9/9/2012

BY: MOMINUL PLABON

GLOBAL MARKETING PROJECT

A case study of Bangladesh and Malaysia | Mominul Plabon

Executive Summary The following marketing plan forms the basis for introduction of a milk powder named Agora milk powder in two countries like Bangladesh and Malaysia. This study combines the selection of the countries based on their income level as the purpose of the study is to identify the distinctions of marketing strategies in developed, less developed and developing countries. During the analysis there are several remarkable trends found in two countries such as it seen developing countries have a large demand for foreign product while developed country have good level of self sufficiency. Furthermore, in developing country entry barriers are low as compared to developed country. The key opportunities found in Bangladesh are; a great demand of powder milk due the vast shortage of liquid milk production, low-cost labour force, increasing use of technology and so on. On the other hand, in Malaysia the social, economical and technological structure are very attractive for Agora milk powder while a few trade restrictions also exist. However, based on the analysis two different marketing strategies have been adopted with the reason that both country differ to each other in terms of their structure and culture. In this term, a careful design of the marketing mix have been considered for both countries so that Agora milk powder can be presented in way that the competitors find difficult to imitate. Key words: strategy, quality, market.

Table of Contents
1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Country Selection method ................................................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Bangladesh ....................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Malaysia ............................................................................................................................................................ 5 1.4 Industrial attractiveness assessment ................................................................................................................ 5 1.5 Key summary of analysis .................................................................................................................................. 8 2.1 Background ....................................................................................................................................................... 9 2.2 Political factors ................................................................................................................................................ 10 2.3 Economical factors .......................................................................................................................................... 11 2.4 Social Factors ................................................................................................................................................. 11 2.5 Technological factors ...................................................................................................................................... 13 2.6 Summary of the analysis ................................................................................................................................. 13 3.1 International Marketing Strategy ..................................................................................................................... 14 3.2 Segmentation .................................................................................................................................................. 14 3.2.1 Evaluation of segmentation .......................................................................................................................... 16 3.3 Target market .................................................................................................................................................. 16 3.3.1 Undifferentiated marketing strategy ............................................................................................................. 16 3.3.2 Concentrated marketing strategy ................................................................................................................. 17 3.4 Brand positioning ............................................................................................................................................ 17 3.5 Brand positioning in Malaysia and Bangladesh ............................................................................................... 17 3.5.1 Product strategy ........................................................................................................................................... 17 3.5.2 Price Strategy............................................................................................................................................... 18 3.5.3 Promotion Strategy ...................................................................................................................................... 19 3.5.4 Advertising concept ...................................................................................................................................... 20 3.5.5 Promotional mix ........................................................................................................................................... 20 3.6 Place strategy ................................................................................................................................................. 20 3.7 Entry mode ...................................................................................................................................................... 21 3.7.1 Export to local agents ................................................................................................................................... 22 3.7.1 Agent agreements ........................................................................................................................................ 22 3.7.2 Export risk .................................................................................................................................................... 22 4. Concluding Remarks ......................................................................................................................................... 23 References ............................................................................................................................................................ 24 Appendix ............................................................................................................................................................... 27

1. Introduction As a marketing manager of Agora Dairy Company based in UK, my project is about to market the companys high quality (halal) milk powder in two overseas markets. First of all, Agora powdered milk is high quality product which is frequently used to make desserts, tea, dairy foods, cakes, ice-cream and so on. Furthermore, powder milk is also considered as a substitute of liquid milk and a source of high protein and calcium for all aged people. Here, my focus on this project is to analyse the dairy industries of two selected countries and identify the opportunities there in order to market our companys product. However, in the first section of this report, I will analyse the industrial attractiveness of milk powder in two selected countries using General Electric matrix. In the second section, a brief summary of report will be given on the competitive structure, rivalry in the selected industries using the PESTEL framework. Furthermore, in the last section, I will propose marketing mix strategies for the chosen country based on the opportunities and threats found in part 1 and 2.

