The Sales Ethics an Oxymoron - Essay Example

? Is Sales Ethics an Oxymoron? 27 March Sales or marketing is one of the core segments of every organization which determines the success or failures of a business. Many people are of the view that selling and ethics are mutually exclusive. Sales persons often go up to any extent to sell their product or services to the customers. In order to convince the customers, they often tell lies, fabricate stories and exaggerate things. Customers will often enquire more things about the quality and features of the product or services they are going to purchase. It is difficult for the sales persons to agree that their product is inferior to another competing product. Under such circumstances, sales person will try to convince the customers at any cost. On the other hand many others are of the view that being truthful in an imperative for sales success. Relationship building is accepted as the core of every business activities at present and sales is also not an exception. Telling lies or cheating customers will never help the sales persons in establishing strong relationships with the customers. Customers who once cheated by the sales people will never come back to the same organization. This paper analyses the question; is sales ethics an oxymoron. Is sales ethics an oxymoron? Selling ethically, like all High Probability Selling principles, has been proven to statistically boost the probability of closing sales. Many salespeople report that truthfulness also reduces the stress and anxiety associated with the selling process. Radically Honest Selling is a Win-Win situation for both Buyers and Sellers. Buyers conduct business feeling treated fairly and respectfully. Salespeople enjoy their work more - and enjoy greater financial rewards (The Truth About Truth in Selling: Sales Ethics is NOT an Oxymoron, 2004).1 Shortcuts will help people to achieve temporary gains whereas in the long run shortcuts may create problems. In sales operations also the above fact is true. A sales person may succeed in selling his product or services using shortcuts or exaggerated claims; however the customer will realize the trap later and he may take legal actions against the company or the sales person which may destroy the reputation of both the company and the selling people. On the other hand, if the sales person adopts only the straight ways to sell his product, the customer may give more mouth publicity to that product which may raise the reputation of the company and the selling people. Both the buyers and the sellers should have met their objectives in a deal so that the relationships with the seller and the buyer may be strengthened. “A study in Business Horizons magazine from In­diana University, found that customers increasingly base their buying decisions on whether they be­lieve a company is ethical. Cynicism promotes fick­le buying habits” (Bucaro , 2006, p.1)2. Corporate social responsibility is a much debated term in business arena at present. Ethical selling habits are one of the major elements of corporate selling habits. A socially committed company should never try to cheat the customers with the help of exaggerated or misleading claims about their product. Ultimately, every social setups and systems are meant for the wellbeing of the society and no company or salespersons can survive for longer periods by neglecting the needs of the society. Putting blame on others for one’s own faults is not a good business or selling strategy. In the eyes of the customer, the reputation of the company and that of the selling person will grow only when the sales person was able to keep honesty in his approaches. Exceeding the needs or expectations of the customer will always help the sales person in building the reputation of the company. Instead of blaming the products or services of the competitor, the sales person should try to convince the customers with the help of the features and qualities of the product or service he is selling. The sales person should consider the following questions before beginning his selling activities; “Do you really want the sale at any cost? At the cost of your company’s integrity? Your own integrity? Your company’s reputation? Your reputation?” (Sales Ethics: It’s Not An Oxymoron, n. d, p.2) 3 Sales person is the bridge between the company and the customer. The strength of the bridge will depends on the strength of the relationship the customer may have with the company. The sales person should consider the interest of both the company and the customer while selling a product. There should be a compromise between the needs of the customer and the needs of the company. The sales person should never try to over protect the interests of the company which may damage the interests of the customer. At the same time he should never try to give more subsidies or rebates to the customer which may spoil the interests of the company. The interests of the customer and that of the company should be protected which is the duty of the sales person. People always like to do business with