Non-Cultural And Cultural Factors In Marketing - Case Study Example

 Non-Cultural And Cultural Factors In Marketing Marketing can be defined as a process of ensuring products and goods are well promoted so as the targeted consumers can be able to buy. The marketing strategy uses the four P’s. They are: price, product or service, promotion and place (Brassington, 2000, pp. 30-60). On the other hand it is evident to note that marketing strategies do differ between developed countries and developing countries. This is so because, developed countries are considered to have the best environment for marketing while developing countries still have numerous hindrances that make them to have an unstable market. For example a country like India is considered as a developing country as it has not attained a stable market structure while the United Kingdom is a developed country. For such reasons, both categories of countries need special ways to market goods both locally and internationally. To understand the differences in marketing it is important to study the three broad categories like political and economic systems, market infrastructure and consumer behaviour. Political and economic systems Under this category one can identify the modes of production, purchasing and selling as they are related to the laws, government and customs of a particular entity. This means that the political and economical system of a country highly affects the marketing strategies not only locally but also internationally. This is so because there are set laws that each government of country puts up to regulate the production of goods and services of firms. Moreover, political stability is very important in the production and distribution of goods and services. Political stability ensures that a country is not experiencing wars thus the government can make better suggestions on how to develop the country. In addition, political stability increases assurance of companies to continue producing more this means that they will have to market for their goods as the economic status improves. With a stable political and improving economic status of a country, competition between firms and industries increases. This therefore, makes firms to improve their marketing strategies in order to bit their rivals in sales they make. In addition, as the countries improve their economic status, they also improve their technology. Thus they adapt better marketing strategies that use the latest technology. India, as a developing country, has not shown the signs of attaining political stability. This is so because the coalition it formed is now being destroyed which has completely ruined its privatisation projects. This means that it has not yet seen the need of practising democracy which is really affecting the economic status of the country. Poor political strategies have led to it increasing the rate of inflation making very many businesses to reduce their costs by reducing their marketing strategies. Though the media is now being controlled by a different entity and not the government, companies marketing strategies are controlled by the government. Being a communist country, companies can only market their products with the government’s approval (Debopama, 2005). On the contrary, companies in the United Kingdom market using all strategies because they are cheap and available. For instance a firm like Tesco will use the internet; market itself in the radio, television, posters, magazines and newspapers (Richard, 2008). Market infrastructure Market infrastructure simply implies the distribution system. That is, the transport sector, telecommunications, media availability and market research methods. It is evident that the marketing strategies of a company fully rely on the market structure. Well, the market structure of developed countries is perfect while that of developing countries is completely destroyed. For instance, since 1988, India has been trying to implement projects to improve its infrastructure. This means that firms in India delay their products because of poor road, rail, air and water networks (Debopama, 2005). On the contrary, the United Kingdom has been in the fore front in having the best infrastructure that is good road, rail, air and water transportation. This does not delay the distribution of products to different entities whether locally or internationally. More so, the united kingdom is improves its market infrastructure by carrying out market research on areas that need mending to ensure that its companies can export their products at a cheaper cost internationally (Thomas, 2007). On the contrary, developing countries like India have a long way to go as they need to first concentrate in developing its market infrastructure thus are characterised by having poor or no market research strategies (Debopama, 2005). Customer behaviour Customer behaviour can be defined as the way in which people purchasing goods and services react towards a certain product. This means that there preferences of a product will be revealed by looking at their behaviours. It is evident that customer behaviour is affected by the availability of a good, importance of acquiring a certain good, tastes, preferences, demand, fashion and more so culture. All these factors are different depending on the society one is working in. Therefore, they vary in both developing and developed countries. For instance, in developing countries, people struggle to acquire basic needs such as food, shelter, clothing and education. This shows that other luxurious products are