1.1 Country Selection method Choosing two appropriate countries for product marketing is a crucial part of this project. However, the following criteria have been considered to choose the appropriate countries for marketing the Agora powder milk (Paul, 2008:54) such as; Present income of the country (per-capita) Population rate Growth rate in income and population

1.2 Bangladesh With over 150,493,658 (150m) population, Bangladesh is located in South Asia. The country has had several remarkable economical growths in the last decades despite frequent natural and external shocks. The present income rate (GNI) of the country is $700 per capita (lower

income). From 1990 to 2010, the poverty rate declined from 57% to 31.5% which is an indication of gradual development. According to Central Intelligence Agency, the population growth rate of Bangladesh is now measured at 1.578% while the income growth rate of the country is at good condition such as from 2010-2011 periods the rate increased by 6% and it is expected that it will rise or remain same in 2012 (CIA, 2011).

1.3 Malaysia Malaysia is one of the growing economic countries with over 29,179, 952 (30m) population and located in South-eastern Asia (CIA, 2012). The present income rate (GNI) of the country is $8,420 per capita (upper middle income) and it is expected that the income rate will increase by 4% in 2012 (Worldbank, 2012: Tradineconomics: 2012). However, over the past decades the population growth rate of Malaysia fluctuated between 1.6% -1.7% and it is forecasted to remain same in the coming 2-3 years (Worldbank, 2012).

1.4 Industrial attractiveness assessment In order to assess the opportunity for Agora dairy products in the selected countries, first the definition of industry should be understood. According to Matson and Hardy (2004:264), Industry is a group of companies that compete for the same market, by offering products or services with similar functions to essentially the same pool of customers. In this term, my focus is to analyse the opportunity and market attractiveness for our products in Bangladeshi and Malaysian dairy industry. To analyse the opportunity in a particular industry, GE matrix is very helpful for understanding the current business strengths and the market attractiveness of the products or services in the particular industry (Proctor, 2000). However, an overview of the analysis is revealed below;

Product Strength Analysis Rating scale 1-9 (1=Extremely unattractive, 5=Industry average, 9= Extremely attractive Milk Powder Characteristics Quality Price Cost Base Brand Strength Profitability Total= (weight value) * The sum of the weightings assigned to the different factors are added up to 100% Weight 20% 20% 20% 20% 20% Rating (1-5) 9 9 8 8 8 Value 1.8 1.8 1.6 1.6 1.6 8.4

Table 1: Product Strengths analysis of Agora Powder milk

Opportunity in Bangladesh Rating scale 1-9 (1=Extremely unattractive, 5=Industry average, 9= Extremely attractive Dairy Industry Characteristics Overall market size Projected market growth rate projected profit margin Global Opportunity Opportunity to Differentiate Regulatory Regime Demand Patterns Entry Barriers Distribution Structure Total= (weight value) * The sum of the weightings assigned to the different factors are added up to 100% Weight 20% 20% 15% 10% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% Rating (1-5) 9 9 8 8 8 7 9 9 7 Value 1.8 1.8 1.2 0.8 0.4 0.35 0.45 0.45 0.35 7.6

Table 2: Industrial opportunity analysis in Bangladesh

Opportunity in Malaysia Rating scale 1-9 (1=Extremely unattractive, 5=Industry average, 9= Extremely attractive Dairy Industry Characteristics Overall market size Projected market growth rate projected profit margin Global Opportunity Opportunity to Differentiate Regulatory Regime Demand Patterns Entry Barriers Distribution Structure Total= (weight value) * The sum of the weightings assigned to the different factors are added up to 100% Weight 20% 20% 15% 10% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% Rating (1-5) 6 6 5 5 5 9 8 3 9 Value 1.2 1.2 0.75 0.5 0.25 0.45 0.4 0.15 0.45 5.35

Table 3: Industrial opportunity analysis in Malaysia

GE Matrix 9 High

Industry Attractiveness

6 Medium

Low

0 Low

3 Medium Product Strengths B= Bangladesh, M= Malaysia

6 High

Table 4: GE matrix grid, positioning the country according their market attractiveness level.

