International marketing - Dissertation Example

?Methodology Introduction: While conducting surveys or doing a research every researcher engages in some sort of an organized procedure with which the survey or research is conducted known as a methodology. It can be regarded as a document for managing the projects “that contains procedures, definitions and explanations of techniques employed for collecting, storing and analyzing the content as part of the research process” so as to deduce conclusion accordingly. The said topic is of prime concern for today’s international businesses which is clearly evident from the above delineated theoretical background. Sensing the need to determine the impact of cultural differences, the researcher chose the topic for further in-depth study so as to figure out other issues of significant importance for the success of today’s businesses. Methodology adopted: A scientist, in order to study or investigate the concerned topic, resorts to the appropriate approach to deduce results. Thomas Kuhn brought forth the concept of “paradigm” with the purpose of exhibiting and representing individual’s “value, judgments, norms, standards, frames of reference, perspectives, ideologies, myths, theories, and approved procedures” that mould their behavior and action (Gummesson, 2000). There are two types of research methods; a qualitative research and a quantitative research. essential distinctions between qualitative method; data is presented in the form of text and pictorial forms and is interpreted as such; and quantitative methods; data is represented in the form of numbers which are interpreted through statistical methods (Axinn, 2006). The quantitative method is used to help in the comparison by using statistical aggregation (Patton 2002). On the other hand, a qualitative approach is best for assisting the researcher in investigating deep into the topic by producing w rich knowledge about it (Patton, 2002). The researcher has used the qualitative method, as the sole purpose of this research is to explore more facts and gain thorough understanding of the various facets that impact it. This approach is typically used when conducting an explanatory research. From among the various qualitative techniques, the approach employed by the researcher to study the said topic is an “interpretive approach”. The main focus of an interpretive approach is on processes which help in surfacing up the meanings and negotiating them (Schwandt, 1999). Interpretive approach focuses on the individual and uses one of among several qualitative data collection techniques and analysis processes. This approach further branch out into several other approaches, having different views (Alvesson and Skoldberg, 2000; Lindlof, 1995). The one used in this research is Hermeneutic; which according to Martin and Sugarman (2001) is an approach which “moves beyond both scientism and social constructionist, accepting the self-interpreting nature of humans within their social-cultural context, but not reducing them completely to these origins”. Hermeneutics can be considered as an approach which enables the researcher to further explore the meaning of the desired topic so as to get an in-depth understanding of it (Alvesson & Skoldberg, 2000). This approach is subjective and uses more personal qualitative techniques. It focuses more on comprehending the situation involved and analysis of qualitative data (Gummesson, 2000). According to Patton (2002), the qualitative data can be collected by means of interviews; structured or semi structured; documents and observations. For this research, data was collected by conducting semi structured interviews. This technique was employed owing to the fact that the research so far done in this area has data and results that have certainly become outdated. Thus to emanate more latest information from within the concerned industries so that it could be useful for further study and exploration, interviews were done which would yield rather up to date and more interesting facts. These interviews have helped the researcher in comprehending the topic in a more organized and better way by throwing light on the real life vital issues and problems as faced by people. Research Approach: From among the various categories of research approach, there is one another approach known as inductive and deductive. Deduction is defined as “the deriving of a conclusion by reasoning” (Merriam-Webster, 2008) whereas Induction is about “inference of generalized conclusion from particular instances” (Merriam-Webster, 2008). This research has employed the inductive approach which can be regarded as “a road of discovery” where the researcher first focuses on the empirical part and then later bind it with the theoretical part (Andersen, 1998). In this research the researcher has used by induction by using the secondary data, his observation, interviews and research. The collected information later helped the researcher to draw on his own conclusion about the subject. Research Strategy: From among the several research designs used for the purpose of research; cross-sectional, longitudinal and retrospective type, the one used for this research purpose is a cross-sectional approach in which data is collected over several variables at just one point in time. According to Collins (2009), a cross-sectional research method is one “which investigates variables or a group of subjects in different contexts over the same period of time”. The data for this research has been taken from several industries having offshore operations and then from the compiled data similarities and differences, with respect to the difficulties suffered by the concerned people in conducting international marketing, are sorted out to focus on the