4 Important Ethical Attributes for Field Marketing Campaigns

 

Effective Field Marketing campaigns can work wonders for promoting brand image and individual product awareness. However, without due consideration of the potential ethical complications of a campaign, the associated benefits can quickly be lost and you can even cause significant damage to how the public perceive your company. Brand reputation is one of the first things to consider when adopting any field marketing scheme and how ethical your brand appears to the public is undoubtedly a significant factor. Some major brands even class this as one of the most important aspects of their brand. For example, Pret A Manger is keen to use marketing to promote the ethical practices and initiatives the company is involved in to create the image of a caring and charitable company.

Without having to change the direction and image of your brand, there are several factors of field marketing to consider in order to maintain sound ethical practice. Get these wrong and you could not only cause irreparable damage to your image, but also harm the people who you should care about most in any business; you customers. Here are 4 important ethical attributes you should insure your campaign coheres to:

Honesty

Honesty is perhaps one of the most important factors in advertising is also one of the easiest to get wrong. Making sure your field marketing schemes don't promise more than your product can deliver is vital in retaining the trust of the public. Whether they're demonstrations, samplers or leaflets, honest claims and product descriptions prevent customer dissatisfaction which can tarnish the reputation of your brand.

Target Market

Some markets are more susceptible to marketing practices than others. Any field marketing campaign should have a specific target market in mind, it is worth being careful that your campaign doesn't target a demographic that is seen to be more vulnerable than others. Companies have got into hot water in the past for aggressively targeting the elderly in face-to-face marketing. By using unethical techniques such as this, it is possible to encourage people to purchase goods or services they may not need or want. This is certainly an unethical practice and should be avoided at all costs when crafting your campaign.

Privacy

With digital media playing an ever more important role in partner to field marketing, many people are becoming increasingly concerned about online privacy. Many companies collect and store personal information such as email addresses and phone numbers for use in their campaigns. Should your campaign collect such data it is of vital importance that you take the proper steps to ensure that the data is secure and not being sold on to others. This is not only correct ethical practice but the law. For more information on what this may mean for you, have a look at the DataProtection Act.

Controversial Marketing

Another ethical aspect to consider when formulating your marketing strategy is whether your scheme will be controversial or offensive. While edgy or 'out there' campaigns can prove to be very successful, it's important they don't cross the line and cause offence; what may be amusing or entertaining for your target demographic could be seen as hurtful or inappropriate to others. One form of controversial marketing that is not only unethical but often illegal is 'negative marketing'. Negative marketing is where companies discredit rival brands or products in order to promote their own. This can be seen as petty and distasteful in the eyes of the public and should not be considered as a viable marketing tactic.

While it is possible to avoid the pitfalls of unethical field marketing on your own, it may prove beneficial to seek the help of a professional marketing company, such as www.cosineuk.com who have built up a vast wealth of experience by managing various campaigns for multiple companies.