Strategic Responses Of Business To Consumerism

Abstract

Through the private enterprise system of fierce competition and heightened entrepreneurship, providers of consumer goods have frequently intensified their efforts to maximize profits.  In doing this, the interest and needs of workers and the consuming public were somewhat ignored, which results in what some felt to be questionable practices on the part of private enterprise.  The public became interested in pricing, ads, quality and durability of goods together with the overall fidelity of business.  Business considered strategic alternatives in responding to the concerns of society.  Strategic responses to consumerism by the business community included a broad continuum of measures designed to allay these judgements.  This paper addressed four issues including:  education and information, marketing, customer service, and consumer affairs departments.  It was recognized that the public raised ethical conduct questions regarding advertising and pricing long before consumerism reached its peak during the decade of the 1960’s.