Moral Status of Advertising in a Free Market Economy Term Paper

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Michaels

Moral Status of Advertising in a Free Market Economy

Jane Michaels

Marketing 201

Moral Status of Advertising a Free Market Economy

Despite what many individuals may think, when devising an advertising plan, the planners must carefully pay attention to the motives of not only the business that is selling, and the perceptions of the target audience. Understanding the audience and paying attention to how one sells an idea or product is the core of affective and positive advertising (Shell and Moussa 313). However, persuasion can be a careful line of right and wrong, and in the case of a free market economy. In a free market economy, the concept of supplying a people with a sense of economic freedom can also lead to political and civil opportunities. To follow is the argument affirming a free market economy, highlighting more opportunities then inopportunity for economic growth and underlining freedoms.

Justifying advertising in any market economy is dependent upon the virtue of said market and the efficiencies of distributing necessary economic resources (Goldman 299). There are essentially ideal conditions for a purely competitive market, conditions best suited in a free economy. Amongst the conditions is one key element, the maximization of individual freedoms through voluntary transactions, thus allowing individuals the opportunity to choose everything from occupations, investments and purchases (Goldman 299). Advertising to a free market economy, there is a focus on honest features of the product or service. "For a transaction to take place, given the ideal condition of full knowledge of its features and alternatives, it must be perceived as mutually beneficial to the parties involved" (Goldman 299).

If everyone involved, advertiser and purchaser, understands the full intentions of a product or service, then the advertisement represents itself in truth.

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Unfortunately, there have been circumstances in the past where the misrepresentation of products by the advertiser has lead to destruction of trust and representation; case in point the pyramid philanthropy program designed by John G. Bennett (Shell & Moussa, 312). Bennett took it upon himself to articulate to donors that their donation would be matched, and after earning donors trust by way of marketing key players in the financial investment community, money came pouring to Bennett's plan. Little did the investors realize, there was no matching program. This is but one example of how a products misrepresentation to the public resulted in Bennett's imprisonment and disaster for small colleges.

The intentions Bennett were originally, in theory, sound. He had built relationships with key players and donors, and because of these relationships skills he was creditable to the people he sought donations from; this creditability relied upon the name brand of key participants (Shell & Moussa, 311). As any good advertising agency understands, honing in on the target markets needs and communicating effectively to a diverse audience made Bennett visionary, and this targeting added to people's value and belief system (Shell & Moussa, 311). Bennett also….....

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"Moral Status Of Advertising In A Free Market Economy" (2010, November 23) Retrieved May 5, 2024, from
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"Moral Status Of Advertising In A Free Market Economy", 23 November 2010, Accessed.5 May. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/moral-status-advertising-free-market-economy-122420