1.5 Key summary of analysis According to the GE matrix grid it can be seen that, Agora powder milk have potential opportunity in both Bangladesh and Malaysia but, ranking-wise Bangladeshi market looks more attractive than Malaysian market for the following reason; According to the dairy industry of Bangladesh, the potential market for Agora powder milk is very big while the country needs 7.227 million ton milk calculating 120ml per head (Iedap, 2012). With the 4.9 million of milking cows and 0.3 million of milking buffalo, the country is

producing only 2.686 million ton. Further 52 thousand ton milk is imported from aboard and there is still shortage of 3.91 million ton. According to the growth rate of population in Bangladesh, the potential market growth for milk consumers can be considered large and it will also continue increasing in the future as the population rises (fao, 2012). Bangladesh has high demand for the powder milk due the shortage of liquid milk production and the country has revealed a green signal to the foreign companies by reducing the entry barriers such as foreign investment in Bangladesh can be either 100% foreign owned or joint ventures. Furthermore, the import tariff for milk powder is set at 20% which is also a good indication for foreign products entry (fao, 2012). However, with total 30 million populations Malaysia is average attractive market for Agora powder milk. The country was heavily reliant on imported milk powder due to a vast shortage of production in liquid milk but now in the livestock sub-sector (milk production), they are achieving high growth (Fao, 2012). In line with many developing South Asian countries they are becoming more rigorous and strict on foreign investment whereas the entry barriers for foreign products are relatively high if Malaysia already has reputable position in that sector (WTO, 2011). Currently, it is seen that Malaysia is having stable financial and legal systems although not overly transparent, that support and encourage open trade. However, opportunities still exist; there are still prospects for UK brand milk powders which can be sold directly to the consumers. The Malaysian dairy industry is willing to import any source as long as the price is competitive and the quality is good.

2.1 Background From the industrial analysis it is found that Agora powder milk have a sizable market in both Bangladesh and Malaysia but, it is still unknown that what is the present environment of the country such as; how much suitable it is for Agora milk powder to enter in those selected country? Who are the potential customers for Agora? What business policies the countries

have right now? What are the structures of the country? How much competition exists in both countries? However, to analyse the macro-environment PEST analysis is very useful to identify the issues that create both business opportunity and threats in a host country (Meldrum and McDonald, 2007). There are four key elements of a country are assessed through PEST analysis, such as Political, Economical, Social and Technological (Meldrum and McDonald, 2007). An analysis of both countries condition is described below using the PESTEL framework.

2.2 Political factors According to Witcher and Chau (2010: 91), political matters concern the influence that government have on industries. One of the major notable trends in political situation of Malaysia is that the country is having a stable political environment compared to Bangladesh. Due to conflicts between several political parties, Bangladeshi government is facing difficulties to sustain stability in the country, and as a result several strikes and protests are taken place by different parties (BBC, 2012). However, Bangladeshi government is overcoming these barriers by implementing several rules and regulations and acting on its best to reduce the intensity. In addition, Business in Bangladesh can be carried out by a company incorporated locally or a company outside Bangladesh (bhclondon, 2012), while the tariff rates for imported goods such as dairy product (powdered milk) is comparatively lower than the other items (Worldbank, 2012: FAO, 2012). Furthermore, investment is welcome at all sectors of Bangladesh and there is no limit for equity share thus a foreign company can get the whole ownership of its business (Raa, 2010). On the other hand, there is comparatively stringent trade policy in Malaysia than Bangladesh as seen on the report of World Trade Organisation (WTO) such as any foreign investment or distribution service must be locally incorporated with 30% of equity reserved for bumiputera

(WTO, 2010). Although Malaysian government is welcoming foreign products with good quality but in reality the government is encouraging the foreign company only in the sector where products are produced in low amount by Malaysia and also import taxes are relatively high for those products (WTO, 2010).

