Description
This work contrasts Adam Smith’s market with the prevailing American market. The author states that in order to achieve the same results in the current American market, that Adam Smith’s ideal competitive market could have created, socially responsible and proactive behaviour on the part of marketing itself is necessary. Marketing can achieve greater profits and higher quality of life for the whole of society by being consumer- oriented and proactive, and by taking consumers’ well-being as its highest priority. Marketing, the author argues, needs to reach out and cater, not only to the mainstream core markets, but also to those which contain consumers who do not have access to full equal opportunities. These are special market segments such as the poor, the elderly, certain minorities, and those who are particularly vulnerable. Marketing also needs to develop environment and consumer-friendly products and services. The prevailing market conditions in the United States are in favour of certain select groups. Furthermore, many conditions in the existing markets are borderline pathological and need to be corrected. In addition to these, there are those consumers who are very vulnerable (the elderly, the poor, the undereducated and the frail). These groups cannot make the best purchase decisions nor do they have access to many facets of the market. Marketing needs to make a special effort to provide education, information and protection for them and needs to bring as many people as possible into the mainstream of the economy. Finally, the author makes a case for marketing needing to bring about environment and consumer-friendly products and services. Because of the increasing complexity of our society, unless marketing can take a proactive position and bring about products and services which are good, functional, and non-hazardous, consumers will not be able to optimize their purchase decisions.
