Marketing Chapter 4

Consumer Bill of Rights

a 1962 law that codified the ethics of exchange between buyers and sellers, including rights to safety, to be informed, to choose, and to be heard

code of ethics

a formal statement of ethical principles and rules of conduct

stakeholder responsibility

focuses on the obligations an organization has to those who can affect achievement of its objectives, including consumers, employers, suppliers, and distributors

bribery

giving and receiving bribes and kickback disguised as gifts, consultant fees, and favors

caveat emptor

legal concept; let the buyer beware

triple-bottom line

recognition of the need for organizations to improve the state of people, the planet, and profit simultaneously if they are to achieve sustainable, long-term growth

societal responsibility

refers to obligations that organizations have to the preservation of the ecological environment and to the general public

corporate culture

the set of values, ideas, and attitudes that is learned and shared among the members of an organization

moral idealism

a personal moral philosophy that considers certain individual rights or duties as universal, regardless of the outcome; this philosophy exists in the Consumer Bill of Rights and is favored by moral philosophers and consumer interest groups

utilitarianism

a personal moral philosophy that focuses on the "greatest good for the greatest number" by assessing the costs and benefits of the consequences of ethical behavior; if the benefits exceed the costs, then the behavior is ethical; if not, then the behavior is unethical; this philosophy underlies the economic tenets of capitalism and is embraced by many business executives and students

social audit

a systematic assessment of a firm's objectives, strategies, and performance in the domain of social responsibility

business cultures

comprise the effective rules of the game, the boundaries between competitive and unethical behavior, and the codes of conduct in business dealings

whistle-blowers

employees who report an employer's unethical or illegal actions

profit responsibility

holds that companies have a simple duty: to maximize profits for their owners or stockholders

sustainable development

involves conducting business in a way that protects the natural environment while making economic progress

green marketing

marketing efforts to produce, promote, and reclaim environmentally sensitive products

laws

society's standards and values that are enforceable in the courts

economic espionage

the clandestine collection of trade secrets or proprietary information about a company's competitors; this practice is illegal and unethical and carries serious criminal penalties for the offending individual or business; activities include illegal trespassing, fraud, misrepresentation, wiretapping, the search of a competitor's trash, and violations of written and implicit employment agreements with noncompete clauses

social responsibility

the idea that organizations are part of a larger society and are accountable to that society for their actions; three concepts include profit responsibility, stakeholder responsibility, and societal responsibility

ethics

the moral principles and values that govern the actions and decisions of an individual or a group; serve as guidelines on how to act rightly and justly when faced with moral dilemmas

greenwashing

the practice of making an unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product, service, technology, or company practice

cause marketing

tying the charitable contributions of a firm directly to sales produced through the promotion of one of its products