2.3 Economical factors Before entering into a country it is crucial to analyse the economical condition of the country as depicted by Witcher and Chau (2010: 91) economic factors concern the cost-related matters for the organisation. The analysis includes the inspection of economic growth, exchange rate, GDP growth, purchasing power parity, GNP growth of a country. However, Malaysia has one of the strongest and fastest-growing economies in Southeast Asia. As concluded by Marshall Cavendish Corporation (2009), Since the federation of Malaysia gained independence from Great Britain in 1957, there has been significant structural change in the economy. Malaysia is an upper middle income level country with a great improvement of standard of living while it is the 30th largest economy in the world by purchasing power parity (CIA, 2012). The current growth rate of Malaysian national income is 4% which is 2% less than Bangladesh. Although, Bangladesh is a less developing country than Malaysia, comparatively it has satisfactory history of economical progression since 1996. The economic growth of the country increased by 6% every year accordingly from 1996-2011 and it is the 46th largest country according to their purchasing power parity (Worldbank, 2012: CIA, 2012). A great advantage of Bangladesh is its low-cost labour force which is a green signal for any foreign company that wants to distribute or market their products using the Bangladeshi labours.

2.4 Social Factors According to Henry (2008), Social factors include cultural changes within the environment and are often referred to as socio-cultural and it includes demographics, education, culture,

health and environmental consciousness of the population of the country. According to CIA (2012), Bangladesh is the 8th largest country of the world on the basis of population ranking and most of its people are Muslim. It is seen from the CIA report that most of its population are between 15-64 years (61% of the whole population) while between 1-14 years are the second largest group (34.3%) and the rest of the people are the elder generation. A major concern about the country is a significant percentage of the people live in the rural area while the level of poverty is high in the country (major income level people live in the city) Although, the milk consumption trends in urban and rural area may differ in Bangladesh but there has been a significant change in the trends since there is a rising concern of quality and safety as the population is receiving more education than before. Furthermore, a

growing health consciousness is also driving the people towards quality products while the media/TV channel plays a great role to fill the gap between concern and demand (such as people concern about the product they are using and they see advertisement on the TV about a better product thus it becomes their new demand). However, according to the major trends in the consumer behaviour in Bangladesh it is seen that foreign products like US and UK brands have a positive image among the consumers and they are not attached to a single brand while it changes as they find a better product, which is a great opportunity for Agora milk powder. On the other hand, there are significant structural and cultural changes seen in Malaysia while from every sector they are developing faster. Malaysia has a multicultural and multiracial population consisting of Malays, Chinese, Indians and numerous indigenous peoples (CIA, 2012). As a result of an outstanding literacy rate in Malaysia, the country has a growing concern for health and environmental issues and there is also a great need of high quality products. Competition is high within the country whereas, the powder milk market is heavily dominated by Nestle Malaysia, Dumex Malaysia, Dutch baby milk industries, New Zealand milk products (Ibp, 2010). The major trends seen in powder milk buying behaviour is that halal products have a high preference (Halal is something that is purely processed with maintaining the standard set by Muslim religion) while 60% of the

population are Muslim (Mida, 2012: CIA, 2012). Furthermore, poverty is reduced at a satisfactory level in Malaysia while only 3% of the population are below the poverty line. However, it is seen that both countries have a good rate of social development while the distinction can be seen above. Considering the factors it can be argued that Agora milk powder need to be presented in different ways in the selected countries because there is a large gap between the countries according to their development speed and purchasing power parity.

2.5 Technological factors According to William and Green (2007), technological factors involve changes in technology and advances in the process of production. As compared to Malaysia, Bangladesh has not been much developed in the technological sectors, for instance; Malaysia is on the way to a successful transformation from labour based industry to technology based industry (Jomo, 1999) while production process in Bangladesh is still heavily reliant on their labour force (Sillitoe, 2000). However, a good point is that almost 70% of the people in Bangladesh have access to media and television (Thedailystar, 2012), while the percentage of internet, mobile phone users in Bangladesh is rapidly increasing. This is an indication that advertisement thorough TV channel and online can reach a significant numbers of people in Bangladesh.

2.6 Summary of the analysis From the PEST analysis it is seen that both countries have opportunity and threats for agora milk powder. Compared to Bangladesh, Malaysia is more industrialised and fast developing country which creates several entry barriers to foreign companies. On the other hand, Bangladesh is less industrialised and less stable country which creates opportunities for foreign companies whereas the entry barriers are relatively low. In this stage, the product

marketing strategies for Agora powder milk need to be very sensitive and carefully considered so that the company can survive in those market (Proctor, 2000).

3.1 International Marketing Strategy A strong global marketing strategy combines a broader analysis of segmentation, targeting and positioning (Kleindl, 2007).

