The rise of ethical marketing isn’t as recent or meteoric as the online business world would like you to believe. Search trends for keywords like ethical marketing, ethical sales, and what is ethical marketing have risen steadily over the past five years, but google trends show that interest in these topics has been present since it began collecting data in 2004. Why is it, then, that my social media feed has become riddled with complaints of the “ethical marketing trend”, comments discrediting self-proclaimed ethical marketers, and claims that ethical marketing doesn’t mean anything – so we shouldn’t think about ethics in business at all?
While I’d love to link the above comments to the posts that inspired this article, I’m not here to attack anyone or call out a specific creator. The truth is I’ve seen more of these posts than I can count, so instead of firing off a sassy comment of my own, I made the completely rational decision to put nearly a dozen hours into researching this blog post, remembering that I actually like to write when I’m not worried about SEO, and making my case: The Case for Ethical Marketing.
What is Ethics?
Before we can truly dive into the intricacies of ethical marketing we need to take a big step back to try to understand what ethics actually is.
Merriam Webster defines ethics in a few ways:
- a theory or system of moral values;
- a guiding philosophy;
- the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty or obligation
Other definitions are also provided, but I can assure you they are equally vague and equally unhelpful.
For more clarity we can turn to the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, defining ethics as, “Well-founded standards of right and wrong that prescribe what humans ought to do, usually in terms of rights, obligations, benefits to society, fareness or specific virtues [such as] honesty, compassion, and loyalty.”
The operative word here being ought. Ethics tell us what we are supposed to be doing, but that doesn’t mean we always comply. Factors such as personal agency, perceived or realized consequences of noncompliance, and even peer pressure can all influence how willing we are to go against the grain – or go against our own ethical code of conduct. Certain laws, social norms, or even feelings can all provide opportunity to engage in behavior that isn’t necessarily ethical, so self-reflection and openness to change are key when studying or developing one’s own ethical standards.
For our purposes here today, the My Own Business Institute at Santa Clara University offers the most helpful and succinct definition, explaining ethics as “the principles that guide our behavior toward making the best choices that contribute to the common good for all, [guiding] us to make the world a better place through the choices we make.”
Ethical Standards
On an individual level, your ethical standards are just that: yours. Many would argue that contribution to the common good sets a general tone for what one’s ethical standards should look like, but how you arrive at your particular guiding principles or values is basically up to you.
When we zoom out, however, we can find certain industries or professions with more rigid standards for ethics that one must abide by in addition to their own ethical code. Because we have this contrast between rigid standards in some industries and no standards in others, we are faced with the question of whether ethics mean anything if they aren’t standardized for a particular industry.
Take the medical field, for example. The Oath of Hippocrates outlines the ethical code by which all physicians must oblige. The standard was set, and in order to become a doctor, one must agree to work within the standard. But what about industries (like business) that don’t have a standard code of ethics?
The Problem(s) with Business Ethics
The study of ethics is one that stems from a combination of industry knowledge and philosophical curiosity. Practitioners such as Hippocrates and Oliver Wendell Holmes became philosophers and used their industry knowledge to develop ethical guidelines that could be applied to their respective fields and accepted by the public as standard. Why can’t business ethicists do the same?
Capitalism
Capitalism isn’t exactly new, but early philosophers certainly didn’t have to contend with the pressures of living in the late stage capitalist society that we do today. Capitalism poses two unique problems for business ethicists to contend with. First, they have to accept it. Then they have to survive it.
Accepting Capitalism
In order to evaluate the ethics of business, a philosopher must accept that capitalism is not inherently unethical – because we cannot logically develop an ethical standard for operating within a system that is, itself, unethical.
Of course there is a lot of grey area here, and Professor Neil on Tik Tok offers a fantastic overview of factors to consider when evaluating ethical consumption and ethics within a capitalistic system. Variables such as disposable income, access to alternatives, and even perception of the problem all give individuals a unique set of options when it comes to ethical consumption, and even making the most ethical choice available to you may not be purely ethical in the big picture simply due to factors outside of your control.
The takeaway here is that there are innumerable factors contributing to whether or not a decision is ethical, and that oftentimes as consumers we have to accept our circumstances and make the best choice available to us, even if it isn’t the purely ethical option we would prefer.
But we aren’t in charge of ethical standards in business – business ethicists are, and business ethicists need to accept capitalism as ethical in order to develop ethical standards within it.
