The primacy of the consumer in IMC: Espousing a personalist view and ethical implications.

The review of literature on integrated marketing communications (IMC) shows that its ethical dimensions have not been explored much since its inception. With the primacy that IMC gives to consumers and relevant publics, this article explores the ethical issues associated with the portrayal of consumers in marketing communications reflected in previous studies. It provides an understanding of the conceptual differences between personalism and individualism and its application to marketing communications and proposes that IMC espouses the personalist view of the consumer in planning and implementing IMC programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]