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Social media has transformed how people communicate, access information, and shop. Despite widespread use of social media, digital content remains inaccessible for blind and/or deaf consumers because of missing or inaccurate accessibility features, such as alt text and closed captioning, and/or providers using automated technology to add such features. Findings from the authors' descriptive study show many posts across social media platforms lack or have inaccurate accessibility features. Interviews and focus groups with blind and/or deaf consumers illustrated multiple challenges accessing digital content, resulting in lost opportunities for both these consumers and organizations while emphasizing the need for public policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over two billion people worldwide and over seven million people in the United States have severe to moderate visual impairment. People with visual impairments rely on inclusive design, which includes alternative text (alt text) to interpret messages, images, and videos digitally. Alt text has many nuances leading to numerous technical inaccuracies and/or inaccurate interpretations of the media. Around the world, the pandemic altered how people conducted simple tasks and interrupted in-person opportunities. It has forced many consumers to work, study, and shop online – creating a large shift to digital experiences. Digital media, including social media platforms and websites, became a major source of information and the gateway to e-commerce. Unfortunately, many consumers with visual impairments who are vulnerable were excluded and unable to learn about products, services, and opportunities due to the lack of accessibility features available and inclusive design. This study explores the difficulties marketing practitioners experience incorporating alt text, thus limiting accessibility and inclusion for vulnerable consumers, specifically visually impaired users. Findings from the current study examining the accuracy of alt text in social media posts indicate that over 95% of the social media posts examined were not inclusive due to either a lack of or inaccurate accessibility usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This special section is devoted to advertising theories, methods, conceptualizations, and practices which may no longer be on the cusp of advertising scholarship interest or practitioner use but which may still hold significance and utility for scholars and practitioners. In essence, we sought submissions to this special section that identified advertising areas which may have been abandoned by advertising practitioners and scholars but which deserved further consideration. [Extracted from the article]

Employing and testing shoplifting-based constructs, we develop and validate a new multifaceted cheating behavior scale that allows educators to segment cheating behavior into what students perceive as trivial versus serious cheating. Results confirm that shoplifting-based scales perform well as predictors of cheating and also suggest that from their perspective, students do perceive two different types of cheating behavior: one serious and the other minor. For serious infractions (e.g., copying another's work) only "economic factors" play a part in the student's decision to engage in cheating behavior. However, for minor infractions (e.g., turning the same paper in for more than one class) "economic factors, unattainable grades", and "low perceived risk" all play a role in the decision to cheat. Interestingly, contrary to anecdotal evidence, "peer influence" does not influence cheating.

With an increasingly competitive job market, this study focuses on what marketing educators can do to help students develop a sustainable competitive advantage. The authors conducted a survey of students, faculty, and recruiters to develop a better understanding of what skills and characteristics might be of value to each group of respondents and to ascertain where differences might exist across respondent groups. Although the basic skills (i.e., critical thinking, communication) recruiters seek have not changed much from previous studies, recruiters rated critical thinking skills, such as problem solving, much higher than either faculty or students. Graduates must be accountable and show the impact and rationale behind decisions. In other words, educators must continue to stress reading, writing, and "arith-metrics." The lessons learned herein include ways to engage students, strengthen communication skills, incorporate skill development workshops, use professional speakers in marketing organizations, and promote services available outside the classroom as well as help students develop multiple skill sets in class. Educators should also encourage students to be open-minded, creative, and explore opportunities including internships and positions that may not be their current career choice. Finally, educators should discuss pros and cons of going straight through school or working before attending graduate school. (Contains 3 tables.)

Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, this study explores whether perceptions of critical hiring criteria for entry-level sales positions differ across sales managers and sales representatives. This research also examines which classroom activities and skills these individuals perceive to be most important for strengthening the desired skill set and whether an MBA degree is an added advantage when candidates are being considered for entry-level sales positions. Results indicate that managers believe objective assessment, technical skills, experiential learning, acquired skills, college accomplishments, and extracurricular activities are more important than do sales representatives. Sales representatives deem basic skills, educational experiences, and interactive skills as more important than how managers assess these skills and attributes. Neither group believes that having an MBA is a necessary prerequisite for these positions. Recommendations for marketing educators are offered. (Contains 6 tables.)