Marketing ethics in modern Russia

Abstract

The author represents some kind of absolutist approach implicating that only subsequent reveal and revival of humanism in a human can be saving in all incidences, including marketing. With reference to modern Russia at least, the latter contains only an economical interest which is far from both expectations of consumers and moral reasons, whose presence essentially calls to attest ethic measurement of market as a whole. Among many marketing books, only some of them contain ethic aspects of marketing. Contradictory attempts to combine narrow pragmatism and moral position are present.

In practice of communication in market and the respective literature, ethics, courtesy and even moralistic attitude are combined, which results to multiplication of lie and can be called not only infringement of interests but injury of moral feelings of people. Typical demonstration of it includes corporate ethic codes, use of different procedures of indoctrination of the market subjects in order to get more benefit, etc. Nevertheless, moral approach is also positioned in Russian marketing literature; rather optimistic opinion of Russian realism is present as well, taking into account traditions and achievements of the past.

The visible way out is not in the very fact of marketing procedures and the so-called qualified consumer, but in bending personal and social efforts to minimization of life and maximization of truth. The maximum attention and persuasion of the opposite side using morally heavy arguments and personal example are the most preferable ways to prevent and solve possible problems in the examined area.