The Morality Play

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People express their values in the marketplace in two ways, Ball and Hampton have found. Some consumers have what they call a "doctrine-centered" orientation, in which an authority -- a church, a holy book, or some other institution -- creates rules for how to behave. Others exhibit an "other-centered" orientation and are more concerned with how their actions as consumers have an impact on others, such as whether a product or service causes harm to a person or the environment. Most people have a little bit of both orientations. A Jewish consumer, for example, might purchase food products based on kosher law restrictions (a doctrine-centered action) but buy sneakers on an other-focused basis, making sure that the manufacturer didn't use child labor. This can also work outside of a religious context: An environmentalist with more of a doctrine-focused approach, for example, might adopt the purchasing recommendations of an advocacy organization whole cloth.

For marketers, it boils down to this: "If you have doctrine-driven customers, you'd better understand their doctrine," says Ball. But bear in mind that Americans, perhaps because of our long tradition of individuality, generally tend toward an other-centered orientation. Says Ball: "With other-centered consumers, it's much more of a matter of them trying to look into your corporate soul. They're trying to figure out if doing business with you enhances the welfare of the world or detracts from it." Such consumers do a lot of research before pulling out their checkbooks. They listen to what you say, pay close attention to what's reported about you in the media -- and, of course, they look closely at what you actually do.

That's where a values-based marketing campaign becomes tricky. Few people expect advertisers to be sincere. But if you're going to tout your values, you'd better make sure you truly behave according to them, says Bruce Judson, a faculty fellow at the Yale School of Management. Otherwise, you open yourself up to charges of hypocrisy, which could be hard to live down. For McMurry, that's not a problem. His employees' annual evaluations, he is quick to point out, are based on his firm's eight values. What's more, his father, Preston McMurry -- who founded the business and created its values concept -- now has the title of "corporate values shepherd" and is known to walk around the building offering $100 bills on the spot to employees who can recite the eight values and the company's mission statement without making a mistake.

But even if you're truly sincere, an aggressive strategy of communicating your moral values is not without risk, says Dave Lakhani, president of Bold Approach Inc., a marketing firm in Boise, Idaho, and author of Persuasion: The Art of Getting What You Want. After all, what happens if your values and those of prospective customers don't match up? Good luck creating any kind of comfort level with them. "The biggest mistake that business owners make is thinking that their customers are all just like they are," Lakhani says.

This is particularly true when the values in question are explicitly religious. The Chicago law firm Mauck & Baker, for example, specializes in such earthbound matters as real estate, probate, and consumer fraud -- but its marketing unabashedly focuses on religious beliefs. The firm's tag line is "Representing God's People," and its website prominently quotes Scripture. "We're not only telling people who we are, but we're also glorifying God," says partner John W. Mauck. But at the same time, Mauck is fairly certain that his Christian message has led at least a few potential clients to look for other representation. "Sometimes, it does offend when people present their faith," he says. "There's no question about that." Mauck has no idea how many times this has happened, though he does cite -- with pride -- an instance in which a longtime client let him know that he'd be obtaining different counsel to handle his upcoming divorce. "I don't want you to handle my divorce because I know you won't crucify my wife," the client told him. "And that's okay," Mauck says, "because he was right: I wouldn't have handled it in a way that would have destroyed his wife."

Those who do intend to market on the basis of religious values need to keep their eyes wide open to the risks involved, says Stephanie Wagner, a brand-management consultant in Glendale, Wis. "It's a strong way to brand yourself," Wagner says. "But only if you're sure that you'll attract more people than you'll turn away." She cites a well-known homebuilder in her community that employs a strong Christian-values message in its television and radio ads. "It turns my stomach," says Wagner, a self-described secular liberal. "I would never, ever give them my business." If that homebuilder were her client, Wagner says, she'd ask whether it was worth turning away customers like her. The answer might well be yes. But it's important for businesses to make an informed decision, she says.

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