Marketing Final
Non-task Sounding
"Small talk: part of negotiation process; precedes task-related information exchange
Work Councils (aka Internal Labor Union Committees)
(in Europe) very involved in setting rules about compensation and other HR policies company wide, including sales people
Discuss how "decentering" is used to get an accurate translation of a questionnaire.
-A hybrid of back translation -A successive iteration process of translation and retranslation of a questionnaire, each time by a different translator -The two English versions are compared and where there are differences, the original English version is modified and the process is repeated -If there are differences between the 2 english versions, the original English version of the second iteration is modified and the process of back translation is repeated -The process continues to be repeated until an English version can be translated into French and back translated, by a different translator, into the same English -In this process, wording of the original instrument undergoes a change and the version that is finally used and "its translation has equally comprehensive and equivalent terminologies in both languages"
Someone once commented that advertising is America's greatest exports. Discuss.
-America was first to realize that advertising is a crucial element in the integrated marketing plan -Since the American "philosophy" of advertising has penetrated the foreign market, it is said to have been "exported" -Many of America's largest advertising agencies successfully operate in the foreign market -World advertising is generally patterned after the American advertising approach system
The measure of a competent researcher is the ability to utilize the most sophisticated and appropriate techniques and methods available within the limits of time, cost, and the present state of the art. Comment.
-Awareness that marketing research is not as sophisticated or as capable of providing info as most would like to believe -The researcher is faced oftentimes with severe limitations imposed by the foreign environment and and by is lack of complete understanding of the problems imposed by the environment -Limitations are important in that they may be greater that in domestic situations -Ability of research to provide adequate information -There are no special "foreign marketing techniques" to be applied -A FOREIGN MARKETING RESEARCHER MUST BE ABLE TO APPLY HIS REGULAR TECHNIQUES IN A CLEVER WAY
Describe the attributes of a person with good cultural skills.
-Communicate respect and convey verbally and nonverbally a positive regard and since interest in people and their culture -Tolerate ambiguity and cope with cultural differences and the frustration that frequently develops when things are different and circumstances change -Display empathy by understanding other people's needs and differences from their POV -Recognize and control SRC, that is, recognize their own culture and values as an influence on their perceptions, evaluations, and judgement in a situation -Laugh things off-a good sense of humor helps when frustration levels rise and things do not work as planned
Difference between Corporate Social Responsibility and Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility?
-Corporate Social Responsibility: in an organization's obligation to consider the interests of their customers, employees, shareholders, communities, and the ecology and to consider the social and environmental consequences of their actions -Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: by taking a strategic approach, companies can determine what activities they have the resources to devote to being socially responsible and can choose that which will strengthen their competitive advantage
Evaluate the three major sources of multinational personnel
-Expatriate: ethnocentric -Local nationals: polycentric -Third country nationals: geocentric/regiocentric
Discuss and give examples of why returning U.S. expatriates are often dissatisfied. How can the problems be overcome?
-Low morale -Atrrition-stagnation-parasis -Other companies are career related Individuals should know before leaving for the posting... 1. The importance of the foreign assignment 2. When to expect to return 3. At what level in the organization chart to return -MNC's should create a mentor program
What traits should potential candidates have
-Maturity -Emotional stability -Optimism -Flexibility -Empathy -Stamina
What is BATNA?
-Necessary skill for developing the best strategies to use at the bargaining table -The ability to identify a negotiator's best alternative to a negotiated agreement, is among on of the many pieces of information negotiators seek when formulating dealmaking and negotiation strategies
Outline some of the major problems confronting an international advertiser
-Of all the elements of the marketing mix, decisions involving advertising are the ones most often affected by cultural differences among country markets -Consumers reflect their culture, its style, feelings, value systems, attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions -Since advertising's function is to "interpret or translate the need/want satisfying qualities of product and services in terms of consumer needs, wants, desires, and aspirations", the emotional appeals, symbols, persuasive approaches and other characteristics of an advertisement must coincide with cultural norms to be effective -Reconciling international advertising and sales promotion effort with cultural uniqueness of markets is the challenge confronting the international or global marketer -Global advertiser is confronted with legal and tax considerations, language limitations, media limitation and product and cost limitations -Must all be dealt if a company is to have an effective advertisement
Why are questions the most useful persuasive tactic?
