Moral rights in business ethics and marketing

Business Ethics

Over the last several years, the issue of marketing ethics has been increasingly brought to the forefront. This is because there are certain tactics which have been questioned. One of the most notable, is allowing marketers to use any techniques (that are within the law) to encourage someone to purchase from them. This overlooks any kind of moral and ethical guidelines that are applicable. As the law will provide the best practices for marketers based on the various restrictions that are enacted. This ethical point-of-view is considered to be very controversial, because it is ignoring the emotions associated with making a purchase. Instead, marketers are focused on following the various provisions of the law and remaining in compliance with these guidelines. This is problematic, as some individuals believe that a business has duty to look out for the best interests of its customers at all costs. As a result, the controversy that will be defended is how businesses should remain in compliance with the law. Anything beyond this standard is wasting the firm's time and energy on issues that will not produce any kind of benefit for the company.

A good example of this can be seen with the different groups on both sides of the debate. As there are a number of organizations that are supporting specific ethical practices of firms beyond regulations these include: the Consumer Federation of America, the National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators, the Consumers Union and the Better Business Bureau.

This is showing how these organizations are focused on improving upon these standards by taking ethical considerations into account.

Those entities that are backing the basic legal requirements only include: the American Marketing Association, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Club for Growth and Free Market.Net.

This is illustrating how both sides are highly organized in making effective arguments that are supporting their viewpoints. To fully understand what is happening, requires carefully looking at: how following legal guidelines will help firms to meet the basic ethical requirements. Together, these different elements will provide the greatest insights as to the underlying benefits for marketers (who are taking this approach when interacting with customers).

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The basic ideas that support the arguments of allowing firms to follow basic legal guidelines are based upon the premises of: let the buyer beware, an implied warranty and lemon laws. Let the buyer beware is when consumers are accepting a certain amount of risk when purchasing a particular product or service from marketers. This is provided that the marketer does not engage in actions that are considered to be dishonest or deceitful. Instead, if the firm is providing consumers with all relevant information these provisions would apply.

At the same time, there is a legal obligation that all businesses must honor implied warranties when dealing with customers. This is when the firm guarantees that the product or service will work as advertised. In the event that it does not, the company has a legal obligation to replace it with one that will perform these functions satisfactorily.

Lemon laws are designed to improve consumer protections. This is when customers have a warranty that will last for a certain amount of time (usually 30 days). During this period, if the product is defective, they can return it for an exchange or repair. These elements are showing how following basic legal guidelines will support actions that protect the interests of consumers. Therefore, added ethical provisions are a waste of time and money that will produce no measurable results.

Evidence of this can be seen with observations from Adamson (2008). He found that the government must strike a balance between protecting the interest of the general public and encouraging free market ideas. To achieve these objectives, there are different organizations and groups that are designed to inform / enforce existing regulations. At the same time, consumers could use the product liability laws to sue the manufacturer or marketer for damages (if the merchandise / service do not work as advertised). This basic foundation is requiring everyone to conduct their own independent analysis of the products or services they are utilizing. In the future, this will allow them to make accurate determinations about the best company to buy from.

As a result, this research is relying on the authority of experts to understand how these ideas are the correct course of action for marketers (who are promoting different products and services). What makes Adamson an authority in this field, is his experience in working as an attorney and legal professor. The combination of these factors is giving him the ability to discuss ethics and morals from different viewpoints (based upon his experience).

A Defense against possible Criticisms

There are many critics who believe that taking this kind of approach, will lead to everyone doing just enough to meet the basic guidelines. This reduces the quality of products and services that customers are receiving. At the same time, the brand image of the firm will suffer with many customers purchasing from competitors.

Those organizations that are utilizing ethical guidelines and polices will be able to motivate employees to go the extra mile. This is because they will see the long-term benefits of these kinds of activities for everyone. It is at this point that staff members will feel that their position is more than just a job. Instead, they think it is pushing them to have a higher level of awareness when working with stakeholders. This is when there will be an increase in productivity and the firm will have a common set of unifying goals.

The problem with these views is that they are failing to discuss the various challenges which are impacting different stakeholders. This is because applying a code of ethics, is assuming that everyone automatically has a higher sense of consciousness and moral self-awareness. However, the various ethical scandals are showing that executives will face tremendous challenges when trying to implement these policies.

As no one understands why these ideas are being enacted and how they will impact the organization. Instead, most people will focus on specific laws to determine the right course of action. This is illustrating how the approach that is being used by proponents of ethical guidelines is a waste of time and money. If there was an emphasis on following different regulations, there will be a transformation in how everyone is interacting with each other. This is showing how all firms must follow the basic provisions of the law when dealing with various stakeholders at all times.