Ethical and Social Responsibility in Marketing

Good afternoon followers! 

   Today I want to discuss some things about Ethical and Social Responsibility in Marketing. 

Who would have thought that ethical and social responsibility were such a big part of marketing? I sure was unaware of this until I learned more about it. I'm going to share with you today what I have learned, in hopes you will learn something too! 

   To start, I'll give you the basic definition of Ethics, they are the moral principles and values that govern the actions and decisions of an individual or group. They serve as guidelines on how to act rightly and justly when faced with moral dilemmas, according to the textbook. alongside ethics are laws, laws are societies values and standards that are enforceable in the courts. 

These are four ways to classify marketing decisions according to ethical and legal relationships: 

Now, we will move towards a Code of Ethics, which is a formal statement of ethical principles and rules of conduct. 

- There is an estimated 86% of US companies that have an ethics code. 

- These ethics codes address contributions to government officials and political parties, customer and supplier relations, conflicts of interest, and accurate record keeping. 

There are a great deal of ethical values for one to also follow in the marketing world. These values consist of; Honesty, Responsibility, Fairness, Respect, Openness, and Citizenship. 

The Moral Idealism is a personal moral philosophy that considers certain individual rights or duties as universal, regardless of the outcome. There is an alternative perspective on the moral philosophy which is Utilitarianism. This is a personal moral philosophy that focuses on "the greatest good for the greatest number" by assessing the costs and benefits of the consequences of ethical behavior. 

Now lets look more on the social responsibility side. 

Social Responsibility means that organizations are part of a larger society and are accountable to that society for their actions. 

- There are a three concepts of social responsibility: 

1. Profit Responsibility: holds that companies have a simple duty, to maximize profits for their owners or stakeholders 

2. Stakeholder Responsibility: focuses on the obligations an organization has to those who can affect achievement of its objectives. These include, consumers, employees, suppliers, and distributors. 

3. Societal Responsibility: refers to obligations that organizations have to 1) the preservation of the ecological environment and 2) to the general public. 

In societal responsibility there is a relation with Triple- bottom line and Green Marketing. 

These both have to do with the environment. 

- Triple-bottom line is the recognition of the need for organizations to improve the state of people, the planet, and profit simultaneously if they are to achieve sustainable, long-term growth. 

- Green Marketing is marketing efforts to produce, promote, and reclaim environmentally sensitive products. 

Now that I gave you the main points and low down of Ethical and Social Responsibility of Marketing, I hope you have just as good of and understanding of it as me! 

Thanks for reading!

Until next time, 

Natalia