Global Marketing Strategies for Nokia - Essay Example

GLOBAL MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR NOKIA Product: Nokia Smart Phones Countries of interest South Africa, Chile Nokia is a multinational telecommunications company that specializes in information technology and mobile devices. In the current day and age, the company stands out as one of the most recognizable faces and reliable brands in the world today. It is due to their dominance in the mobile phone and technology company since the company has wide range of networks that spread across the globe (Dittrich & Duysters, 2007). It would be proper to mention and note that the company has had a history of other aspects and instances. Conventionally, it is fair to mention and assert that the company Nokia has seen a series and a raft of improvements in the recent past. It is the reason as to why they have continued to enjoy steady stream of growth and increase in the amount of revenue in their finances. It goes without saying that the company has enjoyed the near monopoly status on the global front (Häikiö & Virtanen, 2002).This paper will thus discuss the impact and growth of the Nokia Company as a single source from Finland to the external markets such as South Africa and Chile as prime exporting destinations of the mobile devices. The paper will also focus on the proper exporting mechanisms and techniques that Nokia as a Finnish company would penetrate and enter the Chilean and South African country (Kent, 2007). As much as the marketing team of the Nokia Company has strived to do its best in the recent past, there are other drafts of measures of in terms of global marketing that the company could explore for better growth. It stems from the fact that each and every country has a different market dimension and set up thus care and attention must be allocated to the various countries in a different way (Andersson & Wictor, 2003). In brief, this analysis will discuss the market topography and spectrum of the various countries with the feasible chances of penetration by Nokia, the company. South Africa South Africa is one of the most promising countries in the world in the form of a market because of the following outlined issues such as a viable economic environment (Myers, 2002). It is one of the emerging democracies in the African continent which has recorded good prospects of economic viability and growth in the recent as compared with other African nations such as Somalia (Myers, 2002). It is so because the country has one of the most diverse compositions of people with different tastes in electronic gadgets and devices (Clarke, 1996). South Africa in its structure and population has one of the most diverse societal spectrums in the world, being a country that is geographically and strategically placed as an entry market (Marais, 2001). This is so since South Africa has good ports and harbors which would make exports in the form of shipments easy to process in terms of clearance of import tax. Secondly, it is a viable entry point because it has one of the longest coastlines thus the harbors and ports are many meaning Nokia smart phones from Finland could access the South African market with ease. One of the things that set South Africa apart from other countries in the world is the huge population it has. Specifically, the country has a population of fifty-three million people in a geographical radius and location of two thousand seven hundred and ninety-eight square kilometers. It is important to note and mention that South Africa is one of the most celebrated democracies in the world. Thus, to some degree and extent there is the aspect of freedom for business and economic incentives (Dittrich & Duysters, 2007). South Africa has in the recent past from a third world country to a middle income earner with some level of industrial income and incentives (Deininger & Squire, 1996). By all aspects and fairness, South Africa stands out as one of the most prime countries for venturing and expansion that could prove proper for Nokia Company. The government has relaxed rules that would otherwise injure foreign investments that are the category where Nokia as an investment company would have faced (Zedtwitz & Gassmann, 2002). There are no investment curtailment or business restrictions such as hiked taxes on foreign businesses that may discourage the prospects of Nokia Company from making returns or profit in South Africa. The government of South Africa has also made realistic steps and measures to fight and tackle corruption that would be a significant impediment to investment and subsequent penetration of Nokia as a company (Schienstock, 2007). In the conventional wisdom and sense, the range of ages that forms the bulk of electronic gadget customers are the youths. South Africa has a high number of young people who would form part of the Nokia market (Marais, 2001). This logic and argument implies that products and services that Nokia as a Company would present to the market would not miss market. Similarly, the cultural disposition of South Africans, whereby they are receptive to electronic and fun gadgets implies that Nokia as a prospective investor could exploit this opening by capitalizing on the culture of expediency (Deininger & Squire, 1996). Therefore, there is some high likelihood that Nokia as a company will make returns because the culture of the South Africans is receptive to this line of thought and respect (Schienstock, 2007). In principle, the population size and the composition of the South African population itself give Nokia as an investor has viable chance of making a prudent business entry into the South African market. Another merit and advantage that South Africa has as an investment destination is that it enjoys good bilateral relations with Finland that is the home destination of Nokia (Crawford & Fiorentino, 2005). The bilateral relations are good and imply that the goods and products that come from Finland would have an easy access to the South