3.2 Segmentation According to Stone (2007), Segmentation involves and analysis of the nature and composition of a market to identify groups of potential buyers who have similar needs or characteristics, or display similar behaviour. In this term, the segmentation for Bangladesh and Malaysia are as follows;

Segmentation variables and breakdown for Bangladeshi and Malaysian market of Powder milk Main Dimension Variables Region Geographic Segmentation Density Climate Age Gender Demographic Segmentation Income Occupation Education Race Breakdowns (Bangladesh) Emphasis on Major Cities and Metropolitan area Urban All (east, west) 6-60 years old male and female all above 1500$ Housewives, Bachelors, student, officials Elementary 4th grade, High school and above Bangladeshi Breakdowns (Malaysia) Nationwide Everywhere All (east, west) 6-60 years old male and female all above 1500$ Housewives, Bachelors, student, officials Elementary 4th grade, High school and above Malay, Chinese, Indians and others

Personality

Brand conscious, inclined for differentiation, health conscious and quick maturation with foreign product

Brand conscious, inclined for differentiation and looking value for money product

Psychographic Segmentation Lifestyle Most of them are dependent on the head of the family (father/husband). Not very open society like western freedom of choice, cultural

communication benefitNutritional information on Bengali and English language information text of the origin of product Benefit Sought Behavioural Segmentation functional benefithealthier than liquid milk easy to process Perceptual benefitgood quality, competitive price UK brand, good looking Usage Rate User Status Loyalty Status Occasional (religious, cultural, officials), daily basis, weekly basis Non-user, regular user none, medium, strong

communication benefitNutritional information on Malay, English, Chinese and Indian language information text of the origin of the product Functional Benefiteasy to use healthy, quick disposable Perceptual Benefitgood quality, competitive price UK brand, good looking, standard size Occasional (religious, cultural, officials), daily basis, weekly basis Non-user, regular user none, medium, strong

Table 5: market segmentation for Agora milk powder in Bangladesh and Malaysia

3.2.1 Evaluation of segmentation As it seen on the table, the market segment in Bangladesh is different to Malaysia thus will require different marketing strategies for each country (Havaldar, 2005), because the structure and competition within the countries are different to each other.

3.3 Target market Targeting the potential market is consisted of the willingness of the marketer such as how many segments will be served in terms of the feasibility and acceptability of the segments (Havaldar, 2005). However, based on the segmentation Agora milk powder will adopt concentrated marketing strategy for Bangladesh on the basis of geographic segmentation this is because the purchasing power of the urban people is considered higher and for a UK brand product it will be hard to gain the attractiveness in the rural area (also it is found that, in technology sectors Bangladesh is still struggling thus it can be assumed that the transportation is not at satisfactory level between urban and rural area). On the other hand, country with high purchasing power parity like Malaysia needs an undifferentiated marketing strategy whereas the market will be considered as combination of all segments (Cant et al., 2009)

3.3.1 Undifferentiated marketing strategy With an undifferentiated marketing strategy the business choose to ignore the difference in the market (Cant et al., 2009). As it is found in the analysis part that Malaysia is a high economical growth country with satisfactory level of educated people, thus it can be assumed that the residents are aware of the brand image and quality of the products around

them. In this regard a carefully designed product for mass market can be considered at the initially stage of entry.

3.3.2 Concentrated marketing strategy According to Havaldar (2005), concentrated marketing focuses all the marketing efforts on a single or relatively few, carefully defined segment (s) in this term, the marketing strategy for Bangladesh will focus on the consumers based on the geographic areas such as the people who live in major cities.

