International Business Cultures in Saudi Arabia - Coursework Example

International Business Cultures Contents Introduction 3 Cultural Differences 3 Following Advertising Regulations in Saudi Arabia 4 Behaviour during Meeting 5 Reference List 7 Introduction Underlying challenges of globalization are formidable for business enterprises and adapting to cultural differences is one of the primary concerns for companies. Cultural conflicts mainly arise in the business because activities which are acceptable in one country or culture may not be accepted in another culture. The problem of our marketing team is exactly highlighted by this situation. Some of the advertising campaigns taken up for the company in Saudi Arabia has been described as sexually suggestive, inappropriate and unsuitable for screening which is creating the problem. Researchers have described that differences in cultural communication can send a wrong message to the customers and the basic human values are at stake (Hoecklin, 2000). Ethnocentric orientation has been regarded as the chief element where companies go wrong as most of them use their own culture in judging the culture of other countries (McDonald, et. al., 2002). As an U.K. based firm providing marketing services to Chanel, our company needs to modify parts of the advertising campaigns in Saudi Arabia to make it culturally more appropriate. This is expected to establish a mutually beneficial long-term relationship with our client Chanel and improve profitability for both of us. Cultural Differences There is a growing consensus among market experts that expanding to Saudi Arabia is a lucrative option only if the companies are able to accommodate the differences in the culture. Misinterpreting culture is a primary concern because the people are highly conservative and are easily offended due to cultural differences. The differences in culture are also embedded in the business culture. For instance, it has been observed that business organizations in Saudi Arabia are largely hierarchical whereas in that of the U.K. decision-making is largely decentralized. Conflicts arising during key business decisions are likely to be dealt in a confrontational manner in the U.K. whereas the Arabs seek to make negotiations through non-confrontational techniques (Bosrock, 2014). Another major difference between the two nations is that businesses are relationship driven in Saudi Arabia whereas they are deal focused in the U.K. The fact that Saudi Arabia is a male dominated society is also reflected in the business environment as majority of the senior managers in the country are males. In case of the U.K. senior management comprises both male and female leaders (Kwintessential, 2014b). Considerable differences have also been noticed during exchange of gifts in business environment (Li, 2012). Exchanging of gifts is well embedded in the business culture of Saudi Arabia and is even considered as a token of respect however same cannot be said about the U.K. business culture. Similarly giving of perfumes as gifts is unacceptable as it contains alcohol (Shoult, 2006). Finally, the differences in meeting and greeting customs between the countries are also stark and gender discrimination is an integral issue. Showing physical proximity to women is considered to be inappropriate in the Saudi culture and men are not expected to kiss women in public. Two males are expected to greet each other by kissing on cheek in both the countries but same cannot be expected for women (Kwintessential, 2014b). Following Advertising Regulations in Saudi Arabia In order to make the advertisements of Chanel Mademosoille a successful venture we need to incorporate certain changes in the advertising campaign that has currently been projected. Researchers like Hirschman (1983) had pointed out that religious belief of Catholics, Jews and Protestants has been largely shaped their social behaviour and the way react to advertising. The conservativeness of the countries following Islam has resurfaced in the works of multiple scholars. For instance, the research conducted by Deng, Jivan and Hassan (1994) had shown that in Islamic countries both men and women are supposed to cover their torso and legs at all times. For women restrictions are highly stringent and exposing any part of the skin is considered to be an offence. In an insightful research conducted by Luqmani, Yavas and Quraeshi (1989) the appropriate advertising regulations in Saudi Arabia were explored in details and it was found that provocative or suggestive advertising in Saudi Arabia with revealing sexual content is considered to be distasteful for the society. Such advertisements results in alienation of the people from the brand message and they are unable to recall the brand resulting in its poor sales. A synthesis of the existing literature shows that there are multiple factors like religion, socio-cultural condition; consumer orientation and government controls are major factors which influence advertising standards (Boddewyn, 1991). It has also been found that the government has a strict control over the media and the kind of contents it wishes to display (Zirinski, 2005). Therefore, our company have to pull down the existing commercials showing physical proximity between the males and the females and eliminate the semi-nude contents from the photo shoot. Our company is however not the first one that has been placing problems in Saudi Arabia. Previously Reb’l Fleur perfume had also faced similar problems in the country when they had signed pop artist Rihanna for promoting their product. The advertisement had to be edited to respect the sentiment of the local body (Daghestani, 2013). Barton and Vaughan (1976 cited in Knabb, et al., 2011) had pointed out that religion imposes a strict difference on the gender roles in the society. Therefore, we think following the religious standard is likely to improve the brand message of Mademoiselle. By doing so we are expecting a massive change in the attitude of the