insignificant to the people of that particular country. For instance India is characterised by producing large amounts of food for its citizens because that is what they require to fight the hunger levels that had gone up due to high rates of poverty. Thus things like cars are simply not important to the people. On the contrary, in the UK, the people are ready to purchase both basic and luxurious goods. Thus all types of firms will be situated in the UK to meet the demand of all kinds of products (Thomas, 2007). India’s cultural practise is characterised by the caste system that is used to differentiate the levels of people according to their economic status. This cultural practise also influences the demand and preference of goods of the poor, middle class and the rich. Firms are therefore forced to market their products according to the caste system as the poor can not afford some things and there is no way they can acquire a higher status as they are considered as minorities and they do not deserve to acquire a higher status. On the other hand, the marketing strategies of all types of firms in the UK are similar as the culture does not give chance to the status issues. The people practise a liberal kind of culture whereby anyone has the right to rise through the status quo ladder. The culture of equality in the UK allows firms to market their products in all areas. This is so because they have a higher chance of getting a diverse market for their products. Therefore the marketing plan of firm in India will be rigid to some point as it will try to embrace its culture while that in the UK will be more diverse (Thomas, 2007). B2) culture Culture can be defined as a way of life or the people’s beliefs in commanding their everyday life. Culture determines the lifestyle of a particular group of people or members of one society. Thus culture will definitely affect the marketing strategies of firms as it will command on the type of product a company is supposed to sell. Moreover, culture commands the taste and preference of the people (Starkey, 2001, section 1&4). Customer behaviour is affected by the culture of the people. A person’s lifestyle conditions depend on the cultural background they were raised in. thus an Indian woman will prefer the sari or Shari which is a traditional clothing won by Indian women as opposed to the jeans and skirts or dresses won by women in the united kingdom. When a company is selling clothes in India it needs to put more concentration in marketing the Sari and Shari in India. On the contrary, the sell of trouser jeans and dresses will increase in the United Kingdom as their culture allows them to dress in such clothing (Thomas, 2007). Customer behaviour highly depends on the religious background one has been given. The Indians practise Buddhism and Hinduism which allows them to either acquire some products and restricts them in some. For instance, their religions urge them to be vegetarians, so any thing that involves the killing of cattle; they can not be associated with it. Thus for a company to sell its products, it is wise for it to concentrate on producing goods that do not involve the killing of cattle. The demand of such products is high thus marketing them becomes very easy for firms (Indrajit, 2008). With the diversity of culture in the United Kingdom, companies are able to diversify their marketing strategies. This is so because they do not have a clear culture that every English person has to follow like the Indians. Thus the companies produce a diverse number of goods to catch the different tastes of the people (Thomas, 2007). It is evident that the people’s culture is tending to that of a global culture. This is because there has been so much interaction around the world that people are now appreciating other cultures. The market structures are also expanding to allow for easy ways of interactions among nations. In addition, people are now copying different cultures as they find them to be very attractive. On the contrary, people are abandoning some of their cultural beliefs as they find them primitive and a hindrance towards economic and social growth. The changes in people’s lifestyle have seen businesses market goods in a diverse nature. For example, the same product in the United Kingdom can be found in India as there are some Indians who are attracted to the culture in the UK (Thomas, 2007). B3) how aesthetics and values of a society influence the firm’s marketing The aesthetic and values of a society are the major factors that one can use to differentiate the marketing strategies that are used internationally and domestically. Many multinational companies like the Tesco Company, have learnt that it is very important to identify the culture and social values of different countries in order to have a good marketing strategic plan that will attract the individuals of that particular country. In deed they have succeeded as it has its branches world wide and people actually appreciate it as it puts other peoples’ social values first in marketing its goods. Despite that, most companies such as Tesco use domestic marketing strategies in foreign markets. This is a strategy meant to make the company popular thus sell its products within the new country (Tesco, 2008). It is evident that with the different social values, a company is bound to fail in marketing because it the people of that particular society will ignore it. Moreover, it will not attract the people as it does not have what they are really interested in. It is important for firms to note that due to