Business ethics apply to our behavior in the workplace as individuals and to our company’s decisions as well. We each operate within our own ethical framework and company’s do as well. Based on these ethical foundations, “business ethics offer distinctive decision-making strategies to recommend what the business should do in problematic circumstances” (Scharding, 2018).
Whether or not a person is a Customer of a particular firm or not, the general public can view their marketing and their brand content. “Ethical marketing from a normative perspective approach is defined as “practices that emphasize transparent, trustworthy, and responsible personal and organizational marketing policies and actions that exhibit integrity as well as fairness to consumers and other stakeholders” (Dincer & Dincer, 2014).
There are “several forces are driving companies to practice a higher level of ethics:
rising customer expectations, changing employee expectations, government legislation and pressure, the inclusion of social criteria by investors, and changing business procurement practices” (Dincer & Dincer, 2014). This heightened level of expectations leads to harsher public opinion of questionable marketing decisions.
In my opinion, smear campaigns are one marketing strategy that I find to be questionable morally. A smear campaign is a “marketing campaign designed to highlight negative components” of another company or competitor (WPSU, n.d.). A firm “must practice public relations with the highest levels of integrity and ethics in order to maintain trust” (WPSU, n.d.). Although these types of campaigns can be effective in increasing market share or improving business, they sometimes can have adverse effects on the brand and reputation of the company.
One example of this is a campaign that United Airlines did this week in the Denver market. “When it comes to competing for flyers out of Denver, United isn’t playing nice this spring as a new advertising campaign that got underway Monday demonstrates. In a series of ads shared with The Denver Post last week ahead of their widespread release, United highlights its network, capabilities and ties to the Mile High City. It also takes shots at Southwest Airlines, the second-largest operator at Denver International Airport” (Rubine, 2021).
This sort of mentality of, ‘taking shots’ at the competition is arguably less favorable when considering moral decisions and marketing campaigns. While not completely unethical, “it is clear that marketing ethics of today relates to issues such as trust, honesty and fairness, conflicts of interest, discrimination, privacy, and fraud” (Dincer & Dincer, 2014). Smear campaigns that directly address the competition do not promote high levels of integrity. In my opinion, whether it is a company, or a politician, promoting yourself without attacking the competition shows the greatest character.
In my current position, I do not have direct contact with the public or our passengers most of the time. However, if I am to try to sell an idea, or concept for an internal project, I have to rely on my own leadership brand and my communication skills. For me, it is important that my professional relationships maintain open dialogue and honesty. That is why it is of upmost importance to ensure that my peers and upper leadership view me as an individual with character and integrity. Therefore, when I do have an opportunity to pitch an idea, I am more likely to be trusted and will be more impactful.
References:
Dincer, C. & Dincer, B. (2014). An overview and analysis of marketing ethics.International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 4(11)https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v4-i11/1290
Scharding, T. (2018). This is business ethics : An introduction. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
WPSU - Penn State Public Media. (n.d.). Case study: Facebook & burson-marsteller "smear google" campaign. Retrieved April 23, 2021, from https://www.pagecentertraining.psu.edu/public-relations-ethics/introduction-to-public-relations-ethics/lesson-1/case-study/
Rubino, J. (2021, April 20). United airlines takes aim at southwest in new DENVER ad campaign. Retrieved April 23, 2021, from https://www.denverpost.com/2021/04/19/united-airlines-ad-campaign-southwest-denver-dial
Comments
Post a Comment