People know when they are being lied to and, let’s be real, no one likes it. Whether it’s hyperbolizing a product or sprinkling little white lies here and there, people don’t like to be made a fool out of. This is why it is important, as a company, to stay away from unethical marketing.

How can you avoid unethical marketing?

Be real.

The majority of your clients will stay loyal to you if they know that the marketing is transparent, ethical, and honest. Not only will you have a loyal clientele, chances are they will end up throwing down more money for things that your company is marketing!

Don’t exaggerate.

Unethical marketing can look many different ways! It can be exaggerating a product, omitting information, inducing stress or anxiety, or exploiting certain groups of people. It is important that companies must stray from these practices because it will be better for them in the long term than their short term business. Once people realize that these practices are going on, they will share their experiences on their platforms and most likely take their money elsewhere.

Avoid omissions.

If your company advertises a product for a certain value price online and the price greatly increases by the time the customer checks out, you’re omitting information that will cause the customer to lose trust in your product. It’s imperative that you must show a proper breakdown of your service fees before purchase so you retain customers.

On the bright side, consumers can fight against unethical marketing now more than ever because of all of the different social media platforms that exist! The consumer has a voice in the matter and they can make others aware of any unethical marketing that may be happening. This is detrimental to companies that may be using this type of marketing though. Why? One consumer talking about it will make others realize that your company may not be worth it. Don’t do it! It will result in a more negative impact that you may never recover from. Be honest and be transparent! Build your brand honestly and you won’t need to worry about any negative impact on your company.