MRKTNG 3000 1nd Edition Lecture 8 Outline of Last Lecture I C B Issues II Correlational inferences a Associations b Country of origin effects III Heuristics and biases a Representativeness b Availability bias c Anchor and adjustment Outline of Current Lecture IV Materialism sustainability and corporate social responsibility V Sustainable development a Challenges VI Corporate Social Responsibility Current Lecture Materialism sustainability and corporate social responsibility Materialism devotion to material needs and desires to the neglect of spiritual matters a way of life opinion or tendency based entirely on material interests Value that guides conduct especially consumption behavior Often has a negative connotation These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Money does not buy happiness Materialism negatively associated with self esteem and well being quality of life satisfaction with life in general Actually attaining one s materialistic aspirations does not increase well being extrinsic nature may be explanation Marketing and materialism Marketing does not create needs Marketing research is conducted to find unserved needs before product is developed and promoted Marketing promotes materialism Macro effects of promotion leads to focus on possessions happiness view TV ad study showed ad viewing led to higher degrees of materialism among children Sustainable development What is it About Balancing economic growth and social needs with the natural environment Ensuring that growth in the present does not adversely sacrifice future opportunities Sustainability within a local area and at a global level Now a very popular topic with the majority of the focus around climate change due to carbon emissions In response to this popularity large orgs such as governments and corporations aim to be sustainable Challenges in sustainable development 1 Inherit complexity of the problem balancing short term private benefits with long term interests Over focus on one area may have significant negative Solutions require long running transformational changes Common definition e g whether development through industrialization itself should be referred to as sustainable 2 Conflicting interests Balancing short term private benefits with a long term interest Balancing self interest with the interests of others Corporate interests National interest Personal interests Interest groups with varying perspectives and agendas 3 Post modernization emerging factors There have been changes in the past 50 years that have profoundly impacted Sustainability The global impacts of large scale industrialization and materialism Population growth and increased life expectancy especially in the developing world Globalization of trade and transport Impacts of science and technology exponentiation Increased corporate influence in relation to government and private citizens Within current pro growth economic paradigm Target and grow green segments Those sensitive to environmental effects of company brand actions Challenges of increasing green segments Attempts perceived to be greenwashing What criteria is used to judge what are sustainable practices Corporate Social Responsibility CSR The way firms integrate social environment and economic concerns into their values culture decision making strategy and operations in a transparent and accountable manner and thereby establish better practices within the firm create wealth and improve society External markets for virtue Some customer segments may reward CSR initiatives while others don t Benefit segmentation CSR most important vs price most important Favorable response to CSR profitability Dependent on fit between consumer values firm values and specific issue initiative Must be seen as authentic Characteristics of socially responsible consumers Purchasing based on firms corporate social responsibility CSR performance Recycling Avoidance and use reduction of products based on their environmental impact Marketing and CSR How does marketing respond to socially responsible consumers Directly by appealing to segment s desire for more simple and plain products Simplifiers Eco efficient simplifiers consume more buy eco status products to reflect social concern Better world simplifiers CSR consumes who simply to help the world Quality of life simplifiers simplifying seen as improving quality of life less needs less worry less work etc Involuntary simplifiers use simplicity desire to justify forced due to financial reasons What role can and should marketing play in the future welfare of humanity Promoting socially responsible products Promoting socially responsible firm practices Marketing and sustainability may be irreconcilable Macro effects of promotion foster consumption and materialism Future of marketing Solutions may lie in product development Offering alternatives that foster sustainability Better value vs convenience Via new technologies Nanotechnology New development of engineering practices