Professional Project Marketing Ethics & Society

Question: Discuss about the Professional Project of Marketing Ethics Society. Answer: Project Description The project is concerned with analysing the role of ethics in marketing research. Marketing ethics is a branch of applied ethics that deals with moral principles behind all marketing efforts. It concerns with the operation and regulation of marketing. A marketing strategy deals with the ways an organization satisfies members in a target market (Javalgi and Russell 2015). This project shall study the ways in which ethics in marketing be implemented in the organization. The major issues faced by the top management in minimizing unethical practices in marketing managers are also stated. The extent of ethical problems of marketing managers is analyzed (Ferrell and Keig 2013). Aims Ethical marketing is a difficult subject as every individual has his own perception of right and wrong. The main aim of this project is to provide people the means for dealing with moral dilemmas and complications. Additionally, a list of aims is stated as under: To promote fairness, honesty and integrity in marketing practices. To provide aids for marketing decision making. To avoid deceptive marketing practices in organizations. To discuss ethics openly and widely while making all marketing decisions (Hoffman and Frederick 2014). Background Every organization must follow ethical marketing practices to guide their advertising, research, pricing, and competitive strategies. The ethical issues in marketing arrive from disagreements and conflicts. There are various ethical danger points that must be taken care of. The issues in marketing research occur from stereotyping and invasion of privacy (Smith and Murphy 2012). People, client, researcher and respondents may be affected due to stereotyping and invasion of privacy. The organizations involved in marketing activities use data given by respondents to influence product design and pricing. The organization requires an ethical approach for keeping the information private and confidential and must not be leaked without their consent. Increasing the price for simply increasing the level of profit beyond the strategic plan or reducing it to drive out competitors is a part of unethical marketing practice (Javalgi and Russell 2015). If the marketing managers follow unethical practices in the organization, it shall affect the retention of customers. It is critical to behave in an ethical manner because it is the cornerstone of long-term profitability. Additionally, it is important to strive for the greatest good and eliminating harm wherever possible. The project plan of ethics in marketing research shall help in exploring ways to remove harm caused due to unethical practices. The organizations shall be positively affected if the ethical standards are applied effectively (Tsalikis and Fritzsche 2013). Ethics may be followed while setting prices of products. It should also be implemented as a tactic in the organization. The marketing content must be prepared in a manner that avoids unfulfilling or false claims. Ethics shall help in providing clear instructions highlighting the dangers and ways to avoid them. It would be convenient for the target market to purchase a particular product (Schwartz 2015). An ethical program can be implemented in the organization in several ways. It shall start with setting out clear values. An organization must have clear company values as the ethical programs and practices can be most effective when the employees are driven by values rather than being driven by compliances. The organization must involve employees at multiple levels so that the values can be renewed throughout. The senior management support is necessary for ethical practices to be successful (Tsalikis and Fritzsche 2013). The senior managers are responsible for setting ethics and aligning it with the company standards. The directors must engage so that the marketing managers can carry out ethical responsibilities with confidence. Ethics can also be built as mission and vision statement that would help the employees understand values and maintain it. Ethical programs shall also be helpful in making appropriate decisions and encourage ethical autonomy in the organization. Acceptable eth ical practices may vary from one person to the next, so employers should give clear instruction of what is expected when an employee discovers unethical behaviour, including whom they should contact and how it will be managed (Carroll and Buchholtz 2012). Significance Ethics in marketing research is a significant study as organizations need to engage themselves in fair practices. Additionally, ethics is important in terms of theory development. Every employee desires to work for an organization that follows ethical practices. To be fair, ethical and honest is basic human need. An organization must also follow ethics for creating credibility. An organization needs to follow ethical practices to be valued and respected in the global market (Eagle and Dahl 2011). Additionally, ethics is significant for uniting people and leadership. It helps in aligning behaviours towards one common mission or goal. Ethics shall also be helpful in safeguarding the law of society. The reason why organizations must look into the field of applied ethics is that it is for the greatest good of all. The ethical concepts play a vital role as unethical practices pose severe threat to the managers as well as employees. The project is significant in all organizations as stakeh olders are involved who have interest tied with the people in organization (Tsalikis and Fritzsche 2013). Research Questions Based on the above background and literature, the following primary question arises: Is it important for the field of marketing to be governed by ethics? A few other questions that shall be addressed in the project plan are: Why is it important to maintain ethics in marketing research? What are the risks faced by the stakeholders if unethical practices are followed in marketing research?s the goodwill and credibility of the organization hampered due to unethical marketing research practices? (Tsalikis and Fritzsche 2013) Gantt Chart and Assessment Milestones Particulars Milestone Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Formulating marketing research problem Choosing methods of investigation Framework of research design Choosing data collection techniques Establishing sample design Collect data Analysis and interpretation Presenting report References Carroll, A. and Buchholtz, A., 2012.Business society. Australia: South-Western, Cengage Learning. Eagle, L. and Dahl, S., 2011.Marketing ethics society. New York: Sage Publications. Ferrell, O. and Keig, D., 2013. The Marketing Ethics Course: Current State and Future Directions.Journal of Marketing Education, 35(2), pp.119-128. Hoffman, W. and Frederick, R., 2014.Business ethics. New York: Mc Graw-Hill. Javalgi, R. and Russell, L., 2015. International Marketing Ethics: A Literature Review and Research Agenda.J Bus Ethics. Schwartz, M., 2015. Ethical Decision-Making Theory: An Integrated Approach.J Bus Ethics. Smith, N. and Murphy, P., 2012.Marketing ethics. Los Angeles: SAGE. Tsalikis, J. and Fritzsche, D., 2013. Business ethics: A literature review with a focus on marketing ethics.J Bus Ethics, 8(9), pp.695-743.