Marketing: power and responsibilities

Marketers should expect a growing tide of community resistance, government restrictions and prescriptions, and legal enforcement. Professor Shahilda Cassim from the University of KwaZulu-Natal says research shows that food marketing aimed at children was influencing their knowledge, preferences, consumption and dietary behaviour, and thus damaging their eating habits. “I have always been passionate about marketing and have now turned my attention to the unintended societal consequences of marketers' decisions. Food advertising in this country is selling a Western culture, and many dieticians will probably tell you that it's irresponsible”, says Professor Cassim. This conclusion suggests that there is a general perception that marketing has lost ground in comparison with other business disciplines. Are we really that bad?

The marketing profession is always associated with all kinds of social ills that bedevil the society. This has prompted anti-marketing activists, human rights and anti-poverty campaigners to put pressure on governments to ban marketing messages of tobacco, restrict advertising and distribution of alcohol, ban advertising of fast-foods and anything that targets kids. The marketing machinery is accused of unethical and inhumane marketing tactics associated with the fierce competition of the saturated markets, undermining personal autonomy, utilising everything in their disposal, including media and celebrities, to influence consumers' behaviour. It is also accused of manipulating social values to create consumerism, which promotes waste and environmental degradation. Lately, marketers are criticised for invading and taking control of the political and media territories. Is the marketing profession that bad?

Marketing has real power

The marketing profession is the backbone of every business and economy. It discovers consumer needs and drives new product development that satisfy such needs including products that enhance society's quality of life, gathers meaningful consumer insights, builds brands, promotes sales, increases production, creates jobs, lowers prices, creates wealth, emphasizes good customer care and ensures quality services and products. It is no coincidence that the countries with the highest budgets for marketing are the wealthiest. Within society, marketing conveys positive messages such as anti-smoking and drugs consumption, road safety, healthy lifestyles, environmental conversation, development, democracy, freedom of choice, engagement, partnerships, information exchange, and inclusion. The fact of the matter is that marketing has the power to facilitate the advancement of democracy, promote democracy, contribute in the improvement of standards of living and national economic development, spearhead product innovation and new business development.

In politics, marketing delivers benefits that are very similar to the pillars of democracy as it provides consumers with information, offers choice, engages voters, promotes inclusivity and mutual exchanges with voters. Through political marketing, political parties develop policies and programmes that satisfy voters' needs and improve their welfare. Political marketing helps politicians to manage citizens not as occasional voters, donors, and taxpayers but as their customers. Therefore, people would benefit if the realms of politics and marketing were based on sound marketing principles and practices.

Marketers are the voices

However, marketers have a duty to act honestly, humanly and ethically in their dealings with consumers, partners, investors, suppliers, regulators, politicians, non-governmental organization, neighbouring communities and the environment. Marketing is the business function that interacts most frequently with the public and, consequently, what the public knows about an organization is determined by their interactions with marketers. Therefore marketers are supposed to be the voices of consumers through promoting mutual communication, promoting understanding and trust between their companies and consumers, gathering meaningful customer insights, adopting marketing innovation, development of new products and services based on customer demands, measuring marketing effectiveness and raising awareness of their brands.

The basic principles of marketing ethics dictate that marketers:
• Place specific importance on protecting those who are vulnerable to manipulation, namely elderly and children.
• Do not promote their products in an offensive, misleading or deceptive manner.
• Take responsibility and accountability for their products, services, decisions and outcomes.
• Are honest, truthful, balanced and fair in their business dealings with partners and customers.
• Respect the consumers' rights of redress, access to information and privacy.
• Need not model inappropriate and inhuman behaviour.
• Need not utilize ruthless tactics to ensure survival and growth in the fiercely competitive global markets.
• Focus on learning current and emerging consumer's needs and wants and developing and delivering relevant products.

Therefore marketers have a duty to act honestly and ethically when engaging their customers and should abide by relevant laws and regulations at all times. Ethical behaviour will present a good image to the public and will create a positive reputation which can raise market share and profit. The key responsibility of marketers is to build and consolidate relationships with consumers, customers, distributors, partners and stakeholders if they want to achieve success in today's hypercompetitive marketplace.

I completely agree with Professor Shahilda Cassim that “Marketing students must be encouraged to become responsible marketers who are able to consider the consequences of the application of marketing principles”. While contemporary marketing performs essential societal functions, there is a need for the marketing profession to re-examine itself and its role and to adapt itself to the many changes it faces in the modern situation.