African market without any embargoes or economic restrictions (Crawford & Fiorentino, 2005). The good bilateral relations stems from Geneva treaty which articulated good business and economic engagements between countries. South Africa and Geneva are both signatories of the treaty implying that they abide by the rules of economic mutuality. In brief, it implies that goods from South Africa could have easy access to Finnish market while at the same time the products such as Nokia from Finland would be sold in South Africa. Therefore, there is a prime opportunity where we as the global marketers of Nokia Company could bank on and build up (Crawford & Fiorentino, 2005). Thus, Nokia as a Company must consider all these prospects and possibilities before we formulate a strategy to enter, penetrate and dominate the South African market. Appropriate methods of penetrating the South Africa in form of marketing strategies It would be proper to apply the Hofstede data and cultural analysis such as the uncertainty avoidance, masculinity against femininity which outlines relationship between men and women. Similarly, there is the notion of individualism versus collectivism whereby the national culture of South Africans tend to flow in unison. This is to say that the collective patterns or behaviors determines the consumption patterns (Hofstede, 2002). This brings to the fore issues of global branding, analysis of consumer behavior and the advertising strategy that would be employed by Nokia to effectively export into South Africa. It would be proper so that the customer base have an operational center where it would answer the questions of the users and clients in subsequent periods (Dittrich & Duysters, 2007). It is a mode of having direct customer relations where the staff of the company would answer strict questions about the smartphones of Nokia. In principle, it is my guided belief and notion that having unique stores of Nokia smartphones would make it easier to establish the brand name maintain the exquisite image of Nokia as a company. It is also genuine and valid because Nokia as a Company has used this means and avenue in other countries where it has recorded good results. Therefore, there is no reason as to why the same method as a mode of market penetration would not work (Dittrich & Duysters, 2007). As a matter of fact and practice, this shops or chain store would serve as the operational headquarters where the spares and phones of the company would be found. As earlier stipulated and articulated, the product placement by Nokia Company ought to focus on the youths who lie in the ages of fifteen to forty years for maximum returns. It is necessitated by the fact that young people are accessible market for smartphones. In any case there is a prospect of a new product in the market; one is sure to ascertain that the youths would be quick to buy them. In principle, Nokia could export a large consignment of mobile phones to areas where the population of youths is high such as the mid-level colleges and university (Dittrich & Duysters, 2007). Subsequently, the Nokia could penetrate the South African market by branding the image of the product along with the people who are regarded as national heroes by the society. One good example is the rugby team of South Africa which has obviously caused ripples and done a lot in the sporting arena globally (Zedtwitz & Gassmann, 2002). Thus, if Nokia could sponsor the team, it would make the program to be home driven where the South Africans themselves would find some levels of ownership of the products. It may be true that Nokia has a reputable global image, name and brand philosophy, however, the same scenario may not be exactly and particularly true in the country of South Africa. Thus, it would be safe for Nokia to incorporate the national darlings as the brand ambassadors of the Nokia mobile phones so as to sell and attract the emotional wellness of the society. Intuitively, the iconic tune of Nokia mobile phones must be coupled with an equal change in the face of the mobile phones that the company will introduce to the market. It is coupled with the fact that other mobile phone producing companies have also upped their games and are producing smartphones with over the top applications (Häikiö & Virtanen, 2002). It calls for Nokia to remain relevant by producing better and more appealing smartphones so as to keep adrift with the general market players. The smart phones that are by all means and aspects the faces and representation of the future trends are sure to attract the younger generation of buyers. At the same time, the older generation would be attracted to the age-old features of Nokia phones such as the long span of batteries, strength of the gadgets and the ease to find spares of quality reputation in case of fault. As a matter of fact and principle, it would be articulate for the company to enter the market in a double faceted manner where the old generation is covered while the younger markets are also covered (Häikiö & Virtanen, 2002). This double channelled approach would ensure that all generations of the market are covered thus there would be some degree of inclusivity. In brief, this method of entry is aimed at attracting both sectors of the markets. This is so that there is no conflict of attention where the elderly would feel left out of the digital spring that the youths would have introduced. Chile Chile is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world with a human head count population, specifically, seventeen million and six hundred thousand people (Melamed & Sumner, 2011). Chile has economic disparities where the gap between the rich and the poor is wide. If the total of the purchasing power based on personal disposable income is anything to go by. As a matter of fact and principle, there are all races and people from all walks of life in the country, from the rich, the poor, the young and the elderly(Scharl, Dickinger & Murphy, 2005). A critical focus and attention would