Page 94 - Foundations of Marketing

The Marketing Environment, Social Responsibility, and Ethics | Chapter 3 61

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Protection Bureau to protect consumers from deceptive financial practices. Consequently,
the political forces of the marketing environment have the potential to influence marketing
decisions and strategies.
Reactive marketers view political forces as beyond their control and simply adjust to
conditions arising from those forces. Some firms are more proactive, however, and seek to
influence the political process. In some cases, organizations publicly protest the actions of
legislative bodies. More often, organizations help elect to political offices individuals who
regard them positively. Much of this help is in the form of campaign contributions. AT&T
is an example of a company that has attempted to influence legislation and regulation over a
long period of time. Since 1990, AT&T has made more than $ 50 million in corporate dona-
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tions for use in supporting the campaign funds of political candidates. For years, legislators
and other groups have sought to limit the amount of corporate campaign contributions. In
the 2010 ruling Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission , the Supreme Court ruled
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that the government is not authorized to ban corporate spending in candidate elections.
This means that future elections can be affected by large corporate donations to candidates.
Marketers also can influence the political process through political action committees (PACs)
that solicit donations from individuals and then contribute those funds to candidates running
for political office.
Companies also can participate in the political process through lobbying to persuade public
and/or government officials to favor a particular position in decision making. Many compa-
nies concerned about the threat of legislation or regulation that may negatively affect their
operations employ lobbyists to communicate their concerns to elected officials. For instance,
as the United States government debates whether to pass stricter laws regulating marketing
activities over the Internet, social media firms such as Google are sending lobbyists to give
their respective viewpoints regarding the proposed legislation.

Legal and Regulatory Forces

A number of federal laws influence marketing decisions and activities. Table 3.2 lists some of
the most significant pieces of legislation. Regulatory agencies and self-regulatory forces also
affect marketing efforts.

Protesting against Business
© iStockphoto.com/EdStock Protestors carry a banner to
and Government
protest the sale of genetically
modified food during a dem-
onstration at a biotechnology
industry conference.

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