pertinent information. Data collection method: There are generally two types of data; primary data and secondary data. Primary data is first hand data collected through, for example, interviews, questionnaires, observations, discussions. Secondary data is the data which is obtained from secondary sources that is from already established data such as documents, newspapers, literature reviews, articles etc. (Andersen, 1998). The theoretical data has been collected from various sources which include relevant articles, books, literature reviews to develop understanding of the topic and have a firm grasp over it. For primary data, semi structured interviews were taken. Semi Structured Interviews: Semi structured interviews are qualitative in nature in which the respondents are given freedom to discuss the concerned topic in depth. However it is the interviewer who decides the direction of the interview. The interviewer has some open ended questions with him. During the discussion some more questions arise which are then answered by the interviewee to further clear the fog for clear visibility of the topic. The semi structured interview is more like a conversation which the questions are molded accordingly as the interview proceeds. The researcher resorted to this form of interviewing rather than a structured one to bring about more issues while discussing a topic so that unexplored issues are brought up on the surface thus enabling to better comprehend the topic. Being its explanatory nature, such interviews significantly helped researcher to extract more of the knowledge based on the subject’s understanding and experience and understand the topic appropriately. Despite the option of questionnaires, which would have been way easier in terms of their dissemination and collection of wide amount of data, the interview technique helped the researcher to get the quality out of the subjects rather than merely focusing on quantity. The interviews help the individual in developing a positive rapport between the two so that the interviewee also shows interest in the discussion and participate effectively in it. The semi structured interview also exhibit higher validity than any other technique because the interviewee gets the chance of speaking about the topic with more freedom and focus more appropriately on the main issues. Then the problem of pre-judgment is also solved as the researcher can later mould his questions during the interview. However semi structured interviews also have some drawbacks which might limit the success of the research if not taken care of; conducting an interviews requires special skills to extract the required knowledge from the pool. Since interview is generally conducted in person with the interviewee, unconscious cues by the interviewer may bias the respondent’s answers. Conducting interviews is extremely time consuming and expensive. Moreover it becomes difficult to generalize the answers as respondents usually answer question according to their free will. Despite these disadvantages, the semi structured technique has been employed owing to its relevance and importance for explanatory nature of the research. This research has focused on small business enterprises for giving their point of views on the said topic. These businesses have similarities as well as differences in certain areas of concern. To tackle with the existing difference, semi structured interview was indeed the best possible way for data collection. The questions discussed by the interviewer are given in Appendix 1. The topic was same for each of the respondent. However it was left on the interviewee to explore the facet he deemed relevant to his business. Before starting the interview it was pertinent, for the success of collecting relevant and reliable information, to do some background search of the concerned enterprise thus revealing the difficulties they had to face on their road of progress as well as the success factors. This was essential as it was obvious that if left on the owner of the business, it is more likely that he will give biased answers which will corrupt the research. On the basis of this primary research were questions developed which served as a guideline for the interviewer during the interview. The respondents had the autonomy of discussing and pointing out factors, other than those evident from the questions asked by the interviewee, which seemed important yet relevant to the topic. One important factor that was essentially taken care of for this research was that language used was easy and the questions were so phrased so that they can be easily comprehended by the interviewee thus helping them to speak their mind about the relevant topic. Also the environment in which interview was conducted was essentially relaxed and the interview started with a positive note inquiring the respondents about their business, employees etc and then moved on to more complicated and demanding questions. It is the rule of conducting interviews that initially easy and relaxed questions should be put forward so that a rapport is established between the two. Once the interviewee feels comfortable and has set up his tempo of answering, more complex questions can be asked from them. The interviewee is in such a way better able to deal with razor shaped questions. One drawback of interview is that if not noted instantly, answers merely relied upon memory may lead to biasness which corrupts the research. In order to tackle with this problem, the researcher used a recorder along with taking short notes so that chances of memory based answers leading to biasness could be ruled out. However, before using the recorder every respondent was informed about it. After the interview both the recorded material and the short