Accounting Ethics

Accounting Ethics Accounting EthicsWhen examining the effect of open marketing on the profession ofaccounting it is important to view it from three perspectives: theclient's, the profession's, and society's. Additionally, two key areasthat are affected by marketing must be addressed,these are concerning competition, and ethical implications. Marketing inpublic accounting is here to stay therefore making an argument against itsexistence would be fruitless; however, in order to achieve maximum benefitto the firm, the client, and s ociety more stringent guidelines must beimplemented at the firm level.The first, and most obvious, of the effected areas is competition.Within competition several points are discussed. First, the implicationsadvertising has on public accounting the model of perfect competitionversus the model of monopolistic compet ition. Secondly, the relationshipbetween firm size and advertising expenditures. Thirdly, the effect ofadvertising on firm specialization, the implications of clien t turnover onpublic accounting practice.CPA - LogoBefore making the comparison, a brief explanation why the two models are chosen is in order. Monopolistic competition has been chosen for the pre-advertising era because it most closely resembles the market structure in an extreme sense. The elements o f monopolistic competition are as follows: product differentiation, the presence of large numbers of sellers, and nonprice competition. Although accounting services between firms offer very little service differentiation, the absence of advertising serve s as a replacement because clients are not necessarily aware that other options are easily attainable. The post-advertising era is explained through the model of perfect competition for which the qualifications are as follows: very little or no service d ifferentiation, many sellers, and price as the only means of distinguishing one firms service from anothers.In a perfectly competitive market the price of a particular service is estab lished solely by the interaction of market...