For many marketers, they can be portrayed as cold and calculating, or merciless in their journey for successful gain. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Marketing can be different, and can be conscious of the world around them. People more and more are looking for more ethical companies to get their products and services from; your company should be looking to become more sustainable and it can show in their marketing…
Ethical marketing is a strategy that means businesses are open and honest, with fair practices, and let their consumers know about it. The main aim is to reach out to a target audience that holds the same principles they promote. A company's marketing team focus is on advertising the product whilst upholding their ethical standards.
The opposite of being ethical?
The opposite side of ethical marketing is, of course, unethical marketing. Unethical marketing sole focus is on the profit a company can make- profit is top of the list. Scare tactics and false claims are just two examples that businesses can use in their marketing to unethically get consumers on board.
For those looking to move their marketing to more ethical forms, there are a number of principles within marketing you should know of…
The Principles of Ethical Marketing…
Here are four principles of marketing ethics that can help establish your company as one with honest values…
Fairness: When making decisions, being fair is important. Ethical companies will decide on fair prices, better wages and strong sustainable development.
Honesty: A foundation of ethical marketing is being honest. It’s been mentioned already but ethical advertisements focus on factual information about the product and service they’re trying to sell. It’s fundamental that ethical marketers sell their product without misleading their audience.
Responsibility: Many businesses show their ethics by letting their consumers know what they are responsible for; be it how they’re giving back to the community or how they intend (or do) support social causes around the world.
Transparency: The final principle to take a look at- transparency. For businesses to be transparent they should look to open up about their business operations; what are they doing about the sustainable and/or environmental impact of the company’s product or service.
While I've described ethical marketing as a strategy, it's actually a philosophy. For those companies looking to be known as ethical; not only should you show the benefits of your product/service, but the benefit your company puts out in the world.
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