notes helped in jotting down the answers of each respondent appropriately. The answers were then critically analyzed and results derived so that knowledge about the concerned topic could be enhanced. Sampling: Judgmental sampling has been used for locating the sample for study. This type of sampling is “similar to snowball sampling as the participants are selected by the researcher on the strength of their experience of the phenomenon understudy. However, in judgmental sampling the researcher makes the decision prior to the commencement of the survey and does not pursue other contacts that may arise during the course of the study.” (Collis et al 2009, p.213) Three samples have been sorted out for interview purpose. The samples have business operations abroad and thus can be a significant source of knowledge for the said topic. Location: The location for conducting the interview was selected according to the suitability asserted by the interviewee. This was to make them comfortable so that interviews are conducted more efficiently and effectively. Method of Analysis: While the interviews were conducted, it was being recorded as well as noted so as to rule out any possibility of biasness. Results and Analysis: This part of research holds one of the most important information on which the hold research is based upon. The results of three major interviews which were conducted from three respondents are mentioned here along with the analysis of those results. Merely giving out results of interviews would not be much effective until an in-depth analysis has been done so that the reader gets a thorough understanding of the topic comprehend the results. This particular part entails the major support material of the topic thus explaining the major cultural factors that affect the international marketing of their products. The interviews will be looked upon separately along with their analysis. Each interview started with necessary demographic information such as age, gender and nationality. This was essential as it bears strong weight in determining the marketing behavior. Moreover nationality explicitly helps in determining the cultural barriers one may faced when working in other part of the globe. Than the other questions which give an insight into the topic were: The type of business being operated Difference in marketing practices from one country to another Factors affecting international marketing Role of culture in international marketing Marketing strategies for their products The major cultural factors that affect their marketing strategies and how they deal with these issues If the company consider culture a challenge for them How do they overcome this challenge The important factors which results in successful international marketing The sample that the researcher took had a varied demographic. The first respondent was a female, aged 25 bearing Lebanese nationality and working as a Product manager. The company she was working in was a manufacturer of personal care brands having presence in several parts of the world. The second respondent was another female aged 41 having Lebanese nationality and working as a Business manager (Fashion Division). The company she works in is an exclusive franchise which represents a platform for many other reputable brands for the Levant region. The last respondent was a male aged 25 having Chinese as nationality and was serving his company as an international sales representative. The company he works for is into trading of products for satisfying the demand of its foreign customers. From the above description it is evident that the selected sample holds such a position in the company that they were certainly able to respond effectively to the researcher’s questions thus helping in exploring more facts about the topic concerned. Results: This section details out the answers of each respondent and an analysis along with it. Later a combine analysis is done to throw light on the few important factors resulting in further understanding of the concerned topic. 1. Difference in marketing practices from one country to another As per the first respondent, selling and communication were the two essential pillars for the successful marketing in other countries. Analysis: As already explained in the literature review, it is a matter of fact that every country has its own communication pattern. For the success of an international business there is a strong need of focusing on relationship development that is “an integrated effort to identify, build up and maintain a network of relationships with employees, inter-organizational partners and customers for mutual benefit” which significantly require a well thought integrated communication strategy (Shani & Chalasani, 1992; Morgan & Hunt, 1994). Thus success of Mc Donald’s working in over 115 countries simultaneously can be taken as an example of it modification of selling and communication techniques to effectively communicate with its various stakeholders. Owing to the importance of relationship building among various stakeholders with varied cultural background, comprehending the role of communication is essential for any company with international business (Heide & John, 1992; Inkepen 1997; Voss & Voss, 1997). The intercultural barriers can be effectively removed by imporved and adapted and selling process accordingly because if not it leads to the widening of gap between the two culturally different parties thus affecting the rapport of the company, personal bonding and log term compatibility which in turn can badly impact the marketing efforts of the company (Tjosvold, 1991, 1993) thus it becomes essentially significant for any company to first analyze the communication pattern of the country it wants to work in and then build