[Abstract] This paper first analyzes the basic process of the emergence and development of marketing ethics, and then focuses on the problems existing in the marketing ethics of Chinese enterprises, such as the moral problems in price strategy, product strategy and promotion strategy, and analyzes the consequences of the anomie of marketing ethics, such as endangering the survival and development of enterprises, damaging the interests of consumers and society, and undermining the order of fair competition. Finally, the countermeasures to improve the marketing ethics of Chinese enterprises are put forward.
[Keywords:] marketing ethics
In the process of establishing socialist market economy in China, commodity economy and enterprise marketing activities have been developing continuously, and enterprises have provided increasingly rich products for society and consumers and made great contributions to the country. At the same time, however, some enterprises unilaterally pursue profit maximization, ignoring the interests of consumers and the public, showing serious illegal and immoral business practices. Therefore, the marketing activities of enterprises must follow the law and marketing ethics.
First, the emergence and development of marketing ethics
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, a series of economic scandals broke out in American business circles, including huge bribes, price monopoly and fraudulent transactions, which aroused great public dissatisfaction. The us government began to investigate this. In the early 1970s, business ethics received more extensive attention. In the 1980s, American business circles once had a big discussion on business ethics. From 1962, American President John F.? In the document submitted to Congress, Kennedy proposed that consumers have the right to safety, the right to know, the right to choose and the right to express their opinions. Since Congress subsequently investigated some industries and put forward the Consumer Protection Bill, consumer supremacism has risen in countries all over the world, and various laws to protect consumers' rights and interests have been promulgated and improved one after another, and relevant governments and non-governmental organizations have also emerged. The direct goal of this campaign is to increase the rights and powers of buyers to sellers, so that consumers can get more information, more commodity knowledge and more protection, and oppose any fraud by operators to consumers. The rise of this movement has been widely supported by the public, thus forming a strong pressure to strictly supervise, judge and punish the business activities of various enterprises. This not only exposes the fraud of operators in time, but also enables consumers to claim compensation from related enterprises through certain channels and procedures.
Second, China enterprise marketing ethics problems
1. Ethical Issues in Price Strategy
The unethical behaviors reflected by enterprises in price setting mainly include:
First of all, enterprises take price fraud on consumers. Price fraud refers to the behavior that operators cheat buyers by unfair price means and damage their economic interests. For example, enterprises set deceptive prices by means of inferior quality, short weight, low quality and mixed specifications; Enterprises use unclear pricing behavior, price discrimination behavior and price discount behavior to achieve the purpose of selling goods and deceive consumers. For example, a supermarket carries out promotional activities in the cloakroom department. What is displayed on the price signboard? 1from 5 yuan? This? Up? The words are very inconspicuous. When consumers choose clothes and pay happily, they are told that the range from 70 yuan to 90 yuan is different. The supermarket takes the behavior of not clearly marking the price here, which obviously deceives consumers, harms consumers' economic interests and produces immoral behavior.
Secondly, enterprises use profiteering prices for consumers. The profiteering price refers to the profiteering behavior that some operating enterprises make their price level exceed the reasonable range of commodity market price level determined by the price department in their business activities. It is manifested in the following three aspects: the price level of a certain commodity exceeds the reasonable range of the general price of similar commodities in the same region, at the same time and at the same grade; The price difference rate of commodities exceeds the reasonable range of the general price difference rate of similar commodities in the same area, at the same time and with the same grade; The profit from operating a commodity exceeds the reasonable range of the general profit rate of similar commodities in the same area, at the same time and with the same grade.
2. Ethical issues in product strategy
First of all, from the purpose of producing products, enterprises produce products to meet the needs of consumers, improve their quality of life, obtain economic benefits and fulfill their social responsibilities. But in life, some enterprises produce inferior products, inferior products and some potentially dangerous products, such as dangerous toys, preservatives and foods with excessive pigments, inferior cosmetics and so on. Infringe on the health and safety of consumers and cause immoral problems. Secondly, from the method of marketing products, enterprises should guide consumers to buy suitable goods. However, some enterprises ignore this point, misleading consumers to buy inappropriate or expired goods, causing material or spiritual losses to consumers and generating immoral problems. Thirdly, judging from the consequences of marketing products, the products provided by enterprises to consumers should meet the needs of consumers, but in practice, the use value of many products purchased by consumers does not match the expected benefits of consumers, and the quality can not meet the expected purpose at the time of purchase. This phenomenon is obvious in many foods and tonics, because in many cases, it is impossible to analyze the true nutritional components of various foods, and it is difficult to test the true effect after taking tonics. It is also doubtful whether these products bring due benefits to consumers, which may lead to immoral behavior.
