Scare tactics have their value. The pressure to make a decision can overpower the doubt consumers may have when considering a product and make them feel they need the product or service immediately. However, at the end of the day, fear is still a negative emotion, no matter what you’re gaining from it, and who wants their business associated with negative feelings?

Consequences: External

According to a study by Phrasee, 76% of consumers don’t like when brands use high-​pressure advertisements and 68% will avoid making purchases from brands that use negative emotions in their advertisements. Why? Phrasee found that 63% of consumers believe that high-​pressure ads are directly correlated with people falling into financial difficulty. That could be because 27% of respondents say that such marketing has lead them to make purchases that they regretted later.

Consequences: Internal

Not only that, marketing based on negative emotions impacts consumers’ mental health in the wrong way, agree 56% of Phrasee’s respondents. That damage doesn’t stop at consumers. Unethical marketing causes 22% of marketers to be ashamed of their own profession, and 26% of marketers have seen the terrible results of unethical marketing themselves. 

So, ask yourself and your clients: Is unethical marketing truly worth it? Asking employees to create advertisements that they’re ashamed of to pressure consumers to buy things that they don’t even need or want is not worth the damage it will cause to the brand. 

Comfort is the primary emotion Ad/​Marketing Agency Decision Makers, Digital Marketing Services Purchasers, Online Advertising Purchasers AND Media Advertising Purchasers want to feel when making purchases this year, according to AudienceSCAN by AdMall from SalesFuel. Unethical marketing plans clearly won’t fulfill that goal. So, make sure your plans for your clients spotlight positive messages. Ethical advertising will increase both your sales and your clients’.