Abstract:
In the past businesses pursued profits single-mindedly with little or no consideration for the wider social and environmental impact of their activities but this is not the case today. The consumer movement and the environmental lobby are now firmly established as vigilant and powerful watchdogs and have successfully brought about changes in business practice and in the laws, which govern how businesses must operate. Many businesses have voluntarily changed their ways of operating to take these wider concerns into account. For example, in marketing, the 'marketing concept' has become synonymous with having a consumer orientation and the more recent 'societal marketing concept' extols the need for marketers to consider the wants and long-run needs of both society and consumers.