What is deceptive marketing?

Deceptive Marketing

OLCU 350 | Dr. Carson | Jessica Hull Daisy Valbuena Veronica Cruz

October 17th, 2016

References

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Collins, D. (2012). Business ethics. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Hunt, H. K. (1977). Decision Points in FTC Deceptive Advertising Matters. Journal of Advertising, 6(2), 28-31. doi:10.1080/00913367.1977.10672690

Hunt, S. D., & Vitell, S. (1986). A General Theory of Marketing Ethics. Journal of Macromarketing, 6(1), 5-16. doi:10.1177/027614678600600103

Tipton, M. M., Bharadwaj, S. G., & Robertson, D. C. (2009). Regulatory Exposure of Deceptive Marketing and Its Impact on Firm Value. Journal of Marketing, 73(6), 227-243. doi:10.1509/jmkg.73.6.227

Weinmann, K. (2001, September 16). False advertising scandals that cost brands millions. business insider.

What has our team learned

Why does the issue have interest to stakeholder and community at large

What is deceptive marketing?

What are some types of deceptive marketing?

Recommendations for companies

• Be mindful of what is said in an advertisement
• Read the fine print
• Do your research

How do organization's decisions about ethical marketing affect society as a whole

"Behavioral studies have found that deception engenders distrust and leads to avoiddance of perpetrator" (Tipton, 2009, p. 228).

"Any advertising or promotion that misrepresents the nature, characteristics, qualities or geographic origins of goods, services or commerical activities" (legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com)

• Greenwashing
• Photo retouching
• Deception in packaging

*Sell their product for what it is and don't oversell certain benefits.

• When a company intentionally over exaggerates a claim to their product.

• By encouraging consumer products
• Companies have an obligation to correctly identify what the scope of the product is
• If they falsely advertise the specific benefits or abilities of a product then they are essentially conning the consumer

Best practice with concern for best ethical principle

What responsibility does the organization have to society?

What are some types of deceptive viewpoints?

• Deontological (Best practice)
• Treats everyone with respect and honesty
• treats every stakeholder fairly
• focuses on motives behind the action

• truthfullness
• honesty

"Deception is more in the mindof the receiver of that communication than the stimulus of the sender" (Hunt, p. 280).

What responsibilities does the public have regarding the the issue?

Concerns for the Organization

Ethical Theory

If the company is seen as being deceptive then that could lead to a bad reputation including:

• loss of customers and loss of investors
• loss in sales
• decrease in wages and possible jobs

• Research
• Product comparison
• Label reading
• Consumer reports
• Customer reviews

• Teleological theory focuses on the consequence of the behavior and NOT the behavior itelf.
• Deceptive marketing is the behavior, the outcome of the increased sales seen as a POSITIVE consequence of that behavior and that is how it is justified (Moral inquiry article)

Challenges for organizations

• Growing a customer base
• Keeping loyal customers
• Making any claims that would cause legal action