Surviving Capitalism
Not to keep going on about how easy early philosophers had it… but early philosophers had it pretty easy.
Modern philosophers? Not so much.
Business ethics is a fairly young field of ethical study, only gaining serious recognition in the mid-late 20th century. Combine this with:
- The financial strains of post-secondary education,
- The academic rigor and poverty wages in advanced degree programs;
- The motto of publish or perish among those who have made it through to actually become philosophers,
and the pool of qualified academics with an interest in business ethics, enough industry experience to add valuable insight to the field, and enough money to make ends meet is seriously tiny.
Even if we manage to find a business ethicist who checks all of the boxes listed above, we’re trying to land on ethical standards for an entire industry. We don’t just need one business ethicist – we need a bunch of them. And we need them to agree with each other.
Why do we want ethical businesses?
I’m not usually a pessimist, but I don’t see a band of business ethicists getting together to hand us a code of conduct any time soon, which means it is up to us as individuals to engage in ethical behavior on our own. But if we don’t have to – why should we?
Let’s remember why we’re here in the first place. We’ve accepted that on an individual level, ethics are the principles that guide our behavior toward making the best choices that contribute to the common good for all. So what do we need standards for?
Business ethicists posit that one can engage in ethical business by listening to the needs of the market (the common good) and changing one’s behavior accordingly. Some even go so far as to suggest that if we don’t alter our behavior to meet the ethical demands of the market legal and regulatory bodies will form to intervene and require a behavior change for institutions. The key here is that ethics are at play when an individual or entity makes a choice to alter their behavior in pursuit of the common good, rather than wait until such a change is required.
I’m no business ethicist but I’d almost go as far as to argue that pursuing an ethical approach to business in the absence of standards is better than turning a blind eye until you are forced to change your ways.
But I’ll get off my high horse – I’ve got a blog post to write.
Why do we care about the greater good?
I’m going to get into marketing soon, I promise! But first we have to understand why we are motivated to act ethically when there is no penalty for not doing so.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Under the model of corporate social responsibility, we believe that corporations should play a positive role in the community and are held accountable by themselves, their stakeholders, and society as a whole. When they do good, they are rewarded through profits and positive feedback, when they do bad, they are punished through losses, bad publicity, and potential legal implications.
Enlightened Self-Interest
But corporations aren’t people, and this is where enlightened self-interest comes into play. The individuals who make up an entity, particularly leadership and other decision makers, are more likely to make an ethical decision (one that has a positive impact on society) when the outcome of that decision will support their own self-interest, aka the success of the company that they are representing, or their own social or financial status as a result of being the trailblazer for a positive or ethical move on behalf of the company.
By living in a society that places value on corporations making a positive impact in their communities, we can incentivize individuals to make ethical business decisions because they will be socially rewarded through praise or financially rewarded through profit.
Some business ethicists will argue that one cannot engage in truly ethical behavior if they are hoping to seek praise or avoid punishment by doing so, that an action must be entirely altruistic in order to be ethical – but I would like to personally invite those business ethicists to lighten up a bit, people should be allowed to feel good about doing good!
The Case for Ethical Marketing
If you’ve stuck with me this far – thanks! I’m going to reward you by finally getting to the point.
Up until now we’ve tossed around several theories, played around with nuance, and poked fun at business ethicists (sorry), but what do we mean when we talk about ethical anything in business? In order to have a coherent conversation about ethical marketing, sales, coaching, or anything else in business, we need to make (and agree on) some assumptions.
Assumption #1:
Ethical business practices are shaped by changing market needs as they pertain to the way an organization impacts some other entity (the individual, a market segment, the world at large).
Assumption #2:
Self-satisfaction, financial gain, or other motivating factors do not automatically negate the ethical nature of these business practices, provided they are pursuing a net positive impact on the outside entity.
Assumption #3:
There are too many factors at play to quickly or easily create a truly comprehensive standard for ethical business practices, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
Now that we’re on the same page, we can get to work.
What is ethical marketing?
Ethical marketing is a philosophy that informs all marketing efforts of a person or organization, driven by the needs and demands of the marketplace. Though it can seem as though ethical marketing is a new or trendy moniker for marketers to embrace, the market has been calling for behavior change from institutions for some time. Enough time, in fact, that we are able to draw a consensus of what ethical marketing should look like for organizations based on the consistent demands of the consumer.
Though not a formal regulatory body, these demands come together to form a general set of guidelines that companies can use to evaluate new marketing strategies on the basis of how they align with the needs and ethical demands of their audience or industry.