be the rich who are of mixed descent with a little population of the Mapuche Indians who are the natives, about half a million. Youths also form a significant composition of the population of Chile. Empirical evidence and records point to the direction that Chile is one of the prime importers and consumers of electronic and mobile devices (Scharl, Dickinger & Murphy, 2005). In brief, the relative high population in the country gives Nokia a good competitive edge of selling its products to the country. In the recent past, Chile has also recorded good prospects and chances of growing its economy from a maturing democracy to a mature or bigger economic country. It has been enabled and necessitated by the fact that the government has introduced economic stimulus package and program that serves as an equalization program to cover the inequalities that there may be (Järvensivu & Törnroos, 2010). Secondly, the business environment is friendly in Chile implying that foreign investments and interests would be safe to do business there. The taxation regime and import duty levied against foreign firms, and businesses are minimal and thus Nokia could survive as a foreign investor in Chile (Järvensivu & Törnroos, 2010). As far as the cultural disposition and practices are concerned, Chileans are generally receptive and have no prejudices or biases against any foreign practices or products. If the products that Nokia Company would be selling would meet the expectations of the Chilean markets, then there is no any religious or cultural impediment that may hinder the products from being sold (Melamed & Sumner, 2011). On the same light, Chile as a society has managed to rid out corruption from its midst therefore implying that Nokia would not have to worry about ineptitude or corrupt business environment. It is to mention that the cultural business environment is permissive and receptive to the Finnish based market. Appropriate methods of penetrating Chile in form of marketing strategies Given the economic spectrum and the business environment in Chile it would be prudent to have a good plan of entering the market that would minimize any risk on Nokia relative to making losses. Thus, in order to minimize risk, it would be prudent to export the Nokia smartphones to Chile (Gabrielsson & Gabrielsson, 2003). It would imply that Nokia would just present already made smartphones to the market. It implies that we would not have any Nokia store where we would assemble the phones. Instead, we would just sell the smartphones to the youths and market by extension. As a matter of fact and principle, the fact that business environment in Chile is favorable implies that there would be other competitors in the market (Gabrielsson & Gabrielsson, 2003). It implies that it would be important to minimize the risks by engaging a lot of resources. Therefore, it would be critical that Nokia Company exports already finished products with a view to covering the competition from others. Exporting would be a boost since Chile is a signatory of the World Trade Association implying that there would no import tariffs or barriers that would impede the prospects of investment in the Chilean market (Chesbrough, 2006). The exports ought to be centered on the youth market while at the same time the classic models of the phone should be directed to the elderly who may find it useful for and appropriate for their ages. Given that the Chilean society has rich people, it would be proper if Nokia custom made smartphones specifically for the rich so as to absorb them into their system. It can be done through heavy advertisement such as online marketing and advertisement since the rich people have a relatively fair access to internet. Thus, when they order for the smart version of the Nokia phones, they could be shipped to them. Cheaper manual phones could also be availed to the poorer market by banking on the quality and strength of the Nokia smartphones. It is a double approach where the high end of the market population would have smartphones that would be custom made to cater to their needs. Similarly, Chile is one of the most respected technological hubs of the world. Thus, it would be proper to earnest their expertise and talent. For instance, in the recent past, Microsoft has acquired Nokia and all its products (Kent, 2007). Thus, the tender to develop the operating systems could be done by the locals. In principle, this implies that the Chileans or the software programmers could design the operating systems of the phones so as to fit the exact cultural and religious aspects of the Chileans. Chile being a developed country, it is imperative to assert that there are some degree and level of competition from business rivals (Andersson & Wictor, 2003). In order to win a market share, Nokia Company could use its economies of scale by reducing price levels that would act as an incentive to attract buyers (Kotler & Armstrong, 2010). Chileans are rational customers where they prefer more for less thus they would prefer to have Nokia phones with smart features over a less level of price. Comparison and Conclusion between the Modes and methods of entry into the two countries The basic strategies of entry in the two countries have several similarities based on the analysis of the prevailing economic conditions of the market. However, there is a critical distinction that ought to be considered when considering the entry modes and conditions of these two countries (Chesbrough, 2006). In Chile, for instance, it would be prudent to exploit the talent and technological ability of the people while at the same time sell the products. South Africa, on the other hand, would not require exploring the same option since the citizens of South Africa may not have the same technological expertise. Secondly, the development standards and records of Chile implies that there may stiff competition from other business rivals who may also demand a share of the market. 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