Legal And Ethical Considerations Flashcards
(18 cards)
Decision guides
Decision guides are frameworks for analysing the moral dimensions of a situation
Decision guides three cases
Standard of conduct
Character and relationship
Purpose and consequences
Standard of conduct
Every firm has a ethics culture it must evaluate and interrogate standards of conduct into its operations
Example: apple have a supplier code of conduct to meet social and environmental standards
Character and relationships
for character and relationships Firms must recognise the character qualities they want to develop or eliminate to help them achieve their purpose
Ethics definitions
Ethics are the moral principles and values that govern the action and decisions of an individual or group. They involve values about right and wrong conduct
Purpose and consequences
Defining and setting desirable goals and priorities for the firm
Criticisms of marketing communication
Stereotyping - special K advert of physically perfect object of desirability but for women rather than men. Aspirational, unattainable ideal
Targeting vulnerable groups - old and the young, example being youtubers marketing gambling products to minors
Controversial messages - protein world did an advert saying are you beach body ready - fat shaming and sexism and promoting unhealthy targets to all audience
Covert marketing - to secretly market your profit or service to your prospective customer
E.g. the Saturn car from General Motors, it was sold as if from hip new company and not GM who was viewed as too traditional to consumers
Inherently deceptive and can include flogs, buzz marketing, covert info gathering (eg cookies)
Shock advertising - deliberately startles and offends it’s audience - to try to break through “advertising clutter” advert of driving safe and kid dying in car accident
Advertising standards
Subject to national regulation and legislation
Codes of conduct imposed by local advertising profession
Advertising standards enforced by national authority
Asa example of company who review complaints by members of the public and interest groups
Decides whether modification or withdraws may be necessary
The “essence of good advertising”
Should be legal, decent, honest and truthful
Should be prepared with a sense of responsibility to both consumer and society
Should conform the principles of fair competiton as generally accepted in business practice
The ICC codes
Promote “legal, decent,honest and truthful advertising, prepared with absence of social responsibility to the consumer and society and with proper respect for the rules of fair competition”
The icc consolidated code is regarded as the gold standard for self regulation
Form the basis for the self regulatory codes around the world
Uk regulation of advertising
Statutory controls - laws and regulations
Self regulation - codes of practice
CAP - writes the advertising codes
ASA - assesses kid ads breach the advertising codes
Two bodies with a shared goal to keep advertising legal, decent, honest and truthful
The ASA - Advertising standards authority
Works to make sure that all uk advertising is legal decent honest and truthful
It is funded by a levy on advertising space, but operates independently from advertisers and the government
Is responsible for investigating complaints of breaches of the CAP and BCAP codes
It runs sample checks on the advertising of certain categories of products and services to make sure they do not breach the code
It provides a means by which complaints about misleading or offensive advertisements can be investigated and if necessary corrected
CAP Codes state that all
Advertisements:
Should be legal decent honest and truthful
Should show responsibility to the consumer and to society
Should follow business principles of fair competition
They contains specific rules that cover advertising to children and adverts for alcohol, motoring, health, beauty, slimming, financial products and employment and business opportunities
Compliance general rules
Marketing communication must reflect the spirit, not merely the letter of the code
Marketers must comply
With all General rules and with relevant sector-specific rules
No marketing communication should bring advertising into disrepute
ASAS Powers
It can require an advertisement to be withdrawn or amended and if necessary warn the media not to accept the offending version
It publishes a regular case report giving details of its adjucations and investigations
It uses the services of an independent reviewer where a complainant is not satisfied with the ASAs adjudication
referral to uk trading standards or ofcom for further investigation
ASA complaints 2014
37073 complaints driven by social media
60% of formally investigated ads upheld
A 35% increase in complaints about online ads
Individual and public
Pressure on marketing
The consumer movement:
Information
Protection
Influence
Environmentalism:
Ecosystem
Health
Political and legal forces
Business action towards socially responsible marketing
Most companies now recognise consumers rights to info and protection
Many have responded positively to consumerism and environmentalism as a way to create customers value and strengthen customer relationships