3.4 Brand positioning Brand or product position is the crucial part of marketing such as product is designed and positioned based on considering the criteria that are needed to satisfy the target market (Cant et al., 2009). According to Havaldar (2005), positioning is how the firm wants its products to be perceived by the target customers on important attributes or benefits. However, product positioning strategy in Bangladesh and Malaysia includes the following steps;

3.5 Brand positioning in Malaysia and Bangladesh Agora milk powder has several objectives to achieve in Malaysian and Bangladeshi market from which the major objectives are; creating strong consumer awareness towards a new UK brand powder milk, to establish wide brand recognition through the capture of market shares in the powder milk industry and become the market penetrator in the particular segment through continuous advertisement and promotion. However, to achieve the objectives the following steps are crucial to success (Cant et al., 2009);

3.5.1 Product strategy As in Malaysia the product will be for mass market a careful design of the product is very essential in this stage. In contrast, agora milk powder in Bangladeshi market needs to be very presentable as it will be only available in the city area. The core function of Agora milk

powder is to satisfy the needs of the consumers as a substitute of liquid milk. Thus for Malaysian and Bangladeshi consumers the product will be designed according to the following chart;
Product Strategy in Malaysia and Bangladesh Packaging and labelling Branding easy to open and close, agora milk powder label, plastic box colourful but moderately, aspects of quality, square shaped, agora milk powder logo with modern font Agora milk Powder , an UK product high physical growth, energy, quick disposal, quality Arabic, Chinese, Indian, English and Malay calcium, mineral, GDA and so on Foods Dairy products Milk Powder milk easy to open and close, agora milk powder label, plastic box colourful but moderately, aspects of quality, square shaped, agora milk powder logo with modern font Agora milk Powder , an UK product high physical growth, energy, quick disposal, high quality, substitute of liquid milk English, Arabic and Bengali calcium, mineral, GDA and so on Foods Dairy products Milk Powder milk

Trade name Brand personality

Language Nutritional information Product class

Table 6: Product Strategy in Bangladesh and Malaysia.

3.5.2 Price Strategy The appropriate price for product is demanded by all levels of customers. For a competitive market like Malaysia the pricing strategy must be effective and sensitive otherwise the long term growth will not be achieved (Paley, 2006). In this term, Agora milk powder will initially follow the current market leader like Dumex Malaysia, Nestle Malaysia to give a choice to the potential consumers who perceive foreign products have high quality than local. This strategy is very effective such as Paley (2006), professes when launching new products, pricing strategies can range from skimming a market with high prices, penetrating with low prices or following the market leader. In contrast, pricing strategy for Bangladesh will be penetrating the market through slightly lowering the price than local market. This strategy is suitable for entering into Bangladeshi market whereas it will drive customers from two points such as low price versus foreign product.

3.5.3 Promotion Strategy According to Lawrence et al., (2008) promotion is the most exciting part of the marketing mix which covers personal selling, advertising, public relations and sales promotion. It is found in the analysis part that the culture, economy, structure, belief, idea, shared views vary in the selected countries so the promotion strategy will also vary as the same strategy cannot be viable for two countries (Paley, 2006).
Promotion Strategy for Malaysia and Bangladesh To create awareness among the milk consumers about the launch of UK brand powder milk Bangladesh "Agora milk powder is for all aged people and has been processed through highest standard of quality checks in UK" "choose the right product for healthy life" "give pure milk to your family" "every day healthy day" Malaysia " high quality product, price local but brand global"

Objective

Message

Concept

"think different" "smart people judge the difference"

TV Chanel Radio Chanel Magazine Media Selection Internet

BTV, ATN Bangla, Channel i, Desh TV etc. Radio Foorti, Radio today, Radio Amar National, Food related, Occasional Facebook marketing, banners on food related website official website: www.agoramilk.com Banner on the bus stand Billboard, large screen tv on the street

TV Chanel Radio Chanel Magazine Internet

TV3, NTV7, 8TV, TV9 etc. Klasik Nasional FM, One FM, Capital FM National, Food related, Occasional Facebook marketing, banners on food related website official website: www.agoramilk.com Banner on the bus stand Billboard, large screen TV on the street

Outdoors

Outdoors

Table 7: Promotion Strategy in Bangladesh and Malaysia Different types of media will be selected on the basis that the new generations consumers are not attached to a single media as their media preference is broadening day by day such

as there are about 2.8 million users of facebook in Bangladesh and 11 million in Malaysia (socialbakers, 2012).

