or missions but must also take into consideration various ethical and legal issues in the international business (Kline, 2010). Companies that organize for expansion into the foreign markets must also handle severe ethical and
International Business Report: Ultra High-Temperature Pasteurization (UHT) Milk for Chinese Children Aged 3 to 11 Years Executive Summary A number of important trends have converged in recent years that have significant implications for companies competing in the dairy industry that seek to expand their commercial operations into China. The world’s most populous country, China has an enormous population of infants which translates into a major demand for milk products (Cui, 2016). Moreover,