Professors on the Go!

Chapter 16Marketing Ethics and Social Responsibility

1. Key ConceptsThe impact of marketing on individualsThe impact of marketing on societyThe impact of marketing on other businesses

Review the claims made by consumers, consumer advocates, public policy makers, and others that the marketers are harming consumers through planned obsolescence, shoddy or unsafe products, and poor service to disadvantaged consumers. Do you agree with these claims?

Review the responses offered by marketers to claims that high distribution costs, high advertising and promotional costs, and excessive markups lead to high prices that are harmful to the consumer. Do you agree with the marketers’ responses?

Suppose you are a key person in the marketing department of your organization. You recently learned that your company is marketing an unsafe product that has already resulted in a few consumer injuries. Publicly acknowledging the problem would damage your brand’s image and would require an expensive product recall. However, you believe that you could quietly introduce an improved version of the product, avoiding both the recall and the harmful publicity. What would you do?

Bring an example of a firm that you do not think is being socially-responsible to class. How did you determine this? What were the firm’s negative actions? What could the firm do to remove the negative social image?

Write a pro or con paper about social responsibility. Be sure to examine the issues of cost and profit. Examine the issues of social responsibility versus shareholder responsibility.

2. Key ConceptsConsumerism EnvironmentalismPublic actions

Can an organization be focused on both consumerism and environmentalism at the same time? Explain.

Find five examples of products or marketer practices that you perceive to be environmentally-sensitive. How can you tell that this is a policy that is being stressed?

Interview five fellow students (not from your class) on their feelings about the environment. Do they buy environmentally-oriented products? Do they recycle? Are they interested in environmental organizations? Have them give examples of positive and negative actions that they take daily with respect to

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Professors on the Go!

the environment. Are they afraid of any environmental issues? If so, which one and why?

What is environmental sustainability? List and describe the four parts of Figure 16.1.

3. Key ConceptsEnlightened marketingMarketing ethics

Describe the two philosophies of ethics and social responsibility discussed in the chapter. Is one a better philosophy than the other? Explain.

Recent public concerns over children and the Internet resulted in the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Among other things, this act requires Web sites that are visited by children under the age of 13 to post a privacy policy detailing any personally identifiable information collected from those children. Do some research and answer the question: What consumer need is being met by COPPA?

Find an example of a company that you perceive is practicing enlightened marketing. Describe why you feel the company qualifies. Is its practice publicized? Should it be?

List and describe the forms of products shown in Figure 16.3. Which of these are desirable, and which are not?

How do firms meet their social responsibility function?

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