As far as social responsibility, it seems that some websites do this and it is great for them because it is similar to their type of business. As far as business ethics, yes very important. The ethics for business are the same ethics that you should have in your day to day life. But, if you are going into business, this is a great reason to improve or start your business ethics.
Life without meaning and a company's success without ethics are the same things. In order to be successful one must hold on to certain principles and ethical values. In a larger perspective ethics and social responsibility are the obligations of any company towards the society its operating in...
For small or medium sized businesses ethics are vital, if for no other reason than for simple survival. If you project a cavalier attitude towards your customers or suppliers, providing a poor service, overcharging and pulling out the delay tactic playbook every time you get invoiced nobody is going to want to do business with you. Large corporations, of course, are duty bound to their shareholders, so ethics, worker well being and even customer satisfaction often tends to take a back seat. Problem is, unless that corporation has a complete monopoly, or a product or service that's entirely unique, which, these days is increasingly rare, people won't put up them for long and will flock to their competitors at the first opportunity. When a company is caught acting with a blatant disregard for the well-being of the broader community all the politicians, lobbyists, think tanks and PR firms on the planet can't repair the damage. It has nothing to do with karma. Call it human nature, call it market forces, call it causality. We can all think of at least one company that this has happened to, just in the last two years even. We've also seen other companies do complete U-turns in policies and practice allegedly because they have seen the proverbial light. One would be naive to think they done this out of the goodness of their hearts, they done so because it made good business sense to clean their act up. In an ideal world all members of the business community would act ethically because they know, deep down, it's the right thing to do. Failing that, they should at least realise that what's good for the community at large is also always good for business. So yes, ethics are extremely important.
After globalization ethics become fundamentals of business. Business ethics will help to increase the sales & reputation in the public.
If you want to make profit in the long-run it is very important. No one wants to do business with 'scammers.' Eventually possible customers will be aware of your work so make sure you treat, even the small business owners, very well.
Any business that has to sustain in the competitive world and looks for a very long term growth and future, should never compromise on the ethics. If any company has no social responsibility, then it is totally untrue that they are not ethical.
As far as I understand, business ethic is one of the most important things to a company's success. That will lead all the activities of the company, products making, staff's behavior, customers treating... To me, each business need to create its own ethic to bring value to its customers and society.
I believe today more than ever only businesses who create a culture of integrity and character will survive. The public is demanding transparency within the corporate and business world. We have been brain washed for years within our university and academic circles with situational ethics that have created an enviroment in which people have justified their unethical behavior because of the situation or for the better good. It is a time in which those who will do what is right will remain standing. The old adage the good guy never wins is wrong.
No business can succeed in the long term if it is not ethical. One of the primary keys to long term success in business is having customers who buy form you over and over again. How much repeat business will you get from a customer who finds your products, services, or business practices to be scams, frauds, or otherwise unethical? Leaving aside issues of karma, dealing with law enforcement, and just being an all-around good person, even from a purely revenue-oriented perspective, having to constantly find new customers to bilk is much more work than being ethical, and caring about your customers so as to get repeat business from them for the long term.
Business ethics are those virtues that business people apply when making business decisions. They are the standards expected within the business world, even if they are not written down and which business people ought to adopt. For instance business people are expected to afflict least suffering to their customers, being fair in their dealings and nurturing an enduring virtuous corporate character in totality.