Ethics are the moral principles and values that govern the actions and decisions of a marketer and are the foundation of trust in a relationship. There are numerous situations where judgment plays a large role in defining ethical and legal boundaries. Often, actions that are technically legal could be viewed as unethical; and sometimes actions considered to be ethical may not be legal. Companies can lose the trust of their customers when they use deceptive marketing practices.

Review the situations or practices below. Do any of them present an ethical question? Why?

• Giving gifts such as free sales promotion prizes or volume incentive bonuses to a purchaser.
• Giving preferential treatment to customers who are also good suppliers.
• Seeking information from purchasers on competitors' quotes for the purpose of submitting another quote.
• Gaining information about competitors by asking purchasers?

Can you think of other marketing ethics examples that may violate consumer trust? What is your experiencegood or badwith a company and its ethical behavior?