ETHICS IN BUSINESS

DISCIPLINES: MARKETING

Submitted by :
Hasna
Hemraj
Ishjiv
Jai Bharti
Kanika
 Ethical Issues In Advertisements

Thus ethics in advertising

means a set of well defined
principles which govern the
ways of communication
taking place between the
Ethics means a set of moral
And advertising means a seller and the buyer. Ethics is
principles which govern a
mode of communication the most important feature of
person’s behavior or how the
between a seller and a buyer. the advertising industry.
activity is conducted.
Though there are many
benefits of advertising but
then there are some points
which don’t match the ethical
norms of advertising.
 • Ethical advertising is about being
truthful concerning the product or
service in question and never
exaggerating the capabilities of a
ETHICAL product/service, or hiding its flaws.
Whether using an in-house marketing
ADVERTISING team or advertising agency, any
advertisements should have clear
intentions and no hidden agendas.
 • Unethical advertising is the misrepresentation
of a product/service in some way or the use of
subliminal messaging to fit a hidden agenda.
This form of advertising uses deceptive ways
to manipulate or convince the consumer to
buy the product or service. 
UNETHICAL • Another form of unethical advertising is
ADVERTISING misleading claims. For instance, Kentucky
Fried Chicken tried to rebrand itself as Kitchen
Fresh Chicken to play down the “fried” in its
company name. This wasn’t only misleading to
consumers, it also misrepresented itself as a
healthy food chain. If any advertising misleads
consumers, it is unethical.
Common Ethical Issues In Advertisements
● Targeting vulnerable groups.
● False, misleading or puffery advertisements
● Advertising harmful products like alcohol, cigarettes.
● Reinforcing Stereotypes
● Concealment of facts
● Manipulative ads
● Surrogate ads
False, Misleading Or Puffery Advertisements

False Advertisements Misleading Puffery

Advertisements

Untrue Advertisement Not untrue but causes Positive or general

consumers to make claims that can’t be
false inferences either proved or
disproved

Illegal Illegal Legal

FALSE ADVERTISEMENT
MISLEADING ADVERTISEMENT
PUFFERY
 Advertising Harmful Products

Advertising products that are harmful for

health is not ethical as they are causing
harm to the consumer and the society as
a whole.
E.g. alcohol, cigarettes.
 Reinforcing Stereotypes
A stereotype is a presentation of a group that
emphasis a trait or group of traits that may or may
not communicate an accurate representation of
the group.
Eg: Hero Pleasure advertisement has tagline “
why should boys have all the fun”
Targeting Vulnerable Groups

Children

Developin
Vulnerable
g Elderly
Groups
Countries

Women
Importance Of Ethics In Advertising

By acting ethically with their advertising, a company is being responsible towards

the needs of the customer.

Companies need to show they have morals when advertising to consumers,

because that makes consumers’ feel like the company cares about what they
need.

To earn trust of the customers.

To provide accurate and relevant information to the customers.

Female Empowerment and Breaking Beauty
Stereotypes
Reebok’s
controversial
ad
Flipkart’s Anti-Gorkha Advertisement
No Germ Protection
Misleading by
implication and is
encouraging
excessive
consumption of
butter which may
not be advisable
from the health
point of view.
Could not substantiate
“MOST SECURE” claim
Misleading Pricing

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Payment of Rs 149 to avail this
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How to identify the correct ethical price position
 Examples of Ethical Marketing Practices

1. TOMS
 Examples of Ethical Marketing Practices

2. Everlane
 Examples of ethical marketing practices

3. Conscious Coffees
 Examples of ethical marketing practices.

4. Farm Direct
 References
● https://www.grin.com/document/276141
● https://www.keenability.com/blogs/2019/5/8/ethical-vs-unethical-advertising
● https://thegossagency.com/2015/12/13/why-its-important-to-have-ethics-in-advertising-especially-to-r
each-millennials-2/
● https://www.managementstudyguide.com/advertising-ethics.htm
● Pricing Ethics: 5 Ethical Issues in Pricing Strategies [+Avoiding Them] (priceintelligently.com)
● https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/09/20/ethical-marketing