Monday, June 23, 2008

Insights on Global and Domestic Marketing

By Linda P. Morton

Global and domestic marketing varies considerably because people differ by countries.

As a result, marketing techniques require the use of national and cultural characteristics.

Using market segmentation to determine values, concerns, and attitudes of target market members requires market research specific to each nation and groups of people within each nation.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Targets Different Types of People

The market segment of the United States is dependent on many different factors, ranging from the demographics of the public to what the public needs, want and will buy. But information about USA publics doesn't apply in different nations.

Even with USA residents, culture differs by national origin. Yet, most USA residents have been somewhat assimilated into the USA culture. So differences intensify across borders.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Demographics Change Across Borders

Demographic segments vary across the world. For example, some characteristics for Generation Y in the USA may be similar worldwide, but most will be quite different.

The World War II generation in the USA was influenced by the second world war just like most people in the Western world. However, the influence of Pearl Harbor on the USA WWII generation was greater than for those in the rest of the world.

So building a marketing campaign on USA characteristics will not be effective in other nations.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Psychographic Segments Differ

Psychographic characteristics also differ by nations. For one reason, culture, morals, values and attitudes are learned within a society. Different nations develop different social pressures and expectations. They teach different values and attitudes within families and schools.

Every nation's culture differs so what is valued, expected, desired, and feared vary by nation.

Consider a change within USA attitudes. Not that long ago a man's wife and children were considered his property, and he had the right to abuse them in anyway that he saw fit. The USA and state governments didn't interfere. But that is not the case today. A man can be convicted for raping his wife, and children are frequently taken away from parents who abuse or even neglect them. But in some nations, a man still has the right to abuse his wife and children. Even murdering them is socially acceptable and legal in some nations.

So psychographic characteristics like attitudes, values, and concerns change drastically across borders.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Buying Behaviors Differ

Because each nation's economy is based and distributed differently, what people can afford and what they value enough to spend their money on changes across nations.

What people choose to buy results from many factors that are tied to their national experiences and culture.

Take grocery shopping as an example. In many prosperous European nations, people still buy fresh groceries from local markets and purchase every day for that day's meals.

In the USA, we don't buy groceries like that. Instead, we buy many processed foods weekly or monthly. We also eat lots of fast food although we know that most of it isn't as healthy as what we could cook at home. We just think we are too busy to spend lots of time shopping and cooking.

Surely, people in lots of other nations consider our food buying habits foolish.

So if we differ so much on something as basic as food, just think how our other buying habits differ.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Summary

Developing a marketing campaign for the people in one nation and trying to transfer that campaign to another nation doesn't work.

International marketing demands that a unique marketing program be created for each nation and that marketers know characteristics of the people in each nation.

Unfortunately, there is little systematic research being accumulated and shared with business owners about people in other nations. As the world gets smaller and the Internet gets larger, that has to change. We must do a better job of global and domestic marketing.

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