Another definition of ethical marketing is “when you promote a product, service, or brand in a way that aligns with your morals and values.” Under this definition, technically anyone could call themselves an “ethical marketer” while engaging in manipulative, deceptive, or otherwise dishonest practices – provided manipulation, deception, and dishonesty are their values.
Instead of using this alternate definition to discredit the concept of ethical marketing, I encourage you, reader, to dig a little deeper.
If we accept that ethical behavior is defined by the needs of the market and common pursuit of the greater good, we can deduce that for a promotional activity in alignment with one’s morals and values to be considered ethical, it must also meet the needs of the market as they pertain to pursuit of the greater good. These values may differ from organization to organization, but there are a few consistent themes recognized by ethical marketers across the industry.
Essential Themes of Ethical Marketing
On a micro level, there is a lot of variation and opportunity for nuance in discussions of what constitutes ethical marketing behavior, but when we zoom out, the themes of ethical marketing are not much different than the themes of ethical behavior for individuals. Thinking about these broader themes in the context of marketing allows marketers to have a common starting point when evaluating the ethical nature of individual marketing decisions down the line.
Honesty
Honest: adj / free from fraud or deception; legitimate, truthful
Consumers want to trust that the information they get from marketing is accurate so they can make an informed decision about what products or services they want to spend their hard earned money on. By grounding an ethical marketing practice in honesty, a marketer or company is showing commitment to building trust with their customers. The customers benefit by feeling confident about their purchasing decisions, and the companies benefit by building up a positive brand image and maintaining long term relationships with their customers.
Respect
Respect: noun / politeness, honor, and care shown toward someone or something that is considered important ; verb / to treat someone or something with kindness and care
When we look at respect through the lens of ethical marketing, we are reminded just how multifaceted every element of an ethical marketing approach can be. As marketers and business owners we have opportunities to show our customers respect at every turn, from how we handle their data to how we position ourselves to stand out from the competition – even the language we use in our marketing materials can be adjusted to respect different cultures and populations. Every opportunity to show respect is also an opportunity to not show respect, and by electing to identify as ethical marketers we are making every effort to choose respect each time.
Responsibility
Responsibility: noun / something that you should do because it is morally right, legally required, etc. ; the quality of a person who can be trusted to do what is expected, required, etc.
Responsibility in ethical marketing can tie back to the idea of corporate social responsibility. Outside of one’s own ethics or dedication to ethical behavior, by representing a corporation, we have some responsibility to have a positive impact on the world around us – regardless of any laws or regulations imposed on us by an official entity.
When we think about responsibility for larger corporations, it can be easier to grasp the importance of a positive social, environmental, and financial impact on the world around them, but responsibility is just as important for small businesses, freelancers, and consultants – our behaviors matter even if they aren’t being observed at the same scale as the big guys.
Accountability
Accountable: adj / subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something.
When I see criticisms of ethical marketing, they are largely centered around the lack of “official” standards, boards, or regulatory entities to hold ethical marketers accountable for their actions, but this idea of “obligation” to report doesn’t have to be an external obligation. By choosing to value accountability as an essential tenet of ethical marketing, ethical marketers are electing to hold themselves accountable by owning up to instances of misinformation, mishandling of data, or any other action that does not align with market standards, whether accidental or intentional – and whether or not they are caught.
What does it all mean (for you)?
At the end of the day, there is no official ethical standard for marketers or business owners. There is no regulatory body checking in on our every move, or checklist or flowchart to find an easy answer to the question “is this ethical?”. There is no oath we have to take. There is no certification or other credential that says “Yes! I am 100% ethical – you can trust me!”.
And that is kind of the point.
Identifying as an ethical marketer or business owner is a choice, and it is one that you wake up and make every day because you think it is important to make every effort to live and work in pursuit of the greater good. You’re not always going to be perfect (in fact, you’ll probably never be perfect), but you really want to try. You want to hold yourself accountable when you realize you messed up, and you invite others to hold you accountable if they feel harmed by your actions.
Identifying as an ethical marketer is a choice – and if you don’t want to make that choice? You’re not defaulting to being an unethical monster. You’re not committing to a villainous life of misinformation and deceit. You’re just not interested in thinking about all of this stuff all the time. And that’s so totally fine.
The only thing that isn’t fine is pretending that ethical marketing isn’t real because you don’t understand it.
