After
reading the article by El Sayed and El Ghazaly (n.d.), discuss your views on
the following:
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1.
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Do you feel ethical guidelines make a difference to
marketers?
Ethical guidelines much like a policy or procedure can and
do make a difference to marketers. It gives the marketer a guidebook or rule
of the road, if you will on how and in which circumstances to apply the
tricks of the trade of selling and providing a service. This would be
predominately helpful when the marketer is selling on commission and would be
an aid in alleviating the appearance of impropriety.
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2.
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How can companies balance the need to win with being
ethical?
I would surmise that the need to “win with being ethical”
could be rephrased to “success in business through ethical practice”. Considering
that a transaction between a client and provider should be a “win, win” for
both, with the profits realized by a provider or vendor should be the icing
on the cake stemming from designing a service or product that is tailored to
a clients needs and requirements, and not only what is available from a
vendor.
Commercial Off The Shelf or COTS are a prime example of
what may be available to a perspective client. The research and development
has already been accomplished based upon perspective market demand and at a
savings to the client when the COTS item is acceptable as an alternative to
Research Development Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E,) which can be a
costly and time consuming venture requiring large sums of capital.
It is only after these briefly mentioned marketing and
developmental tools can a vendor say they have met the “success in business
through ethical practice” litmus test.
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3.
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Is it ethical to track your buying habits or web visits to
target you for marketing purposes?
Yes, and I see no problem with it as long as it is
utilized as a tool for suggesting to a client or customer an alternative
method of items that may suite ones needs in a better manner.
For example, Amazon often describes what others may have
purchased in addition to or as an accessory to what you are looking at. I
find it useful if I am researching for a product or service and not quite
certain of the item or its functions and my needs or requirements.
I am also fond of iTunes “genius” feature when downloading
music. It gives the opportunity one might not always have time or the
resources to find like music at an affordable rate and ease of download
capability.
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4.
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As a leader, how will you manage the ethical aspects of
your marketing efforts?
Managing ethical aspects of marketing to perspective
clients and customers can be tied to researching current trends, market needs
and wants that coincide with available research and developments currently in
place.
Reaching out to and working with perspective customers in
joint ventures as a method of capturing the true requirements of a particular
product and/or service. This can boost consumer confidence since the vendor
has most likely invested substantial capital without reaping any profit.
Also a trend in today’s market place might be to work with
rivals on a project that a client or customer has an established need. The
stakes are high as proprietary information and trade secrets are at stake,
however, if properly accomplished, all can share in the profits of a
well-executed business and marketing plan.
The trick is to solicit skills commiserate with the
project from rival organizations that can benefit from the venture and at the
same time protect ones proprietary information. The end game will be a
product or service tailored to a customer specific needs, at a reduced rate
because both parties involved have a specific expertise to bring to the table.
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