International Marketing 2008 examination questions End-of-chapter questions for discussion (S.

Hollensen 2007) Chapter 1: 3 Chapter 2: 1,3 Chapter 3: 1,3 Chapter 5: 1,3,4 Chapter 7: 2,3,5,6 Chapter 8: 1,3,5 Chapter 9: 1 Chapter 10: 1,5,8 Chapter 11: 1,3 Chapter 12: 2,5 Chapter 13: 1 Chapter 14: 5,6,9,11,14 Chapter 15: 1,6 Chapter 16: 1,2,5,6 Chapter 17: 1,2,3,5 Chapter 18: 1

Chapter 1 Question 3 What are the main differences between global marketing and marketing in domestic context? Global marketing is defined as the firms commitment to coordinate its marketing activities across national boundaries in order to find and satisfy global customers needs better than the competition. This implies that the firm is able to : Develop a global marketing strategy, based on similarities and differences between markets Exploit the knowledge of the headquarters through worldwide diffusion and adoptions Transfer knowledge and best practices from and of its markets and use them in other international markets If you are going global, you have to adapt to each market, and look at differences in cultures, laws and expectations in each country. Just look at McDonald and what they did before entering into Iran. Chapter 2 Question 1 Export motives can be classified as reactive or proactive. Give examples of each group of export motives. How would you prioritise these motives? Can you think of motives other than those mentioned in the chapter? What are they? Proactive motives represents stimuli to attemot strategy change cased on the firs interest in exploiting unique competences (special technology knowledge) or market possibilities

Reactive motives indicate that the firm reacts to pressures or threats in its home market or foreign markets and adjusts passively to them by changing its activities over time. Proactive motives Profit and growth goals Managerial urge Technological competence/unique product Foreign market opportunities/market information Economies of scale Tax benefits

Reactive motives Competitive pressures Domestic market: small and saturated Overproduction/excess capacity Unsolicited foreign markets Extend sales of seasonal products Proximity to international customers/psychological distance

Question 3 Discuss the most critical barriers to the process of exporting Forsmann et al, found that the three most important triggers for starting up operations internationally were as follows Management interest in internationalization Foreign enquiries about the companies products/ service Inadequate demand in the home market Laws and regulations Cost of going abroad (investments cost) culture lack of productive capacity lack of distribution channels lack of foreign market connections

Chapter 3 Question 1 Explain why internationalization is an ongoing process in constant need of evaluation? The internationalization process where a lot of information needs to be processed has different dimensions such as foreign operation methods, Sales object, markets, organizational structure, finance and personal skills. These are in constant need of evaluation as the dimensions are variable and interdependent on each other. Question 3 What are meant by the concept of psychological or psychic distance Psychic distance is defined in terms of factors such as differences in language , culture and political systems witch disturbs the flow of information between the firm and the market. Chapter 5 Question 1 Explore the reasons for using a marketing information system in the international market. What are the main types of information you would expect to use?

The role of an international market research is primarily to act as an aid to the decision maker. It is a tool that can help to reduce the risk in decision making caused by the environmental uncertainties and lack of knowledge in international markets. (Page 154) In global marketing research both internal (firm-specific) and external (market) data are needed. Besides the split between internal and external data, the two major sources of information are primary data and secondary data. If we combine the split of internal/external data with primary/secondary data, it is possible to place data in four categories. (Page 155)

Question 3 What are the dangers of translating questionnaires (which have been designed for one country) for use in a multycountry study? How would you avoid these dangers? The impact of language and culture is of particular importance when wording questions. The goal for the global marketing researcher should be to ensure that the potential for misunderstandings and misinterpretations of spoken or written words is minimized. Both language and cultural differences make this issue an extremely sensitive one in the global marketing research process. (Page 169) The obvious solution of having questionnaires prepared or reviewed by someone fluent in the language of the country is frequently overlooked. On order to find possible translation errors marketers can use the technique of back translation, where the questionnaire is translated from one language to another, and then back again into the original language. (Page 171) Question 4

Identify and classify the major groups of factors that must be taken into account when conducting a foreign market research. Market research is an expensive process and therefore preparing it on international level requires from the researcher to take into consideration a number of factors. Is the data needed for the company operation and what are the alternative sources of obtaining it? Can certain information be obtained through secondary sources which are less expensive? The issue of reliability of data is the source credible or is there a chance that they were some how altered for certain purposes of the organization who collected it. We should know who and why collected certain data, what was the methodology and wheatear they are in line with other sources Statistical accuracy was the sample on which the data was collected a representative so the notion can be expanded to whole population? Classification of data it may be too roughly aggregated to be useful on micro level. Comparability of the data one should be aware of the specifics of national statistics and definitions which may differ from those on other markets, eg the definition of supermarket or urban area. Cultural biases important while conducting secondary research certain topics will not be discussed with strangers, language barriers, educational level etc. Chapter 7 Question 2 According to Hofstede and Hall, Asians are (a) more group oriented (b) more family oriented and (c) more concerned with social status. How might such orientations affect the way you market your product to Asian consumers? Cultural aspects still play the great role in the way a company approaches its clients on different markets. The strategy is a compromise of those various and very subtle factors. In case of Asian cultures, group orientation means that the marketing communication on a particular product should emphasize that by buying a particular product a person will reach higher level of integration with the group, more harmony. The benefits to whole group should be in focus, rather than those of an individual. For contrast in Western culture the fact that the product makes its owner a unique person would be far more effective.

