Guerrilla Marketing

by Debra Kahn Schofield

Many salespeople work for unscrupulous employers who actually condone unethical business practices. On the surface, most US companies have a code of ethics and pay lip service to compliance. The picture they paint is very sunny indeed. An authentic portrait of corporate ethics in America today is far darker. A recent survey by Sales & Marketing Management magazine concluded that despite the ethics codes instituted by most firms, the actual practices and unwritten codes of acceptable behavior may be quite corrupt.

The survey of 200 sales managers from companies of varying sizes, found that salespeople will go to extraordinary lengths to make a sale. The survey revealed that 49% of managers knew that their reps lied on a sales call; 34% heard reps make unrealistic promises on a sales call; and 22% were aware that their reps sold customers products that they didn't need. A whopping 54% agreed that the drive to meet sales goals does a disservice to customers.

While customers may suffer from such practices, often the customer instigates unethical practices. Thirty percent of the sales managers claimed that customers have demanded a kickback for buying their product or service. Often a customer's prior experience with a supplier that offered kickbacks, gifts or bribes, conditioned them to expect the same from a competitive firm.

One of the reasons for the proliferation of illegal and dishonest behavior is the changing nature of the marketplace. With start-up companies exploding onto the field, burning bright and often going down in flames, there is little consistency. Loyalty and honesty are difficult qualities to demand from a constantly changing workforce.

If you find yourself placed in a compromising position by your own manager, you face a tough decision. If you refuse to overstep the boundaries of your own personal ethics, your boss may relieve the pressure on you to cheat. But tread lightly; your integrity might trigger your manager's guilt and resentment, provoking an scheme to sabotage you. If you decide to become a whistle-blower and take your complaint over your supervisor's head, be sure that top management shares your ethical concerns. Otherwise you may find yourself ostracized by the entire company.

Recent studies have shown that a majority of US companies have ethical codes; many larger firms even have ethics offices. Guidelines are helpful, but if management just sends out a written code of conduct which workers file away and forget about, than they are sending out a mixed message.

Like raises, promotions and vacation policies, workplace ethics flow down from the top. If your firm takes a firm position on ethics and rewards workers for doing the right thing, even if at the expense of a sale, then workers won't be encouraged to cheat in order to stay ahead.