Introduction
In this essay, I argue that the government and business regulatory bodies should control advertisements to protect customers from being deceived by businesspersons. The marketing managers have the responsibility to develop high quality advertisements that will increase the market share. Digital photo enhancement technology helps to enhance images making them appealing to customers.
However, some businesspersons use this technology to acquire competitive advantage in the market for low standard products that do not meet the needs of the customers. They use the technology to dupe customers concerning the quality of the products.
Consequently, deceived customers purchase low quality products after relying only on the information provided by advertisements. It is, therefore, crucial for government and regulatory bodies to control advertising and enhance honesty of businesspersons.
Moral Argument about Digital Photo Enhanced Advertisements
Advertising is carried out for the benefit of the businesspersons who need to maximize their profits by increasing sales volume for their product. The seller’s interest limits the freedom of the buyer to get to know more information about the product rather than that contained in the advertisements.
In some instances, sellers go overboard by presenting misleading information about products through the advertisements. Such a move is immoral since it leads customers into purchasing products that do not meet their needs, hence, losing their money to greedy businesspersons1.
According to the international business ethics and policies, a universal business rule, businesspersons ought to be true and honest to stakeholders. Therefore, it is moral obligations for managers to use methods of advertising that adhere to the business policy, in addition to attracting customers in, the targeted market.
Greedy businesspersons do not adhere to universal rule and give false information to customers through digital photo enhanced and manipulated advertisements. They lure customers to purchase products of low quality by depicting them as superior in their advertisements.
Consequently, deceived customers end up getting frustrated after a product fails to meet the highly pre-anticipated expectations. In order to protect customers from being exploited by greedy businesspersons, it would be prudent for the business regulatory bodies to ensure that business operations are conducted in accordance with the business policies and ethics.
Monopolistic markets are the most affected by misleading advertisements. Sellers are not afraid of competitors and, therefore, their ego to be in control of the market makes them lose moral authority to clients.
In order to protect the clients, business authorities should encourage other business entrants that would bring competition to the market. In addition, a law on advertisements should be enforced to curb the illegal advertising trend. On the other hand, to protect vulnerable clients, business authorities ought to introduce and enforce a law that would enhance honesty in adverting.
The presence of misleading advertisements in the media shows that the government and business regulatory authorities have failed to discharge their duties of protecting customers against exploitation. They have the authority to monitor if businesses are conducted in accordance with the rules outlined in the business licenses and policies.
One would advocate for the regulation of advertisements whereby an advert has to be approved before it is aired to the public. In that case, regulation should be based on conformity of the nature of the product and information on the advertisement. This would help in ensuring that advertisements serve the intended purpose and do not deceive the customers.
Deceiving advertisements indicate failure by the business to produce products and services that meet the intended value to the customer. At the outset, a businessperson has to consider the ability of the product or service to attract new customers by meeting their needs.
Business people opt to use false advertisements that convince the targeted customers that their products and services meet the unsatisfied needs. Business people that violate the advertisement laws and policies ought to be penalized for failing to produce services that meet the intended value upon deceiving the customers2.
At outset, businesspersons are extremely optimistic about treating their customers with respect. The idea of false advertisements hardly crosses their minds. However, their optimism fades away when the real business environment challenges them and they opt to gain competitive advantage through false advertisements.
Businesspersons have a moral obligation to respect their customers and to avoid any action that may tarnish their trust for the business products. This would help in ensuring that businesses are left in the hands of honest and courageous businesspersons whose advertisements are real and reliable to customers3.
There is hardly any, market that respects and upholds the freedom of customer in choosing where to buy their products. Business persons use all methods to lure customers to purchase their products. Eventually, this leads to unhealthy competition prompting businesspersons to look for alternative ways of making their products appealing.
One of such alternatives is enhancement of the products’ images using digital photo enhancement technology. Businesspersons should avoid using digital photo enhancement technology in their advertisements in order for customers to have the freedom to choose where to purchase the commodity. In some few decades ago, advertisements were carried out without excess photo enhancements, as exhibited today.
Therefore, it would be prudent for all businesspersons to carry out their advertisements honestly and leave the freedom of choice at the customer’s disposal. In other words, businesspersons should mind about sensitizing the customers about their products with a limited persuasion. By so doing, it would be hard for the fake products to get their way into the market since customers would have the freedom to choose.
Digital photo enhancements have created unhealthy competition in the business environment. This has been made possible by presence of low quality products that use convincing adverts just like their counterparts. This stirs an unhealthy competition whereby businesspersons compete with dishonest competitors for the same target market by using communication media to attract customers.
Solution to this problem can be found by adhering to social contract theory that advocates for the respect of stakeholders. This would ensure that businesspersons do not use photo enhancements that are deceiving hence eliminating the fake products from the market.
Products’ markets designed for the youthful and middle-aged populations are the most affected by advertisements made by excessive digital photo enhancements. This is because the target market is highly influenced by the product’s physical appearances.
Consequently, businesspersons have opted to make advertisements that comprise of appealing images that do not reflect the real product. It is the responsibility of the government and regulatory bodies to protect customers from deceiving businesspersons.
They need to ensure that products designed for youths and middle aged are not using excessive photo enhancements to acquire a market advantage, as this result to the exploitation of customers4.
Youthful and middle aged populations are the key drivers of the economy because they consume more than other populations. There are business opportunities for products that are highly consumed by youth and middle-aged.
Prudent businesspersons who deal with products and services intended for youthful and middle aged populations often use imagery appealing advertisements as a competitive advantage and a survival strategy5.
In conclusion, the government and business regulatory bodies ought to protect customers. They can achieve this by introducing laws that govern methods of advertisements.
Customers would have the freedom to purchase their products from their preferred businesspersons since they would be using honest methods to advertise their products. Unlawful businesspersons who are caught using deceiving enhanced advertisements should be punished, and their licenses revoked if found to produce fake products.
Above all, the responsibility of curbing this unlawful behavior lies at the disposal of the customers. They should seek for information about a product from other sources apart from relying on advertisements.
It would be prudent for a customer to demand a sample product before purchasing the product they presume that it could serve the intended purpose. As a result, businesspersons would shift their focus from photo-enhanced advertising to other methods that give honest and reliable information about the product to potential customers.
Bibliography
Chris, Hackley. Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Approach. Washington D.C.: Sage, 2009.
Shaw, William H. Business Ethics. New York: Cengage Learning, 2010.
Weiss, Joseph W. Business Ethics: A Stakeholders and Issues Management Approach with Cases. New York: Cengage Learning, 2008.
Footnotes
1. Hackley Chris, Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Approach (Washington D.C.: Sage, 2009) 67.
2. Chris, Hackley, Advertising and Promotion, 78
3. Joseph W. Weiss, Business Ethics: A Stakeholders and Issues Management Approach with Cases(New York: Cengage Learning, 2008), 231
4. William Shaw, Business Ethic.(New York: Cengage Learning, 2010), 90
5. Shaw, Business Ethics, 78