Week 8 Ethics of marketing and advertising

Contemporary Management Issues

Advertising Ethics
Ethics of marketing and advertising how image and lifestyle portrayed in ads impacts on the target audience Advertising Standards Authority: role is to ensure ads are legal, decent, honest and truthful

Contemporary Management Issues

Brand Management and Advertising

Content and learning outcomes: to better understand the impact of advertising and marketing on the general public, especially in terms of the following: Ethics of marketing and advertising how image and lifestyle portrayed in ads impacts on the target audience Misleading claims how the edges can be legally blurred Photography and television touch ups for cosmetic advertising are we seeing the real benefits Use of celebrity 'users'/promoters of product how can we live up to imagined or portrayed lifestyles? Do celebs really develop and/or use the products and services they are paid to market to us?

Contemporary Management Issues

Pester Power - children

Tweenagers 8-14 have 340 billion worldwide spending power Children are being held captive by the rise of aggressive advertising aimed at their home, school and leisure time. Rise in pester power as children increasingly nagged parents for the most expensive brands and latest technology. Stealthy approaches advertising online and via mobile phone technology Increased exposure within schools - providing captive audience, leading to a rise in branded education campaigns and resource Footballers promoting food, drink, clothing, footwear, sports goods

Contemporary Management Issues

Children getting older younger

Blurring of adult products for children and mini marketeers The average 10-year-old is thought to be familiar with approximately 400 brands Playboy motifs on girlswear and accessories (porn brand) Barbie mobile phones soft brand on grown up product Family friendly technology and console games 45% of teachers in a survey witnessed brand bullying Dubit Insider uses brand ambassadors from seven to university age, to plug drinks produced by Coca-Cola, Cheestrings, made by Kerry Foods, Nintendo and the Barbie MP3 player Marketing agency in4merz.com, uses a network of 10,000 youths, aged 11-21, to promote pop artists including Lady Gaga, Jonas Brothers, Alexandra Burke, Sugababes and Pixie Lott
Contemporary Management Issues

Junk food ads childhood obesity

Junk food ads on TV targeting U16s banned UK 2008 because of rise in childhood obesity brands are now using back-door tactics: film tieins/online and mobile promotion to target kids Cadburys Crme Eggs on Bebo Skittles on Bebo 50,000 hits and 3500 friends Fantas mobile phone game Want it, win it MacDonalds Kid Zone online games with Happy Meals promotions Cartoon characters in salt filled cereals Spider Man (cert 12) merchandise targeted primary school age Age-appropriate targeting on Facebook (using profile info) Social-networking sites are used by more than 70% of young internet users - digital comms and new media not covered by ban

Contemporary Management Issues

Trophy Children
Marketers target parents through appealing to beliefs about good parenting, and to their emotional investments in their children Vast sums spent on top-of-the-range buggies and designer baby clothes as parents attempt to get edge over friends . To encourage breastfeeding government regulations mean that brands can't market products for babies under six months Early years food, dairy and breast milk follow-on drinks extolling health benefits and improvements in development and intelligence Barclays Private Equity owns Bounty packs New parents spend on average 1600 before baby is even born Up to 5000 on products in a babys first year Fewer children being born and higher extended spend on children (friends, colleagues, grandparents, other relatives)
Contemporary Management Issues

Trophy Children
New parents limited in knowledge of what equipment is needed Celebs photographed with high end nursery products Gwynneth Paltrow - 600 Bugaboo pushchair Natasha Kaplinsky and Rio Ferdinand 1700 Carbon Neo travel system with personalised engraving, leather clad handles and merino wool lining Dior feeding bottles, Burberry nursery equipment Missoni baby socks at 15 a pair Gold edition Elodie dummy 25 Bill Amberg sheepskin papoose 325 Louis Vuitton changing bag, 1,130 Global designer brands earn billions on baby and childrens wear Smaller families invest more per child than at any other time
Contemporary Management Issues

Young People and Adults

Alcohol industry using data on 15 and 16 years olds for targeting Real target new eighteen year olds Sidestepping legislation implying drinking will bring friends and fun Carling offers branded tents and free breakfast beer at festivals Making light of drunkenness WKD having fun with mates Lambrini described as social lubricant Football players/sports stars promoting kit bullied for wrong brand Diet Coke ads inspiring young women to take control Middle class home settings used for foods and cleaning products Has your family got the OXO factor? Middle class families in ads T-Mobile consumer generated ad clips for campaign Flash mobs viral campaigns using mass crowd actions on location http://viralnetworks.com/videos/id/2152/Viral_Marketing_Explained.html http://viralnetworks.com/videos/id/24106/Mr_Bean_apple_ad.html
Contemporary Management Issues

Young People and Adults

Research suggests: Young adults of lesser economic means harmed because they cant buy into the created consumerist wants and desires Marketing plays a part in the level consumption of alcohol by young people especially ciders and alcopops The most common advertising violations linked the advertised alcohol brand with the success of a social event Average person exposed to 3000 brands a day: emails, telesales, printed ads, direct mail, TV, Radio Only 14% trust ads - now blocking traditional media with the help of technology 70% of people trust the recommendations of others (inc celebs) 70% trusts bloggers opinions on products and services 36% of people think more positively about a company that has a blog

Contemporary Management Issues

Misleading Claims
Misleading claims how the edges can be legally blurred Cosmeceuticals cosmetics enhanced by sciency claims Products given medical sounding names, ingredients and benefits Little evidence of advantages over proper ingredients Made up names for key ingredients, i.e. Boswellox Hypoallergenic is a marketing term no medical basis Use of in house dermatologists Growing trend for incorporating measured-dose applicators and pipettes in packaging Boxed packaging resembling medicines Small sample sizes for consumer research 89% of 71 respondents
Contemporary Management Issues

