Ethical Aspects of Advertising and PromotionAdvertising and Promotion. McGraw-Hill/Irwin 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Chapter 22.

Advertising and EthicsProponentsEncourages a standard of living improvementProduces jobsPromotes competition

CriticsCreates needs and faultsMore propaganda than informationPromotes materialism

Ethics in PromotionEthics: Moral principles and values that govern the actions of and individual or group individual group..

Ethics in Promotion

Not all issues can be regulatedA marketing or promotion action may be legal but not considered ethicalMarketers must make decisions regarding the appropriateness of their actionsCompanies are scrutinized for their ethics

Social and Ethical Criticisms of PromotionAdvertising as untruthful or deceptiveAdvertising as offensive or in bad tasteAdvertising of personal productsSexual appealsAdvertising and ChildrenSocial and Cultural ConsequencesMaking people buy things they dont needEncouraging materialismStereotypingAdvertisings influence on the media

Social and Ethical Criticisms of PromotionAdvertising as untruthful or deceptiveGeneral mistrust of adsDeliberately untruthful or misleading vs. pufferyProblems often more at local level rather than national

Social and Ethical Criticisms of PromotionAdvertising as offensive, in bad taste, or irritatingAdvertising of personal productsSexual appealsSuggestive, demeaning, raunchy

Many people found Benettons Death Row ad campaign offensive

Children and PromotionChildren's TV Watching BehaviorChildren between ages 2-11 watch on average 21.5 hours of TV per week and may see 22,000 commercials per yearTelevision is an important source of information for children about products

Children and Promotion

Some studies have shown Children lack experience and knowledge to evaluate advertising criticallyThey can not differentiate between commercials and program (fantasy vs. reality)Children are vulnerable to advertising

Children and Promotion

while other studies argue thatChildren must learn through the consumer socialization process; need to acquire skills to function in the marketplace Acquired skills have helped teens evaluate ads and recognize persuasion techniques

Children and PromotionFrom: ADText

StereotypingPortrayal of womenGender stereotypingPortrayal of women as sex objectsRole portrayal of women to reflect changing role in societyBlacks and HispanicsGaysElderly

Do You Agree With Leo Burnett?

It must be said that without advertising we would have a far different nation, and one that would be much the poorer-not merely in material commodities, but in the life of the spirit.

These excerpters are from a speech given by Leo Burnett on the American Association or Advertising Agencies 50th anniversary, April 20,1967