Wednesday, June 25, 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.

To market globally well, you must learn characteristics of the people in each nation and culture. The best way is through market segmentation.

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.

It's difficult enough to market across cultures within the USA, but the difficulty intensifies when marketing across nations.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Demographic Characteristics Vary By Nation and Culture

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.

If a business plans one campaign for the world around characteristics for USA markets, the campaign will fail in the rest of the world.

Global and Domestic Marketing: USA Psychographic Characteristics Don't Cross Borders

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.

This illustrates that many nationally specific events, beliefs and culture form the personalities of people. So personality characteristics must differ nation to nation.

Global and Domestic Marketing: People's Buying Preferences Vary

Each nation's economic well-being influences buying habits of its citizens.

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

Buying differences apply to basic needs as much as they do to discretionary products. In many nations, people buy groceries a day at a time from local markets.

But in the USA, we buy from large chains that freeze, can, dehydrate and process in other ways so that food lasts for a long time. Then we buy at least enough for a week at a time, and some people buy for a month at a time. We think shopping everyday would be a terrible inconvenience and that we are just too busy with our careers and family to spend that much time buying groceries.

People in some nations probably think that USA residents have their priorities messed up to avoid spending their time buying and preparing fresh, healthy foods.

This example illustrates that buying habits for even the most fundamental products differ across nations.

Global and Domestic Marketing: Synopsis

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

To effectively market internationally, unique marketing campaigns must be developed for each nation. But first marketers and business owners must learn about the people in the targeted nation.

In order for businesses in all nations to improve their business and national economies, the world needs to share specific characteristics that cause people to respond to marketing campaigns differently. When that happens global and domestic marketing opportunities will become more equal.

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