Thanks to the widespread use of the internet, unethical marketing is running rampant across all marketplaces. With companies now having more ways to reach their potential customers than ever, they will frequently abuse customers’ public information by sending waves of unwanted spam emails, cold calls, and inauthentic influencer ploys to steal away consumers' attention.
This new flood of unethical marketing is in addition to the age-old strategies of misleading consumers with false marketing messages and bait-and-switches used to spurn their customers for a quick profit.
These unethical practices are not just wrong due to the lack of customer respect but are generally ineffective thanks to the public being better able to identify cheap marketing ploys.
By electing not to use unethical marketing, companies will not only stand out against their shadier peers but also find much improved results in their marketing tactics.
In every customer-to-company relationship, trust is everything.
If customers understand that you genuinely believe in your product and think you want to improve their lives, they will be much more inclined to listen to your sales pitches, even if they weren’t originally interested.
By using marketing tactics that are honest about your product or service’s true capabilities, customers who purchase your product will be more likely to build loyalty to you, as they will trust that what you say is true and therefore would be open to other offers you may have.
However, if a customer purchases your product and feels misled by the marketing, they will lose all trust in your company and will not return, and may even tell others to do the same. This domino effect can quickly ruin your company’s reputation.
Providing useful information is another strong way to build customer’s trust. While some companies will put out marketing content that is simple just for SEO purposes, offering genuine guidance to assist customers on your website (even if that information leads them to go with a different product instead), will deem your company as knowledgeable and customers will be more likely to return to your site. The higher the return rate, the more likely a customer will eventually make a purchase.
Using customer data is a hot-button topic, as so many companies have been caught using their data in unethical ways.
While there’s nothing wrong with using customer data for your own marketing purposes, it’s important to be respectful to your customers as well. This respect can be given by being open about what data you collect and allowing easy opt-out options for those who visit your website. In addition, customers are more likely to respect your targeted marketing efforts if they can easily remove themselves from things such as email lists.
Companies that intentionally make these opt-outs difficult come across as sketchy and conniving, as the customer feels like they’ve been caught in your trap rather than you have any interest in actually helping them.
It’s natural to be ambitious about your company’s bottom line. The more customers purchase your products, the more successful you will feel. However, if you just treat your customers like a spreadsheet number rather than an actual person, you may begin to lose touch with your clientele.
In any marketing strategy, it’s essential to fully grasp who your customers are, where they are in the buying process, and why they make their purchasing decisions. If you treat customers like real people, it’s easier to understand someone’s thought process and make adjustments to make their shopping experience more enjoyable.
In contrast, if you solely focus on the numbers rather than people, your marketing will lose touch with reality, focusing on trends and making decisions based on statistics rather than logic. These marketing tactics can come off as inauthentic and decrease the likelihood of making a genuine relationship with your customer base that can last longer than just one transaction.
At Gorilla, we know marketing is much more than just numbers on screen. Having provided ethical marketing strategies for our own businesses as well as numerous others, we know how to build you a marketing plan that can take your company to the next level - the right way.
To learn more, visit our website for more information or contact us to talk to us directly. We’re excited to meet you!