Introduction
The paper deals with international marketing topics which were covered throughout the semester. The paper will include a short description of each of the topics covered and the contributions made in the topics. The discussion will cover four main international marketing topics. International marketing involves creating awareness of an organization’s products or services in the international market.
Dimensions of culture
Chapter two of the course study dealt with consumer behaviour and culture. The chapter highlights the various values and cultures and their effect on international marketing. Dimensions of culture in the international marketing can be attributed to Geert Hofstede’s theory of the cultural dimension. The theory describes the effects of a society’s culture on the members’ values. The theory is applied in various instances, which include international communication, international negotiation, international management and international marketing. The presenter used the theory in discussing the concept of international marketing. The presenter used the theory in defining the national values in business, global branding, advertising strategy and consumer behaviour in international marketing. The presenter applied the various dimensions of culture such as nature, high and low context and dimensions of time in explaining the international marketing concept .
The main contributions made in the topic were the value concept and national culture in international marketing. The Hofstede’s model was also a major contribution towards the topic. It was important to show how cultural values would have an impact on the international marketing of products. The cultural values also help to explain the consumer behaviour. The presenter also made major contributions in explaining national cultures such as uncertainty and masculinity in influencing the market of a product. The emotional roles between genders influence the market of a commodity. There tends to be a high demand for some female commodities than the corresponding male commodities .
Country of origin
The main contribution towards the topic was explaining examples of how the country of origin effect has influenced the marketing of products in the international market. Japan, for example, is widely known for the manufacture of quality automobile industry. Additionally, Brazil is also known for the manufacture of automobile such as Honda motor vehicles. Motor vehicles, which are associated with the two countries have a higher demand in the international market than motor vehicles from other countries. The consumers have a perception that motor vehicles from the two countries are of high quality. The improved origin image of the motor vehicles creates international competitive advantage for the automobile companies in the two countries. Consumers also believe that quality perfumes such as Gucci are from U.S.A. This implies that perfume companies in United States will sell more products in the international market than other companies located in other countries .
Values and paradoxes in global marketing and advertising
Values and paradoxes in Global Marketing and Advertising were covered in chapter one and chapter three. Some of the international issues covered in the topic include globalization, global branding strategies, culture consequences in marketing communication aspects and classification models of culture. The topic shows the cultural effects on strategic issues such as brand positioning strategy and marketing communications strategy. In understanding how the cultural relationships can be extended from one region to another, the author uses the Hofstede model. It is evident from the topic that the performance of the brand in the international market will depend on the relevance of the product on the consumer’s mind .
The main contribution to the topic was explaining how the cultural differences influence the consumption patterns among consumers and the consumer behaviour. Consumer behaviour is influenced by the national culture. The consumer behaviour can also be explained by the consumer’s level of income and the business environment. Technology paradox was also a main contribution made on the topic. The argument was that technology would determine the type of marketing strategy to be used. The increased use of internet among many people across the world facilitates online marketing and advertising. The target population will also determine the means of advertising to use. Majority of the young people have access to internet services. This implies that it would be convenient for the companies targeting young generation to use online marketing .
Domestic consumer predispositions
The main contributions towards the topic were to explain how PEST (political, economic, social and political factors) analysis can be used in domestic customer predispositions. PEST analysis is an important tool when considering the peripheral nature of the domestic market. International marketing environment require an easy movement from purely domestic customers to international marketing. Additionally, the nature of competition in the domestic market will determine how the companies will compete in the international market. It is important to consider the political, economic, socio-cultural and technological factors in designing the marketing strategy . Companies should ensure that domestic customer’s satisfaction is achieved. This would play a crucial role in gaining competitive advantage in the international market .
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