3.5.4 Advertising concept The product presentation into consumers mind is a crucial part of brand positioning such as how the product will be presented in the major media like TV (Paley, 2006). In this regard, advertising in Bangladesh can focus on the difference between good quality products and poor quality products, health awareness related advertisement, different use of milk powder and so on. In contrast, for a mass market like Malaysia the product advertisement can combine continuous advertisement through big celebrities, renowned face. The advertising activities can also include arranging quiz show, talk show, cooking program on the television.

3.5.5 Promotional mix During a product launch it is very crucial to add promotional mix so that the consumers can be driven towards the product (Lawrence et al., 2008). It is argued that promotion of consumer products has great impact on the developing countries and it drives sales (Havaldar, 2006), so that promotional activities in Bangladesh can combine giving spoon free with each packet, collecting six stickers from the package and getting one free and so on.

3.6 Place strategy Agora milk powder will be distributed through shopping complex, super shop, and large size confectionaries in the major cities (Dhaka, Chittagong, Barisal, and Shylet) of Bangladesh. In Malaysia the product will be available in the super shops, medium sized confectionaries located nationwide.

3.7 Entry mode According to Jones (2009:8), international market entry modes refer to the methods of business organisation employed by companies to enter international markets for the purpose of undertaking value-creating activities. However, there are four effective entry modes available to Agora milk powder such as; Indirect exporting via export management companies, Direct exporting via foreign distributors and sales agents, licensing and joint ventures. Licensing and joint venture is suitable for the company who wants to produce the product abroad (Jones, 2009), while at the initial stage Agora milk powder will keep its manufacturing and production process in UK and choose to directly export the product to the local agents in Malaysia and Bangladesh. The benefits of distributing the product through local agents are; The avoidance of the recruitment, training and payroll cost of the employees to enter into overseas market Agents are well placed to identify and exploit opportunities Agents have a good relationships with the potential buyers and for a new company like us it will take longer Agents have clear understanding of the competitions Using an agent allows to maintain more control over matters such as final price and brand image compared to distributor. Quick and easy to reach the target market compared to finding and selling to end users.

3.7.1 Export to local agents In this stage the sales representative team will visit the market in the selected countries and choose the agents on the basis of their expertise. The agents will be given the exclusivity so that the concentration can be given on only Agora milk powder thus they will represent Agora milk powder in the foreign country on behalf of the company. Furthermore, this

strategy will be beneficial for Agora milk powder as there can be greater control over the marketing mix (Andexer, 2008). However, there some export related problem exist such as which need to be taken into account before exporting the product into foreign market such as;

3.7.1 Agent agreements The agreement between exporter and agents are crucial to success (Andexer, 2008). In this stage, the agreements will be clearly stated using legal documentary and the issues will be stated like; the commission rate, pricing strategy, promotional activities, liabilities of both parties, payment terms, agreement period, exclusivity, clear descriptions of products, intellectual property and so on (Andexer, 2008).

3.7.2 Export risk There are certain export risk exist such as logistical, financial, political, exchange rate and so on. The quality of trade logistics, particularly port logistics, has an enormous impact on trade (UN, 2012). In analysis part, it found that the Malaysia have good structure overall such as the port infrastructure and transportation process is as a satisfactory level while

Bangladesh have a less favourable structure. In this stage, the careful consideration for exporting to these countries includes (Andexer, 2008); Choosing the right method of shipping i.e. by road, by sea, by air, by rail Analysing the potential shipment risk Contracting with logistics insurance company Payment method and exchange rate and so on.

4. Concluding Remarks An attempt has been made in this study to analyse the potential market of Agora milk powder in two selected countries (Malysia and Bangladesh) and to offer the product in terms of opportunities and threats found in the selected countries. The major notable trends found in the analysis that both countries have certain level of risk and opportunities for foreign company such as in Bangladesh the opportunities for foreign product is high whereas the infrastructure of the country is relatively poor. In contrast, the opportunities for foreign product are comparatively low in Malaysia whereas the infrastructure of the country is ideal for doing business. However, considering the threats and opportunities two different marketing strategies have been adopted so that each strategy suits the market in terms of the consumer behaviour of the countries. In this way, Agora powder milk can position itself in the selected country to achieve a long term growth.