-Primary tactic in negotiation is gathering info -Finding out what the other side wants -Ask them WHY they need it delivered so quickly or HOW they came up with that price -When their answers are weak, they will be obligated to concede the point
"Concerns for career and family are the most frequently mentioned reasons for a manager to refuse a foreign assignment" Why?
-Regarding career: the most important career-related reservation is the fear that a two or three year absence will adversely affect opportunities for advancement -Regarding family: assuming that the career development question can be adequately answered with "prior proper planning", concern for the family may ultimately impede the acceptance of an assignment abroad (children's education, isolation from family and friends, proper health care, the potential for violence)
Discuss the problems created because the communications process is initiated in one cultural context and ends in another.
-The major problem here is that the encoder is one culture using one's own Self Reference Criterion (SRC) and the message decoded in another culture where the decoders are using their own SRC -The challenge is that the encoder needs to be certain that the message is being encoded in such a manner in which it is intended -Thus, cultural decoding misinterpretations can be avoided
Take each of the steps in the communications process and give an example of how culture differences can affect the final message received.
1. An information source: an international marketing executive with a product message to communicate 2. Encoding: the message from the source converted into effective symbolism for transmission to a receiver 3. A message channel: the sales and/or advertising media that convey the encoded message to the intended receiver 4. Decoding: the interpretation by the receiver of the symbolism transmitted from the information source 5. Receiver: consumer actions by those who receive the message are the target for the though transmitted 6: Feedback: information about the effectiveness of the message that flows from the receiver (the intended target) back to the information source for evaluation of the effectiveness of the process 7. Noise: uncontrollable and unpredictable competitive activities that detract from the process and affect any or all of the other six
International Marketing Research
1. Info must be communicated across cultural boundaries 2. Find way to apply research in new/different environment
Describe the kinds of problems that usually come up during international business negotiations.
1. Language: biggest problem, fluency helps, but even the best speakers of a second language have issues 2. Nonverbal behavior: important because negotiators tend to be unaware of this problem (when Brazilians interrupt Americans) 3. Values: Americans value frankness while Chinese value saving face 4. Thinking and Decision Making processes: Westerners tend to breakup a complex negotiation task into smaller parts (price, delivery, quantity, warranty) and settle each issue sequentially building up to an agreement. Asian negotiators tend to discuss issues in a more holistic way, not settling any one issue until the end when all issues are agreed to
What are integrated marketing communications composed of?
1. Sales Promotions: stimulate purchases, coupons, contests 2. Public Relations: good reputation 3. Advertising 4. Trade Shows 5. Personal Selling 6. Direct Selling
Explain why Americans spend so little time on non-task sound and Brazilians so much.
Americans depend on the legal system and a tightly written contract to settle future disputes. Brazilians cannot and do not depend on their legal system. Instead they depend on strong personal relationships, invested in ahead of time. Brazilians will not do business with someone they do no trust based on long acquaintance.
Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)
Collective arrangement of efforts and methods to sell a product/service, including advertising, sales promotions, trade shows, personal selling, direct selling, and PR
Secondary Data
Data collected by an independent agency or individual other than the firm conducting research; often useful in marketing research
Primary Data
Data collected, as in market research, specifically for a particular research project
Public Relations (PR)
Effort made by companies to create positive relationships with popular press and general media and to communicate messages to their publics, including customers, the general public, and government regulations
Sampling offers some major problems in market research. Discuss.
Example of sampling: getting opinions from a number of people -Several difficulties encountered in the process of taking samples and conducting field studies -Greatest problem: stems from the lack of adequate detail of universal characteristics and lists from which to draw meaningful samples -If current and reliable lists are not available, sampling becomes much more complex and generally less reliable -In many countries, telephone directories, cross-ndex street directories, census tract and block data, and detailed social and economic characteristics of the universe are not available on a current basis, if at all -Researcher then has to estimate characteristics and population parameters, sometimes with little basic data on which to build an accurate estimate -Some cities (South America, Mexico, Asia) street maps are unavailable -Some large metropolitan areas (Near East and Asia) streets are not identifies and houses are not numbered
Third-country nationals (TCNs)
Expatriates from one country working for a foreign company in a third country
Marketing Research
GATHERING RECORDING ANALYZING data to provide info useful to marketing decision making
Noise
Impairment to the communications process comprising external influences, such as competitive advertising, other sales personnel, and confusion at the "receiving end". Can disrupt any step in communication process and is generally beyond control of sender/receiver
Multicultural Research
Inquiry, analysis, and study of more than 2 countries/cultures that takes into account differences in language, econ structure, social structure, behavior, and attitude patterns
Stereotypes
International negotiations are not conducted between stereotypes -Negotiations are conducted between people -Cultural factors simply make a bigger difference
Describe three cultural differences in nonverbal behaviors and explain how they might cause problems in international business negotiations.