the different social values that are embraced world wide, one marketing strategy can not work for all. This is so because people of different societies have different habits, customs and beliefs. More so, it is important for firms to know that there is the concept of sub-culture that is, a culture within a culture. For example in India, the social values in the north differ from those in the south. Thus when a firm is developing a marketing strategy it needs to capture the two diverse groups even though they belong to one country. This means that despite everything firms need to do research before they venture in to the international market. This is so because the social values and aesthetics really do influence the marketing plan of a firm. Thus for affirm to venture in to the international market, it needs to have a background of the material and social institutions of a particular society. The technological and economical aspects describe the material culture of a society. The social institutions therefore entail a society’s educational, political, social system together with their language. For a firm to come up with an effective mode of marketing, it needs to know the level of influence of the two factors; material life and social institution of a particular society. These will definitely dictate the marketing plan of that particular firm. It is very important for firms to know that as they venture in the international market, many societies are still holding on to their values and they are ready to protect them thus they need to have a critical idea on the social values to avoid confrontations. Using the people’s social values in marketing will ensure that they get the information of the products better and faster. When a firm is marketing its products it needs to ensure that it can communicate to its target market by using a common language (Patrick, 20007, pp.260). Even though the firm comes from a country which has an international recognised language, it needs to ensure that it also uses the local language. The Tesco Company for instance advertises its products in the different countries using the local languages. This is to ensure that all people get the message they are sending clearly (Tesco, 2008). Effective communication is part of marketing and the only way a firm can sell its products it is by ensuring that the message of its products is well understood. This ensures customers that there interests are at heart thus purchasing more goods from a company that advertises itself effectively. Aesthetics Aesthetics simply imply a society’s preference of art that is, its music, sculptures, drama, and architecture. Aesthetics simply reveal the preference of what beauty means to a particular society. It is evident that it highly discriminates other elements while it puts so much consideration in other elements (Jeannet, 2004, pp.120-134). For instance, in the Indian community, Indians prefer bangra music to orchestral music while the English people prefer orchestral to bangra and hip hop. The architectural and clothing designs are also very different. For a firm to succeed in marketing it needs to know the aesthetic aspects that affect each culture. It will be very hard to advertise using bangra music in the United Kingdom context. They might consider the advertisement as being absurd. Aesthetics also describe the expressions, postures and symbols used by different societies. Signs, expressions and symbols are normally used in non-verbal communication. To impress the customers while advertising it is important to know the meanings that different non-verbal methods are given by different societies. This again is to ensure that there is effective communication. For example, nodding the head up and down means yes in the United Kingdom, in other societies it means no. thus while advertising, it is important to know that the right symbols and signs are used in the advertisement to avoid confusion. For firms to win many customers they need to embrace the use of such aesthetics. This will definitely capture the attention of the people and they will be required to give meaning to what they are viewing. In conclusion, the marketing firm needs to understand both the verbal and non-verbal languages of different societies to enable it to effectively communicate to the target market on the products it is offering. B4) Factors encouraging localised advertising in a firm’s foreign markets The concept that localised advertising in firm’s foreign market can be explained by two broad school of thought; the standardization and adaptation approach (Sak, 20004, pp.128). The standardisation approach argues that the consumers are homogenous across cultures thus advertising standardisation is applicable in capturing consumers. There are factors that are under the standardisation approach that make a firm to adopt certain local advertising methods of a product to the foreign market. They are: Economies of scale Economies of scale generally refer to the fact that companies are able to produce more which they will distribute a large number of customers making their costs reduce. Localised advertising strategies will firm make a firm to realise the efforts of economies of scale by being able to access an increased of customers in the international market (Keegan, 2008, pp.45-67). The standardisation approach entails that using one advertisement can communicate the message to the diverse global society. Thus the firm is able to avoid so many advertisements for different countries. Thus a firm gains economies of scale by