References: Andexer, T. (2008). Analysis and Evaluation of Market Entry Modes into the Asia-Pacific Region. GRIN Verlag. Cant, M. C., Strydom, J. W., Jooste, P. J. and Plesis, D. Marketing Management. 5 th edition. Juta and company limited. Henry, A. (2008). Understanding Strategic Management. Oxford University Press. Ibp USA (2010). Malaysia business and Investment Opportunities yearbook. 6th edition. International Business Publications. Jomo, K. S. (1999). Industrial Technology Development in Malaysia: Industry and Firm Studies. Volume 22. Routledge Studies in the Growth Economics of Asia. Jones, M. (2009). Internationalisation, Entrepreneurship and the smaller Firm: Evidence from Around the world. Edward Elgar Publishing. Lawrence, J., Gitaman and McDaniel, C. (2008). 4th edition. Cengage Learning. Marshall Cavendish Corporation. (2009). World and its people: Eastern and Southern Asia. Vol. 9. Marshall Cavendish. Meldrum, M. and McDonald, M. (2007). Marketing in a nutshell: Key Concepts for NonSpecialists. Butterworth- Heinemann. Matson, B. and Hardy, M. R. (2004). Data Driven Investing: Professional Edition. Cognition Capital Management. Paley, N. (2006). The Managers Guide to Competitive Marketing Strategies. 3rd edition. Thorogood Publishing. Paul, J. (2008). International Marketing: Text and Cases. Tata McGraw-Hill. Proctor, T. (2000). Strategic Marketing: An Introduction. (2010). Routledge. Raa, T. T. (2010). Input- Output Economics: theory and Application: Featuring Asian Economics. World Scientific.

Sillitoe, P. (2000). Indigenous knowledge development in Bangladesh: present and future. Intermediate Technology.

Stone, M. (2007). Fundamentals of Markets: A Critical Evaluation. Taylor and Francis. United Nations (2010). Impact of Trade Facilitation Mechanism on Export

Competitiveness: A Regional Perspective. Volume 66 of Studies in Trade and Investment. United Nations Publications. Williams, T and Green, A. (1997). The Business Approach to Training. Gower Publishing.

Web Reference: AGTR, ILRI: Development of Mafriwal dairy cattle of Malaysia. Available from: <http://agtr.ilri.cgiar.org/agtrweb/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=89&It emid=106> [accessed August 2012] Bangladesh Profile: Available from <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia12651483> [accessed August 2012] Bangladesh High Commission in London. Available from: <http://www.bhclondon.org.uk/> [accessed August 2012] Central Intelligence Agency: The world Factbook of Malaysia. Available from: <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/my.html> [Accessed August 2012].

Central Intelligence Agency: The world Factbook of Bangladesh. Available from: <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bg.html> [Accessed August 2012]

Food and Agriculture organisation: Developing countries and the global dairy sector part 2, the country case study. Available from:

<http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/programmes/en/pplpi/docarc/wp31.pdf> [accessed August 2012] Malaysia Profile: Available from:<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific15356257> [accessed August 2012] Malaysian Investment Development Authority: Industries in Malaysia. Available from:<http://www.mida.gov.my/env3/index.php?page=food-industries> [Accessed August 2012] The daily Star: The TV user number in Bangladesh, Volume 3 issue 6. Available from:<http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2010/june/TV.htm> [accessed August 2012] United State Trade Representative: Malaysian Trade. Available from: <http://www.ustr.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/reports/2010/NTE/2010_NTE_Malaysi a_final.pdf> [accessed August 2012] World Trade Organisation: Malaysia and WTO. Available from: <http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/countries_e/malaysia_e.htm> [Accessed August 2012].

Appendix: CIA at a glance The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an independent US Government agency responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior US policymakers. CIA is mostly renowned because it holds the overall Geographic, demographic, economic, Defence information of every country thus it is a very reliable source of data bank. World Bank at a Glance Established in 1944, the World Bank is headquartered in Washington, D. C. and have more than 9000 employees in more than 100 offices worldwide. In general sense Worldbank is not a bank like others but a unique organisation with the aim of reducing poverty and supporting development. Worldbank is also considered as a valid and reliable source of data about different countries while most of the data are updated constantly.