The Ethics of Marketing Research

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ARROWPOINT-MARKET RESEARCH AND INSIGHT SOLUTIONS

• The Ethics of Marketing Research

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The Ethics of Marketing Research Can I? Should
I? Would I? A basic role for a marketing
researcher is that of intermediary between the
producer of a product and the marketplace. The
marketing researcher facilitates the flow of
information from the market or customer to the
producer of the good or service. Such a
situation, with three major playersthe producer,
the customer and the market researcheroften sets
the stage for conflicts of interest which, as
Plato noted, can give rise to ethical problems.
Given the inevitability of ethical dilemmas in
marketing research, well-established ethical
guidelines are critical for their resolution.
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• In this article, we identify resources for
  ethical decision making in marketing research in
  three key areas where problems often arise
• In the relationship between the researcher and
  the client 
• Between the researcher and the research subject 
• Between the researcher and the marketing research
  industry

Situation 1 After you make a brilliant final
presentation on a business-to-business market
research study, your client thanks you and then
asks for the list of companies that responded to
the survey, along with their survey responses,
which could indicate whether they were currently
in the market for the client's services. What is
your response?
In my 12 years as a marketing researcher,
this is the most common ethical dilemma I have
encountered and a classic example of conflicting
interests leading to ethical problems. When
collecting data, I pledge that individual
confidentiality will be maintained, personal
information won't be used for other purposes, and
responses will be combined with those of other
respondents so that individuals can't be
identified.
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My clients, however, sometimes have an "Aha!"
experience during presentations of research
findings. They suddenly realize that in addition
to a market profile the research process has
generated a list of "warm" or qualified leads for
further marketing or sales efforts. From their
perspective, they paid for the study and so "own"
both the results and the subject-specific
information. The Council of American Survey
Research Organizations (CASRO), a national trade
association of commercial survey research
companies in the US, sets clear, unambiguous
guidelines for such situations in its Code of
standards and Ethics of Survey Research.In
fact, respondent confidentiality is the first
topic covered. The standard is straightforward
while there are sometimes legitimate reasons to
disclose a minimal amount of "respondent-identifia
ble" information to the client (for survey
validation purposes or additional analyses), the
information cannot be used for individual
marketing efforts or to take any action toward an
individual respondent as a result of his or her
participation in the survey.
Internationally, the guidelines are even
stricter. The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of
Marketing and Social Research Practice requires
not just respondent confidentiality but
anonymity. Any deviation from anonymity requires
written permission from the respondent.So,
returning to our client hungry for warm leads,
how do you respond?
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Situation 2 Despite your best efforts, you are
unable to shorten a personal interview
questionnaire to less than 30 minutes in order to
ask all the questions needed to address your
client's research objectives. You know that most
of your subjects won't participate if you are
honest with them about the time commitment. Your
boss suggests that you simply state the survey
will "only take a few minutes." Do you take this
advice and hope that once the interviews begin
people will be reluctant to stop? CASRO places
the responsibility on the researcher for
"weighing the research need against the length of
the interview" and specifically states that
potential research subjects "must not be enticed
into an interview by a misrepresentation of the
length of the interview." ESOMAR guidelines
similarly prohibit either researchers or
interviewers from knowingly misleading potential
respondents about the length of an interview in
order to gain cooperation. The Marketing Research
Association (MRA) has Recommended Best Business
Practices for Opinion and Marketing Research,
which notes that respondents should not be misled
regarding the length of the interview. Returning
to the situation with your boss, how do you
respond to the "suggestion" that you tell
potential respondents that your survey will take
"a few minutes" rather than saying the interview
will last approximately 30 minutes?
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Situation 3 You are in a kick-off meeting with a
new client for your marketing research services.
During your discussion, she shows you a
previously commissioned research study from
another marketing research provider. You note
that the research designa qualitative studywas
completely inappropriate for the research
purposea quantitative estimate of market
potential. Your potential client states that she
"really liked" the previous study and asks if you
can replicate it in another product category. It
is clear that if you say no, she will go back to
the original provider. How do you
respond? Professionalism and fairness are a
hallmark of all of the ethical codes and
standards we have discussed. The American
Marketing Association (AMA) Code of Ethics warns
against taking advantage of situations in such a
way that "unfairly deprives or damages the
organization of others." The ICC / ESOMAR
International Code of Marketing and Social
Research Practice stipulates that researchers
"must not unjustifiably criticize or disparage
other Researchers." More to the point, however,
is the AAPOR Code of Professional Ethics and
Practices, which states "We shall not knowingly
make interpretations of research results, nor
shall we tacitly permit interpretations that are
inconsistent with the data available."
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• What is your ethical responsibility when the sale
  is contingent on doing something you know to be
  wrong?
• Although these situations have been described in
  terms of marketing research practice, the
  essential ethical questions are really very
  simple
• Situation 1 Would you go back on your word and
  betray the trust that others have placed in you? 
• Situation 2 Would you lie to get others to
  cooperate with you?
• So far, I have avoided giving answers to the
  proposed situations other than to cite marketing
  research industry codes and standards. That is
  because ethical decision making is personal. Each
  of us must make tough ethical decisions alone,
  but it can help greatly when there are
  established guidelines

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Here are three general observations that might
suggest how I would address the ethical
challenges presented If Plato was right that
ethical problems spring from a conflict of
interests, you should clearly lay out your
personal perspective sooner rather than later. My
generalized response to the first situation is to
initially provide the client with a hard copy of
the Code of Ethics under which I operate,
emphasizing those issues important to the
particular project. I make certain that clients
know what to expect from me and what the final
deliverable will include. Andmost importantlyI
continue to discuss and manage those expectations
throughout the entire project.  People tend to
lie when they think someone else cannot handle
the truth. In the second situation, I have found
that if you can honestly persuade the potential
respondent that both the research and their
participation are important, you can talk to them
indefinitely.  Marketing research is an art, not
a science. There is no single best solution to
any research situation, and researchers should
avoid a rush to judgment situations like the
third. And rather than criticize another's work,
it is best to simply state your own position or
approach as articulately and compellingly as
possible.