Humane Touch of the Virtual Reality: By Luis Zapanta.

During my years of teaching English and Latin literatures, one of the favorite books my students loved to discuss is “The Prince” of Machiavelli. They always remember the line, “The end justifies the means.” Even until now, whenever I got a chance to talk to anyone of them, they would always quote Machiavelli.

Machiavelli’s thought is timeless and universal. As one who works on eCommerce, PR, and Marketing, I would say that there is a real bit of reality on Machiavelli’s thought with regards to the aforementioned fields. In the articles I have written earlier, “A Philosopher’s Take on the World of Internet Commerce and Ethics” and “The Challenge of Virtual Relationship”, I have tackled a part of the ethical side of eCommerce. Though, many eCommerce executives still face the challenge brought up in the said articles, there is another challenge to be faced…how should eCommerce be judged? Would really be ‘end justifies the means’ or the other way around?
In an ordinary Sales & Marketing set up, eCommerce is judged on its effectiveness but its ethical soundness is usually left behind. Why? Probably because of the ‘end’. One may say that ‘business is business’ and the important thing is the produce. But is it really the ‘produce’ that matters most?

If one would consider the ethical soundness of eCommerce, he may want to consider the following:
1. Humane Touch
2. Truthfulness
3. Social Responsibility

Humane Touch. Once I said, ‘Success wouldn’t be such if not with humane touch.” eCommerce initiatives, if judged on ethical soundness, should result in the auxiliary to the development of one’s totality. Humane touch plays an important role on eCommerce initiatives because a human being in the virtual world still craves for humaneness of its environment. eCommerce initiatives should touch the humaneness of the human in the virtual reality.

Truthfulness.How do you deal with a guest who feels that the services your hotel offers is misrepresented in your site? eCRM is there but is it worth doing if there is a dodge in your eCommerce activity? Really, the ‘end justifies the means’.

Social Responsibility. We live in a society…in a community of human beings who commit ‘human acts’ and ‘acts of man’.

eCommerce is not only for a sense of profit motive. Every eCommerce executive has a social responsibility which is even bigger than that of an offline marketer. This is so because eCommerce encompasses everything that offline marketing cannot reach. The community from far away is just a click away. Every time an eCommerce executive clicks on his computer to disseminate information to the virtual world, he is responsible to its effect on the human dignity and respect of humanity.

On the virtual world of eCommerce, I believe, one should revisit the means and the end of his initiatives. Are they really ethically sound?

Luis L. Zapanta
eCommerce & PR
Sheraton Doha Resort & Convention Hotel
Doha, Qatar
June 2008

tags: ecommerce, emarketing, ebusiness, internet, web, www, ethics, business, hotels, hospitality, tourism, travel, public-relations, marketing, business-ethics, virtual