Effective, but is it ethical?

Social Media? Do you know the rules to the game?

Yes, it is extremely easy to use, and allows users to have a lot of freedom to do whatever they want with their accounts – engage in games, share videos, etc. Companies also make use of such platforms for advertising and marketing. However, did they do it ethically? Here’s a post to learn more about the line to draw when doing such activities.

In this post, I’ll be sharing more on Social Bashing –Negative statements about others or abusive attacks via social media activities and platforms. (clickworker.com, 2014)

• Lexus

In August 2013, Ben Affleck was chosen by Warner Brothers to star in the new ‘Batman’ movie, many netizens were not very happy with that, and they expressed that various other candidates would be a ‘#BetterBatmanThanBenAffleck’. Lexus hopped on the bandwagon and produced this:

However, Lexus did not do sufficient research and committed a huge mistake – Ben Affleck owns a Lexus. (Goodbye to endorsement deals!)

• Audi

Is this really a “Friendly Competition”? Audi and BMW have had a history of “Ad Wars” by using billboards, and Audi has now moved to using videos online.

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• Pros:

I feel that such advertising and marketing strategies are highly successful, memorable, and entertaining for people who are either on the fence or in the team that’s initiating the strategy.

• Cons:

However, I find this unethical.

Firstly, is there a need to use an advert to put other brands/people to an inferior position? Instead of putting others down, why can’t they merely highlight their own strengths? This makes them look insecure as well.

Secondly, besides offending their competitors’ customers, there is a risk in offending their own customer base. This is because these customers could be still purchasing goods from their competitors. Also, it could offend their potential customers because of the image it portrays (unethical, to some).

Lastly, it doesn’t mean that they have won. The competitor might retaliate and have a good come-back, which puts the company into a disadvantaged position.

All in all, I feel that utilizing social media for marketing and advertising is required in today’s digital world. However, organizations and individuals have to take note of what they post and what kind of a message they are (in)directly sharing. Social bashing could be seen as a very effective method, but do you think it is ethical?

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References: 

Does Bashing Competitors with Attack Ads Really Work? Available at: http://www.cyberalert.com/blog/index.php/does-bashing-competitors-with-attack-ads-really-work/ [Accessed December 5, 2014].

Friendly Competition – Audi. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e16QgD5-aLc [Accessed December 5, 2014].

Lexus Joins In On Ben Affleck “Batman” Bashing On Twitter. Available at: http://www.businessinsider.com/lexus-joins-in-on-ben-affleck-batman-bashing-on-twitter-2013-8?IR=T& [Accessed December 5, 2014].

Social Bashing | clickworker.com. Available at: http://www.clickworker.com/en/crowdsourcing-glossar/social-bashing/ [Accessed December 5, 2014].

The Historic BMW vs Audi Billboard Ad War In Pictures. Available at: http://wonderfulengineering.com/the-historic-bmw-vs-audi-billboard-ad-war-in-pictures/ [Accessed December 5, 2014].

7 Ethical Dilemmas Faced in Social Media Marketing | Edutainment. Available at: http://blog.socialcontentmarketing.com/7-ethical-dilemmas-faced-in-social-media-marketing/ [Accessed December 5, 2014].