the relationship by appropriate communication channel and thus communication. According to the second respondent, they have well established guidelines for conducting marketing in varied countries, however, owing to the fact that culture varies these guidelines are modified accordingly. Analysis: Adaptation to cultural differences across countries is essential for the success of any business. As evident from the above literature, countries significantly vary in the culture they possess. Not realizing this fact may lead to serious mistakes thus damaging the image of the company. According to Lipman (1988) focusing on standardized marketing leads to bankruptcy. Owing to the cultural and other differences across countries, resorting to just one marketing strategy will “scare off customers, alienate employees and blind the company to customer’s needs”. Culture being the most significant difference should be given considerable importance so that marketing strategies are modified according to it. Doing this is essential to meet the peculiar needs of target market (Yip, 1989; Koudelova & Whitelock, 2001; Laroche, 2001; Pae, 2001; Harris & Attour, 2003; Cho & Cheon, 2005). The third respondent claimed that they are not a multinational company that is their office is just based in their own country and from their deal with their operations world wide. Factors affecting international marketing All the three respondents were of the view that there are several factors which varies across countries such as culture, language, gestures, resource capability and their adaptation is certainly essential so that one can effectively proceed with their operations. Analysis: Every marketer confronts entirely new or slightly changed macro-environmental factors when enter a different country. Despite the intensity of change, they have to deal with the constraints posed by language, climate, race, topography, occupations, taste, culture etc (Czinkota & Ronkainen, 1998). A survey conducted by Mathew Jester (2008) revealed that companies having offshore operations confront with several cultural, language, varied habits barrier that pose a strong challenge for them. One of the respondent in the survey, Wing Lam, a sales executive in at Marswell stated that “there is not only a significant difference between West and east, but also within the south and east Asian countries like China, Japan and India”. From among the marketing mix, promotional messages employed by the company must consider varied cultural differences across countries (Roger & Blythe, 2002). These differences predominantly include dissimilarity in “language, habits, expressions gestures, ideologies etc.” for example in US the “round sign made with the thumb and the first finger means okay” whereas in Mediterranean countries it means “worst”. Similarly in Tunisia it means “I’ll kill you” and in Japan it implies money (Kurtz, 2008). Role of culture in international marketing The entire three respondents had a unanimous view that culture being varied across countries does affect the marketing efforts of the companies. They believe that every population has its own set of characteristics. Without recognizing this fact and merely adhering to the standardized ideology will certainly be damaging for the concerned companies as they won’t be able to respond to their target market’s needs and demands effectively. Analysis: Every country owns a rich culture which is strongly held by its natives. Any company in its attempt to operate in international market needs to identify several factors that significantly affect his business strategies among which culture is deemed as the most important issue that must be dealt with utmost attention and considerable care and delicacy. The globalization concept and offshore business operations has significantly bridged various nations and cultures but at the same time highlighted vital dissimilarities between nations on the “level of communities, individual and organization” (Murdoch, 1990). Two basic principles as identified by Richard R. Gesteland (2000), are: “In international business the seller is expected to adapt to the buyer. In international business the visitor is expected to observe local customs”. These ironic facts essentially determine the basis of operations for the companies working in diverse cultures and thus help in devising out appropriate strategies. Thus it becomes evident, as also responded by the interviewees and the literature, that for finalizing the international transactions companies need to adapt to the cultural differences of the concerned countries and form such operational structures which are essentially distinct from the domestic market (Kania, 2010). Marketing strategies for their products As per the first respondent, the marketing strategies employed for their products are innovation, creativity and uniqueness. “Thinking out of the box” essentially appeals the customers because they are always looking for new and effective ways of satisfying the product. Even if the product is same, marketing it in a peculiar way helps in buying the interest and thus final purchase by the potential customers. Whereas the second respondent believes that being a marketer of various exclusive brands, the marketing strategies depend on each brand being marketed. This is because each brand has its own characteristics and must be dealt with accordingly. Analysis: Because of the accelerated competition in almost every field, it has become vital for the business to distinct itself from others by means of “something different yet attractive”. This something different is what we call innovation or creativity. Strategy scholars believe that possessing dynamic and versatile capabilities assist the managers to “adapt, integrate, and