Interruptions, silence, and touching all vary across cultures. When Spaniards interrupt Americans, Americans often respond with anger. When Japanese go silent, Americans often respond with talk. So information tends to flow in only one direction, to the Japanese. When Americans don't touch Brazilians or Mexicans the seem "cold" and unfriendly.
Sales Promotions
Marketing activities that stimulate consumer purchases and improve retailer or middlemen effectiveness and cooperation
Expert Opinion
Method of market estimation in which experts are polled for their opinions about market size and growth rates; used particularly in foreign countries new to the market
Analogy
Method of market estimation that assumes that demand for a product
Decentering
Method of translation (variation of back translation) that is successive process of translation and retranslation of document each time by a different translator; 2 original-language versions are then compared, and if there are differences, PROCESS IS REPEATED until the second original-language version is the same as the first
Why is time an important consideration in international business negotiations? As anthropologist Edward Hall so eloquently points out, Americans are in a hurry.
Most foreigners know this and a common negotiation tactic is to "just make Americans wait--they always concede". Time constraints must be manipulated to one's advantage or consequences will be dire.
Separation Allowances
Payment of overseas premiums to employees who take on foreign assignments to travel without their families; generally compensate for all excess expenses and any tax differential
Expatriate
Person living away from his/her own country
Local Nationals
Persons living in their home country; more knowledgeable about country's business structure than an expatriate; less expensive to field and maintain; usually preferred by employers
Task-related Information Exchange
Point in the negotiation process at which non-task communication (non-task sounding) is completed and substantial negotiations begin including info about needs/preferences
Back Translation
Process in which document (ex: questionnaire) or phrase is translated from one language to another and then translated by a secondary party into the original language can be used to VERIFY THAT THE FIRST TRANSLATION HAS INTENDED MEANING FOR THE AUDIENCE
Research Process
Process of OBTAINING INFO; it should begin with a definition of the research problem and establishment of objectives, and proceed with an orderly approach to the collection and analysis of data
Registration
Process of bringing a local national back to his or her home country after assignment abroad
Discuss when qualitative research may be more effective than quantitative research.
Qualitative research is helpful in revealing the impact of SOCIO-CULTURAL factors o behavior patterns and DEVELOPING RESEARCH HYPOTHESES that can be tested in subsequent studies
Discuss the problems of gathering secondary data in foreign markets
The problems of gathering secondary data are: 1. The availability of detailed data on specific market areas 2. Reliability of the secondary data that is available 3. Comparability and currency of available data
Discuss the stages of the research process in relation to the problems encountered. Give examples.
The research program should include the following steps: 1. Define the research problem and establish research objectives 2. Determine the sources of information to fulfill the research objectives 3. Consider the costs and benefits of the research effort 4. Gather the relevant data from secondary and/or primary sources 5. Analyze, interpret, and present the results 6. Effectively communicate the results to decision maker
Triangulation
The use of multiple research methods as a way of producing more reliable EMPIRICAL DATA that is available from any single method
If "the language of international business is English", why is it important to develop a skill in a foreign languge?
There is need to develop a skill in foreign language. The reason is that when doing international business it is important to interact with people of different countries. True, some educated people in those countries know English but they are more comfortable when speaking their home language. They communicate better in their home language so it is important to develop skills in foreign language. From the perspective of international marketing foreign language skills are required to know the product preferences
Name 3 aspects of negotiation situations which might be manipulated before talks begin. Suggest how this might be done.
Time Location Number of parties
Parallel Translation
Two translators are used to make a back translation, results are compared, differences discussed, and more appropriate translation is used; ADDRESSES USE OF COMMON IDIOMS in the languages being translated
Invention In Negotiations
Use of create processes such as joint brainstorming in informal side-bar negotiations. Assumes collaborative approach to negotiations rather than competitive one. Assumes LT, mutually beneficial commercial and personal relations are goal of negotiation