people as it has been found that people tend to be responsive to advertisements which is associated with their culture. Behaviour during Meeting It will be extremely important for us to behave in a particular manner during the business meetings that does not violate the social norms, political beliefs and economic philosophy. We have to negotiate with our business partners in Saudi Arabia to deal with the present situation in hand. Based on our findings in the project, the following recommendations can be suggested to resolve the differences: Punctuality: Arabs are not very punctual but they value punctuality (Kwintessential, 2014b). On the other hand we are punctual so reaching the meeting venue on time is unlikely to be a problem. Mannerisms: It has been found that Arabs prefer eye contact while Britons avoids it. So in our case maintaining eye contact during the meetings is likely to be helpful (McDonald, et al., 2002). Dressing appropriately and minimal skin exposure is on our priority list. We also have to take care of the fact that if there are any women present in the business meeting then wearing long-skirts or preferably trousers are favourable as dresses shorter than the knee are completely unacceptable. Meeting and Greeting: In order to effectively resolve our issue we have to convince the Arabs that we are considering this meet as an important event. We have decided to schedule this meeting one month in advance as the Arabs has been found to be elaborate planers (Kwintessential, 2014a). During professional meetings men are expected to shake hands. Men can greet each other by kissing on cheek only if they are well acquainted to one another. In our case, hand shake is expected to be proper. Women are not supposed to greet men by any form of physical proximity. So this is to be avoided. Business Conflicts: Resolving the conflict regarding the advertisement campaign is the primary concern in our case. However, few points should be considered before handling the issue. For instance, the Arabs do not like to rush to business decisions. Their way of resolution of conflicts is also quite unique as they avoid confrontation. Therefore, building a long-lasting relationship with the clients would require us to adopt a collective stance and try to establish a non-professional contact with the clients first (Kwintessential, 2014a). Cultivating friendly relations, though not quite common in the U.K. (Kwintessential, 2014a), will be integral in Saudi Arabia. Communication: Transparent communication has been heralded as a key technique which resolves cross-cultural conflicts (Shoult, 2006). However, language is a key issue in our case as the official language of the country is Arabic and English is a secondary language. Speaking slowly and using short sentences can be helpful so that the people can fully comprehend our ideas. We will also explain that the initial campaign will be pulled out from the country and reshot completely. Exchange of gifts: Exchanging gifts during business meetings is a commonplace culture in Saudi Arabia and we are considering distributing gifts as a token of respect. However, we have ruled out giving controversial gifts like perfumes containing alcohol traces and gold jewellery (Kwintessential, 2014a). This is to show that we are not trying to bribe the business associates but showing them respect. Balancing professionalism: It has been observed that talking about personal lives before commencement of business meeting is not a very odd practice in Saudi Arabia (Moran, Abramson and Moran, 2014). We are expecting to build long-term relationship with our clients by interacting with them at a personal level before we move over to the basic point of our discussion. This is likely to be beneficial for our business. Following the above mentioned guidelines is expected to resolve our conflicts as we have already decided to remodel our basic campaign content. Conveying this message to the Arabs and showing them that we care about their cultural and religious beliefs can solve our current issues and help us conducting business in the host country. Reference List Boddewyn, J.J., 1991. Controlling sex and decency in advertising around the world. Journal of Advertising, 20(4), pp.25-35. Bosrock, M., 2014. United Kingdom -Cultural Etiquette -e Diplomat. [online] Available at: [Accessed 10 December 2014]. Daghestani, J., 2013. Marketing luxury western retail brands in the Middle East. [pdf] Kogod School of Business. Available at: [Accessed 10 December 2014]. Deng, S., Jivan, S. and Hassan, M.L., 1994. Advertising in Malaysia: a cultural perspective. International Journal of Advertising, 13(2), pp.153-66. Hirschman, E.C., 1983. Religious affiliation and consumption processes: an initial paradigm. Research in Marketing, 6, pp.131-170. Hoecklin, L.A., 2000. Managing cultural differences for competitive advantage. Chicago: Universities Press. Knabb, J.J., Vogt, R.G., Brickley, D. J. and Newgren, K.P., 2011. Personality typologies for conservative Christians in intensive marital therapy. Marriage & Family Review, 47(1), pp.23-44. Kwintessential, 2014a. Saudi Arabia - Language, culture, customs and etiquette. [online] Available at: [Accessed 10 December 2014]. Kwintessential, 2014b. Doing Business in the UK. [online] Available at: [Accessed 10 December 2014]. Li, H., 2012. Business in Saudi Arabia: Culture differences to watch for. [online] Available at: [Accessed 10 December 2014]. Luqmani, M., Yavas, U. and Quraeshi, Z., 1989. Advertising in Saudi Arabia: content and regulation. International Marketing Review, 6(1), pp.59-72. McDonald, F., Burton, F., Walton, P., Dowling, P. and Decieri, H., 2002. International business. London: Thomson Learning. Moran, R.T., Abramson, N.R. and Moran, S.V., 2014. Managing cultural differences. London: Routledge. Shoult, A., 2006. Doing business with Saudi Arabia. London: GMB Publishing Ltd. Zirinski, R., 2005. Ad hoc Arabism: advertising, culture and technology in Saudi Arabia. New York: Peter Lang. Read More