3. Ethical issues in the promotion strategy
First of all, the purpose of enterprise promotion deviates from the basic principles of promotion. Advertisements designed and disseminated by enterprises should convey real commodity information to consumers, guide them to make correct purchase decisions and guide them to spend correctly. But in reality, some enterprises deliberately design and spread false advertisements to induce consumers to buy fake and shoddy products or things they don't really need. Corporate advertising is even more unworthy of the name, such as the unattainable price difference compensation in the following example:
A big shopping mall in Xiamen advertised: If similar goods are found cheaper than our store in other shopping malls, the price difference in double indemnity! For a time, the social response was strong. A consumer surnamed Wu, who took it for granted, happened to see in another shopping mall that the price of the same brand color TV was lower than that of this shopping mall by 25 yuan, and asked him to honor his promise of compensation for the price difference. However, the mall staff asked Mr. Wu to provide a shopping receipt from another mall. The reason is? The price difference compensation promised by the shopping mall refers to the price of the day. Only the shopping receipt can prove the price of the color TV set sold in another shopping mall that day. . In fact, Mr. Wu's experience is not an isolated phenomenon under the background that price difference compensation is becoming a tireless means of promoting games for many businesses.
Secondly, the promotional information lacks authenticity. The social responsibility of promotion activities is to convey the true information of products or services to users. If this principle is violated, this kind of information exchange will often lead to moral problems. For example, enterprises use vague and ambiguous words to make consumers misunderstand the true meaning of advertisements and make consumers make wrong purchase decisions.
Third, the consequences of marketing ethics anomie analysis
1. Endangering the survival and development of enterprises.
Whether it is manufacturing or selling fake and inferior products, or using false advertisements to cheat, buy or sell, or using other improper marketing methods, in the short term, enterprises have gained immediate benefits by deceiving consumers and luring consumers to take the bait, but in the long run, once their illegal acts are exposed, they will inevitably endanger their own reputation and credibility, be condemned by public opinion, be spurned by consumers, and eventually lose customers and markets.
2. The interests of consumers and society are harmed.
The object of enterprise marketing is consumers, and bad marketing behaviors, such as making and selling fake and shoddy products, asking exorbitant prices, slaughtering customers indiscriminately, using false advertisements to cheat, buying and selling fraud, etc. , not only cause their economic losses, but also affect their physical and mental health, and even endanger their lives.
3. Destroyed the fair competition order.
Fairness is the basic principle of market competition. Under the normal market background, every enterprise is equal, everyone is competing on the same starting line, and the benefits obtained from it are just legitimate. However, in order to crowd out competitors and monopolize the market, some enterprises steal their business secrets through improper means; Selling goods by bribery; Defame or belittle the business reputation or product reputation of competitors in advertisements or publicity; Dumping at a price below cost, etc. All these behaviors are detrimental to the fair principle of market competition, disturb the order of market competition, seriously affect the production and business activities of other enterprises, put them in an unfavorable competitive position and harm their legitimate interests.
Fourthly, the countermeasures to improve the current situation of marketing ethics in Chinese enterprises.
1. Improve the legal system
Law is like a sword, hanging high in the sky, making those who obey the law happy and those who break the law afraid. The law not only stops the illegal operation and unfair competition of enterprises and individuals, but also protects their legal operation and fair competition. If the society is ruled by law and encouraged by fair systems and rules, it will be difficult to escape the punishment of the law, which will greatly inhibit the occurrence of improper behavior and evil behavior. Helvetius pointed out? It is futile to persuade people to do good when they are in a system that can benefit from doing evil. ? Therefore, it is necessary to make the benefits of offenders far lower than the losses caused by legal sanctions in the legal system and curb the motives of enterprises to make immoral decisions.
2. Conduct extensive moral education and publicity.
Marketing ethics is first and foremost an idea, and only when it is widely accepted by the whole society, including enterprises and the public, can it become the conscious behavior of enterprises. Therefore, it is necessary to widely publicize and educate marketing ethics in the whole society, so that enterprises and the public can deeply understand that marketing ethics is the requirement of social progress and civilized development, the extension of social ethics in enterprise marketing activities, and one of the restraint mechanisms of enterprise behavior. The government and social organizations should make extensive publicity through various media to make the public realize that it is their basic right to resist unethical marketing behaviors, encourage every consumer to confidently safeguard their own interests, boldly report and resist unethical corporate behaviors, and actively publicize enterprises with high marketing ethics, thus forming a moral public opinion environment of the whole society.
3. Establish a rational consumption concept.
If the rational consumer groups continue to expand, the space for enterprises to implement unethical marketing behavior will be greatly reduced, and the means available for unethical behavior will be greatly reduced. If some people pursue fashion out of conformity, immoral enterprises will take the opportunity to mass-produce products with poor quality but fashionable, and consumers will actually not get benefits. Moreover, consumers have established a rational concept of consumption, and there is no immoral marketing behavior.
References:
[1] Chen Guoping: Discussion on ethical decision-making of enterprise marketing based on sustainable development. Learning and Practice, July 2008.
[2] Zhang Hao. Game analysis of marketing ethics in China enterprises. Shopping Mall Modernization, 2008.38+00.
[3] Wang Yang: Enterprise marketing moral anomie and countermeasures. Business Times, August 2008.
?