Misleading Claims
Misleading claims how the edges can be legally blurred 2008 Apple iPhone ad banned for overhyping Internet capabilities http://noolmusic.com/youtube_live/iphone_3g_ad_gets_banned_in_the_uk_for_ being_toofast.php Sky Digi-Box ad with Sue Johnson banned for implying upgrade necessary for digital switch-on BA ad promoting Canton Fair in Guangzhou banned doesnt fly there Comparison sites give top listing to paying advertisers Sony Satio phone ad banned for showing Facebook logo on phone not compatible with this site Prime Scratchcards ads promoted young mum getting out of debt by gambling Bt Vision ad claimed to show films before Sky Box Office

Contemporary Management Issues

The Worried Well

Over the counter medicines can become addictive within three days Walk-in medical centres and GP surgeries are dealing mostly with the worried well Home diagnosis products now include cancer detection kits The public buy testing kits from chemists and the Internet without knowing the full implications of what the test mean Many tests are not researched or adequately regulated Over the counter diagnostics are causing confusion and anxiety Some lead to unnecessary medical treatments Lifescan a medical MOT indicates that an all clear meant you were free from disease: it also indicated that lung and colon cancer, and osteoporosis screening was necessary for all 40 year olds - at odds with medical evidence on age related diseases.
Contemporary Management Issues

Photography and Television

Photography and television touch ups for cosmetic advertising Clean & Clear ad showed spots and heavily made up face after treatment LOreal Elvive ad with Cheryl Cole hair extensions Screen note appears for two seconds magazine ad notice 2mm high Mascara ads with fake lash effect artificially enhanced post production Celebrities and models in ads PhotoShopped into perfection .. or into disbelief (see image) Female images PhotoShop treatment makes Them much slimmer than in reality
Contemporary Management Issues

Celebs in Advertising
Use of celebrity 'users'/promoters of products and services Shane Warne hair loss product does not promote hair re-growth Fuller hair effect gained cosmetically Jane Fonda had major plastic surgery on face not due to LOreal moisturisers Beyonce whitened on ads

Contemporary Management Issues

Celebs in Advertising
Sharon Osbourne remembered shopping at ASDA at some point Swiftcover advert featuring Iggy Pop - does he use their insurance? Antonio Banderas and Lizzy Jagger for M&S real shoppers? Spice girls in Tesco 1 million pound each to appear not UK based What are the ethics of using highly paid celebs who might not use the brand themselves to persuade ordinary public to patronise it?

Contemporary Management Issues

Celebs in Advertising
Celebrities who are relevant to brands increase sales and loyalty Ian Wright, Chris Hoy, Kelly Holmes and David Beckham have all been the face of high sugar products. Impact on youngsters significant in promoting poor nutritional brands but not in sports uptake 55grams of sugar calories in the half litre bottles of Pepsi David Beckham promoted John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten) promotes high fat, saturated fat and salt Country Life butter. Girls Aloud sell the high fat, saturated fat and sugar Kit Kat Senses bar High School Musical and Hannah Montannah chocolate and sugar products link popular programmes to high fat/sugar/salt confectionery, cerials and snacks
Contemporary Management Issues

Ethical issues in advertising

So where is this all leading us? In a competitive marketplace brands have to do what they can to compete targeting impressionable audiences but what is ethical about aggressively chasing young children in new media when junk foods are banned on television? Mini marketeers, virtual campaigns on social networking sites, brand bullying, youngsters paid to influence their peer groups? What impact on social confidence do brands have on children and young people? Enhanced photography, filming and post production techniques are creating physical images and world that are not real. How can society live up to non-existent, highly marketed lifestyles? Celebrity endorsements how ethical is it for a highly paid ambassador to get us to part with hard earned cash for products and services they do not consume in real life, but are portrayed as consuming?
Contemporary Management Issues

Ethical issues in advertising

Is advertising furthering societys egoistic and hedonistic behaviour? Is it creating a chasm between the brand haves and have-nots? What is the sociological impact on advertising on young people and adults? Are we made to feel less worthy and worthwhile? How can we achieve the same spending power as celebs? What is the ethical responsibility of brands and marketers in advertising when they deliberately circumnavigate the law? How realistic should visual imagery be in magazine and TV ads?

Contemporary Management Issues

Ethical issues in advertising

Does advertising help us make informed decisions or are too many critical facts and elements left out? Is the advertising industry fuelling choice, or fuelling materialism, waste, debt and misery? Advertising imagery is causing body and lifestyle dissatisfaction, yet we are looking at artificially modified human images How should cosmetics and fragrances be marketed in terms of social acceptance and improved sex appeal? Are medicinal brands responsible for altering our physiological state? Do these brands have the right to create a nation of worried well to promote sales and revenue?

Contemporary Management Issues

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Resources
Prof David Buckingham, Institute of Education, Government-backed report Dec 09 Advertising Standards Authority can subscribe to updates on advertising complaints and decisions Brand Republic Guardian online British Medical Journal Campaignlive.co.uk Marketing Week University of Leicester Universal McCann Ofcom The Food Magazine Royal College of Pathologists, Association of Clinical Biochemistry The PHG Foundation
Contemporary Management Issues

Tutorial Debate
How legal, decent, honest and truthful is advertising? Tutorial Discussion: What is your view of how brands and brand management should ethically operate to maintain balance, confidence and reality in society? Discuss and debate the likely creative approach, content, message and visuals that would make advertising more ethical?
Contemporary Management Issues

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