deploy physical, human or organizational capital to achieve alignment” with the demanding change in the business environment and to successfully cope with the ever increasing competition (Barney, 1991; Teece, Pisano & Shuen, 1997). There is a dire need of “breakthrough strategies” that aid in redifing the business scope and giving a new picture of target market. These are based on the rule of developing and bringing forth a unique position that adheres to the changing environment (Markides, 1996). Thus it is evident that creative and unique marketing strategies are essential to maintain this alignment. The major cultural factors that affect their marketing strategies and how they deal with these issues The first respondent believes that two major cultural factors they need looked at before devising their marketing strategies are language and religion. The other respondents are also of the view that language certainly plays a crucial role while employing marketing strategies. Something extraordinary won’t be of any use for the company if it is unable to position itself in the minds of the potential customers. Analysis: As explained earlier language is a barrier in effective marketing of any product. Though English is considered as a universal language, yet there are dozens of countries where people are unaware of this language and thus can’t use the products that they don’t understand merely because the language being used for its marketing is alien for them. This could severely impede the performance of the company. With regard to the religion, it also imposes several restrictions on the company as religious views differ from one another on different issues. thus without realizing this fact, any marketing strategy employed can offend one religious group while it might be most entertaining and captivating for the other. If the company consider culture a challenge for them The two respondents believe in the fact that culture can be viewed as a challenge depending on the nature of the market. This is because there might be slight differences between the local culture and the culture the company is contemplating to work in. in such a situation, slight cultural differences can be easily dealt with very little or no modification required. However, when dealing with cultures with high degree of variance from the local culture, it certainly becomes a challenge for the company because any wrong step could damage its position forever. Analysis: A lot of discussion has already been done relating to the challenges posed by the cultural differences. Thus for any company considering to move out in other countries should first engage in research to gather information about the culture it is deeming to work in so that marketing strategies are devised accordingly ruling out any chance of mistake. The other respondent believes that cultural differences should not be looked as a challenge rather than opportunities. Analysis: There are certain parts of the market that remain overlooked thus leaving their needs and demands unsatisfied. Such a group can be an opportunity for the companies by developing such products and marketing in such a way that helps in generating huge profits. Taking this concept forward in the context of cultural differences, manufacturing products for different culture based people can significantly reap fruits provided their needs are not being met by any other product or this new product betters serves their needs. How do they overcome this challenge The respondents believe that cultural challenge can be effectively worked out by first studying and analyzing the consumer behaviors and the prevalent traditions. Analysis: Culture has an influence on the behavior of individual through its manifestations; “values, heroes, rituals and symbols: (Hofstede, 1997, Peter & Olson, 1998). thus keeping in mind this fact, it is essential for any business to study the behavior of its customers as they are the reflection of the culture they live in. doing so will help them in overcoming any hurdles of working in a different environment. The important factors which results in successful international marketing As per the two interviewees, flexibility and thorough market study in which it is contemplating to move in is basics for successful international marketing. The other interviewee asserts that properly utilizing the resource capability of the host country is what will make the business successful in the international context. Analysis: Certainly thorough study of the market, its various factors is essential before moving into. As already discussed, every country possess specific characteristics that must be acknowledged. Thus an in-depth analysis of these varied characteristics would certainly help the company in devising such strategies which captivates the potential market and ultimately results in placing itself as an exclusive brand. Recommendations: There are certain limitations with the research conducted some of them are the qualitative nature of the research methodology. According to Andersen (1998), the conclusions inferred are strictly based on ones own observations and experiences. It is not always certain that what one observed and experienced is the ultimate truth and thus cannot be generalized. Moreover the semi structured technique for gathering data also has certain weaknesses as discussed above. Thus to work out these limitations, it is proposed that for future study some quantitative data is also looked for so that the uncertainty factor can be ruled out. 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Sylwester Marek Kania, (2010), “The Role of Cultural Differences in Forming a Business Strategy”. Journal of Intercultural Management Vol. 2, No. 2, November 2010, pp. 16–25 Read More