Family orientation is easier to tackle as there are more family concerned groups in all markets. However, the marketer should now how the family orientation is expressed and what it means to an individual to use it properly in the communication. The great concern with social status also plays a vital role a consumer will not buy a product even if it is affordable if they think it is not proper for their status. The implication for the multinational company is that it should very precisely determine the target group and design the communication in way that does not cause a discomfort to a consumer. If it is needed, there should be slightly altered products with different communications for different segments. Question 3 missing Question 5 What layers of culture have the strongest influence on business peoples behaviour? (page 219) We can distinguish between 4 different layers of culture that can be viewed from a nesting perspective. The national culture determines the values that influence business/industry culture, which then determines the culture of the individual company that influences the individual behaviour of a decision maker. From this perspective one can see that all the layers influence business people. They were brought up in their national culture and it is already ingrained in theirbehaviour. The business/ industry culture and the culture of the individual company are a kind of modification/ add-on to the national culture. Especially when it comes to business people it is the business culture that has the most impact on the way they behave when conducting businesses. Business/ industry culture is very much related to a branch of industry, and this culture of business behaviour is and ethics is similar across borders this is what makes it easier to conduct cross- border business and there fore influences business peoples behaviour in situations of conducting businesses with other companies from a given industry. Business peoples behaviour is also highly influenced by the company that they work for culture. This culture is a kind of functional culture and is expressed through the shared values, beliefs, meanings and behaviours of the members of a function with in an organization (e.g. marketing, finance, shipping, purchasing, top management). Question 6 The focus of the chapter has mainly been the influence of culture on international marketing strategies. Try also to discuss the potential influences of marketing on cultures. (this one is actually an open question because there was nothing explicitly about it in the chapter )

It is not only culture that is influencing marketing projects but also marketing that makes an impact on the way culture is developing. International brands have a huge impact on the consumer behaviour and culture. For instance, the arrival of McDonalds and KFC in Asian countries has actually impacted the eating habits of the population - especially the youth. Soft drinks like Coke and Pepsi have almost wiped out local players. Resulting in an obese population that will in the next 30 to 40 years suffer dearly of this intake of produced foods and fats, diseases of the heart and arteries, strokes etc. Our CULTURE of eating has therefore been completely turned upside down. MORE IDEAS: corporate-led globalization and the effect s of large corporations like Nike, WalMart, Disney etc. on how we perceive the world around us. Other idea: you can speak about Social Marketing planning, execution and evaluation of programmes to influence the voluntary behaviour of target audiences in order to improve their personal welfare ( e.g. encouraging people to give up smoking) Chapter 8 Question 1, 3, 5 missing Chapter 9 Question 1 missing Chapter 10 Question 1, 5, - missing Question 8 The focus of the chapter has mainly been the influence of culture on international marketing strategies. Try also to discuss the potential influences of marketing on cultures. (this one is actually an open question because there was nothing explicitly about it in the chapter ) It is not only culture that is influencing marketing projects but also marketing that makes an impact on the way culture is developing. International brands have a huge impact on the consumer behaviour and culture. For instance, the arrival of McDonalds and KFC in Asian countries has actually impacted the eating habits of the population - especially the youth. Soft drinks like Coke and Pepsi have almost wiped out local players. Resulting in an obese population that will in the next 30 to 40 years suffer dearly of this intake of produced foods and fats, diseases of the heart and arteries, strokes etc. Our CULTURE of eating has therefore been completely turned upside down. MORE IDEAS: corporate-led globalization and the effect s of large corporations like Nike, WalMart, Disney etc. on how we perceive the world around us.

Other idea: you can speak about Social Marketing planning, execution and evaluation of programmes to influence the voluntary behaviour of target audiences in order to improve their personal welfare ( e.g. encouraging people to give up smoking) Chapter 11 Question 1 Why are joint ventures preferred by host countries as an entry strategy for foreign firms? Reasons for setting up a joint venture Complementary technology or management skills provided by the partners can lead to new opportunities in existing sectors Many firms find that partners in the host country can increase the speed of market entry Many less developed countries, such as China and south Korea try to restrict foreign ownership Global operations in R&D and production are prohibitively expensive but are necessary to achieve competitive advantage

Joint ventures are formed because of variety of reasons, entering new markets, reducing manufacturing costs and developing and diffusing new technologies rapidly. To accelerate product introduction and to overcome legal and trade barriers expeditiously Contract manufacturing enables the firm to have foreign sourcing without making final commitment. Question 3 Under what circumstances should franchising be considered? How do these circumstances vary from those leading to licensing. Franchising = to be free from servitude To types of franchising 1. Product and trade name franchising. This is very similar to trade mark licensing. Typically is a distrubution system in which suppliers make contracts with the dealers to buy or sell product lines. Dealers use the trade name trade mark and product line. Examples are coca cola and Pepsi. 2. Business format package franchising. The package can contain the following items. Trade mark trade names Copyrights Designs Patens

Trade secrets Business know how Geographic exclusivity Design of the store Market research for the area Location selection

Franchise systems combine the advantages from economy of scale offered by the franchisor with the local knowledge and entrepreneutial talents of the franchisee Chapter 12 Question 2 What are a firms major motives in deciding to establish manufacturing facilities in a foreign country? To save costs as: Labour Raw materials Transport (especially if a manufacturing company is located in the proximity to buyers) To avoid government restrictions