reducing its costs of marketing by embracing the fact that all cultures are homogenous thus every one will understand the advertisement by a firm. Product R$D The research and development made on products are normally concluded capturing the different economies. The conclusions normally urge all economies to embrace the same findings and recommendations for a product. This makes it easy as it forms a global culture about a product (Richard, 2004, pp.230). For this reason, the standardisation approach is applicable as a firm in United Kingdom like Tesco Company can use the same mode of advertisement in Japan and Kenya. This is so because the firm knows that every community has full knowledge of a product in the international market thus making it to use the localised advertising methods. On the contrary the adaptation approach argues that it is important for firms to adapt to localised advertising strategies because although to some degree consumers are homogenous, the consumption patterns and needs for products can differ a lot, thus adaptation is a better approach. There are factors that influence the continuation of the adaptation approach. They are: Legal sector The legal sector differs in all cultures. There might be some similarities but it is evident that different countries have different laws (Keegan, 2008, pp.45-67). For this reason, it is effective for firms to use localised advertisements as they will avoid unnecessary law suits due to violation of local laws. For example, Tesco Company knows that it has to pass its advertisements to the government of china for review to ensure that it does not use obscene scenes in the advertisement (Tesco, 2008). The government puts in regulations to avoid the defeat of its domestic products. Most governments of the developing countries set up very strict regulations in adapting the international marketing strategies as they are afraid of this issue. Thus using the localised advertisement is very important for a company to avoid the legal sector of countries in marketing its products. Consumer behaviour Different societies have different cultures and social values that influence the customer behaviour of purchasing a product. The localised marketing will be effective as it will capture the culture of a particular society (Gerald, 2008, pp.116). Different conditions in using products A product can be used by a particular society to perform a particular function while in another to perform different functions (Drummond, 2001, pp. 34-67). For instance, it will not be logical for Tesco to advertise corn being eaten by a herd of cattle in Kenya as people consider it as a staple meal. While in the UK, advertise that it is eaten by individuals. This will be conflict of interest. Thus localised marketing is very important as it incorporates the fact that despite homogeneity in some forms of culture there are diverse differences (Robert, 2003, pp.120). Conclusion In conclusion, culture does highly affect the marketing strategies of firms in the global world of business. This is so because it is the taste and preferences of a people that make them to purchase a certain good. Thus it is important for firms to embrace the adaptation approach as it suggests that differences in culture do affect the choices of products thus firms need to capture its customers by embracing their cultural preferences. Though culture does affect the marketing strategies, it is important to note that there are other elements that affect it. Elements like the political, economic and legal structures highly influence how a firm will market its products. Thus for a firm to be successful it needs to fully employ both the cultural and non-cultural factors in coming up with a marketing strategy. References Brassington F., 2000. The four P’s: Principles of Marketing, published by Pp. 30-60. Debopama S., 2005. Developing India’s market infrastructure; retrieved from http://www.transactionservices.citigroup.com on 13th January 2009. Drummond G, Ensor J, 2001. Strategic Marketing Planning, Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford. Pp. 34-67. Gerald A, 2008. Consumer behaviour: international marketing, by prentice hall publishers. Pp. 116. Indrajit B., 2008. Booming business using the Indian religion; retrieved from http://www.upiasia.com , on 13th January 2009. Jeannet, J-P. and Hennsssey, H. D., 2004. Factors affecting marketing: Global Marketing Strategies, 6/e, by Houghton Mifflin. Pp. 120-134. Keegan, W. J. and Green, M. C., 2008. Non-cultural and cultural factors in marketing: Global Marketing 5/e International Edition, by Pearson Prentice Hall. Pp. 45-67. Patrick P., 2007. Communication within organisations; Marketing communication, by prentice hall publishers. Pp. 260. Richard F., 2004. Product R&D: international marketing, by routledge publishers. Pp. 230. Richard L., 2008. India’s growing political problem influences on the economy; retrieved from http://www.businessmonitor.com on 13th January 2009. Robert R., 2003. Developing cross-cultural marketing strategies: cross-cultural marketing, by cengage publishers. Pp. 120. Sak O., 2004. Advertising in firms: international marketing, by routledge publishers. Pp. 128. Starkey, R. and Welford, R., 2001. The Earthscan Reader in Business and Sustainable Development, Earthscan. Section 1 and 4. Tesco Company, 2008. Marketing mix in Tesco; retrieved from http://www.ourworld.compuserve.com , on 13th January 2009. Thomas M., 2007. The market infrastructure in the UK; retrieved from http://thomasmurray.com on 13th January 2009. Read More