Review: Principled Profits - Marketing that Puts People First
By Shel Horowitz

The terms 'business ethics' and 'ethical marketing' may sound like oxymorons to many people. But they needn't and shouldn't. Shel Horowitz's book shows how honest, ethical marketing can lead to big profits.

Principled Profit promotes effective ways of marketing that are founded on honesty and integrity.

I think this is a wonderful thing. Too many people in business think that just because it's 'business' they can do whatever they want in order to succeed. It's a strange image: people kiss their kids goodbye in the morning, hug their spouses and then, once at work, throw away all the individual values and principles they hold so dear in their homes and in their communities.

The excuse? "It's just business."

That's not good enough. What happened within companies like Enron and WorldCom has illustrated how badly things go wrong when we hide under the protection of, "It's just business."

Shel's book shows us a different path. He shows us how to make money while still standing by our personal values. He demonstrates how honesty and decency can be the foundations of marketing success.

Here's how he puts it in his introduction:

"Too many businesses see marketing as a weapon of war. They think that to succeed, they have to climb over their competitors, fool their customers, and herd their employees into constricted conformity. I think that’s just plain wrong."

He uses numerous examples, case histories and quotations to illustrate and demonstrate how effectively one can market by putting aside all notions of 'war' and 'winning'. You'll find examples drawn from large businesses and small, with everything in between.

That's the beauty of this book and Shel's thinking: he stands on honesty and integrity, while at the same time offering practical, proven ways in which to market effectively.

Towards the end of the book, here's how he sums things up:

"Time for a quick review: let's just remind ourselves of some of the most important principles in this book, all in one place.

* Ethical marketing - based on quality, integrity, and honesty - not only feels better, but works better

*The more people who have a vested interest in your success, the more likely that success becomes - and thus, marketing that benefits your customers, employees, suppliers, distribution/retail channels, and even competitors is a key to that success

* Cooperation is an extremely effective strategy

* In the abundance paradigm, there's plenty to go around - and in the vast majority of cases, that means "market share" is irrelevant

* When you've set up the right marketing systems, selling becomes less of a concern - because by the time a prospect contacts you, that prospect really wants to become your customer

* To achieve your goals, you can follow numerous paths; rarely is there only one way to accomplish your agenda"

This is a book about effective marketing. About profits. About success. But all based on honesty.

That's a pretty neat thing: make money and still stand by your own principles - and the values you would like your children and community to share.

Find out more about this important book here.