Question

• How would a marketing manager or management team overcome the typical difficulties faced in trying to ensure ethical standards? Identify a potential ethical issue related to relationship marketing, and provide an example of an ethical solution for this dilemma. Explain your reasoning.

Answer 1

To overcome the typical difficulties faced in trying to ensure ethical standards, marketing manger should practice below mentioned points -

• Product usage and endorsements should be clear and transparent
• Marketing communications should be based on shared and valid facts
• There should be a clear distinction between advertising and sensationalism
• Privacy of consumers should be given top priority
• Government rules and regulations should be strictly followed in all the advertisements and communications

One of the potential issue related to relationship marketing is "Is marketing advertisement/communication is built on giving and keeping promises and being honest". Many a times, it happens that marketing advertisement of the company's product and services provides extra importance/advantage/functionality to the customers, which is quite different from the real usage of the products and services. The ethical solution for this dilemma is to provide transparent information to the customers and if any thing which is shown in the advertisement is not applicable in real usage should be communicated to customers through some terms and conditions.