those who can be trusted. “It’s not smart business to bite the hands that will feed your company for the next several decades” (Sales Ethics: It’s Not An Oxymoron, n. D, p.3) 4. “TO MANY people the very concepts of “business” and “ethics” sit uneasily together. Business ethics, to them, is an oxymoron” (Is business ethics an oxymoron?, 2000)5. Many people argue that it is difficult to keep 100% honesty in profession, at least in selling profession. They believe that selling or business is not a good profession or field for honest people. Of course, selling is an art which depends on the communication abilities of the sales person. The sales person should convey all the features of the product to the customers. It is acceptable if the selling person says decorated facts to the buyer; at the same time the decorated facts should never become a fiction for the buyer. “Calling "business ethics" an oxymoron conveys the misguided assumption that ethical commitment and conduct have to be 100% in order to be valid. In other words, if you're going to be ethical you have to be a saint” (Schmidt. 2008)6. The above argument seems to be an outdated one as most of the companies today recognizes the importance of keeping ethical practices in business and selling. It was a fact that earlier, most of the organizations tried to exploit their customers at any cost. However, modern organizations are more committed towards their customers and giving more importance to the customer care and after sales services. “In more general terms, businesses must care about ethics because businesses are part of a human community. Communities are held together by virtues and sound mores. As Aristotle puts it, a person without ethics is more of a wild beast than a human being” (Koehn, n.d., p.1)7. Our society cannot survive if people engage in unethical behaviors. In fact ethics and morality are the pillars which lead the society forward. If these pillars became damaged, the survival of society would be difficult. Business is a social function which affects all the people. Unethical practices in business or selling will raise challenges to the society as a whole. “If business ethics were an oxymoron, then we would have to give up on all societal ethics. And no one is saying that ethical action is a contradiction in terms” (Koehn, n.d., p.2)8 The rightness or wrongness of an act or rule is, at least in part, a matter of the intrinsic moral features of that kind of act or rule. But consequences are not what make the act right, as is the case with utilitarianism” (Moreland, n.d,)9. Utilitarian often argue that an action should be judged as moral or immoral based on the outcomes of the action. However, such arguments cannot be implemented in business or selling. The interests of the seller and the buyer are always contrasting in nature. The buyer wants to purchase a product for the cheapest price whereas the seller wants to sell his product for the maximum higher price. Thus the interests of the seller and the interests of the buyer cannot be fulfilled completely in a selling activity. To conclude, sales ethics is not an oxymoron. Being truthful is not only a moral choice – but an essential requirement for Sales Success. Cheating, stealing, exaggeration etc may bring only short term benefits to the seller whereas keeping honesty in profession will increase the image and reputation of the salesperson and the company. Modern organizations have realised the importance of customer relationships and they have realized the meaninglessness of the argument that sales ethics is an oxymoron. Current organizations are more focussed on their long term objectives and in order to achieve that, they should keep ethical practices in their behaviours. Bibliography 1. Bucaro Frank. (2006). Sales Ethics: Oxymoron or Opportunity. Face-to-Face Communications Skills Newsletter April 2006. Available at: http://www.impactcommunicationsinc.com/pdf/nwsltr_2006/ICINwsltrff0604.pdf [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 2. Is business ethics an oxymoron?, (2000). Available at: http://www.mindfully.org/Industry/Business-Ethics-Oxymoron.htm [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 3. Koehn Daryl (n. d). Is Business Ethics an Oxymoron? Available at: www.stthom.edu/Public/getFile.asp?File_Content_ID=512 p.1&p.2 [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 4. Moreland J.P. (n. d). Ethics Theories- Utilitarianism Vs. Deontological Ethics. Available at: http://www.equip.org/articles/ethics-theories [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 5. Sales Ethics: It’s Not An Oxymoron,(n. d) Available at: www.charleswarner.us/SalesEthics-MSClass.ppt [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 6. Schmidt David. (2008). Isn't Business Ethics An Oxymoron? Available at: http://www.inc.com/leadership-blog/2008/10/isnt_business_ethics_an_oxymor.html [Accessed on 27 March 2011] 7. The Truth About Truth in Selling: Sales Ethics is NOT an Oxymoron. (2004). Available at: http://www.highprobsell.com/html/sales_ethics.html [Accessed on 27 March 2011] Read More