WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: INTERNATIONAL MARKETER OR NOT! - PART 9 by Joan Marques
In fact everything represents the same basic principles, although some
issues may occur on a larger scale than others. Take communication: it's
important in a one-on-one session, it's crucial in an organizational
setting, and it can be determining in an international marketing scene. With
the issue of communication we actually touch on all points of essence in
successful business operations. It's simple: if the communication is clear,
the understanding is right, and there will be no or few mistakes made. If
the communication consists of a lot of noise, which is fundamental for
misunderstandings, connections will go bad, and huge financial losses can be
suffered consequentially.
In international marketing the value of clear communication comes into play
in at least 3 crucial instances:
1. When negotiations have to be made
2. When channels for distribution have to be formatted
3. When products need to be promoted.
In the first case, at the negotiation table, the issue of culture again
shows its broadly smiling face: understanding appropriate talking distances,
time-perceptions, and speed of getting down to business; creation of the
right business setting; approaching attitudes; the role of hierarchies, and
the general behaviors of counterparts is eminent. It is also important to
have a translator with you if you are not familiar with local slang. And
that translator should not be provided by your counterpart, of course! It is
further helpful if you understand that your counterpart probably studied
your culture just as much as you did his or hers, and thus knows how to get
the best out of you. Therefore: don't let yourself be maneuvered in an
awkward position, and don't fall for the traps they will surely try to build
in.
In the second case, distributing, you should be aware of the right way of
getting your product to the right place. And you should then realize that,
if you are not the first with that product in the new market, your
competitor will probably already have contracted the best available
distribution system. It may, hence, be up to you to find another distributor
that is trustworthy, that has a good reputation in this market, that knows
what is required to get your product going, and that has operated in this
market for a while. Sometimes an agent will do: that's a person or company
that represents you in that market, but doesn't take ownership over the
products. The distributor, on the other hand, purchases your products and
takes full risk of the product's performance after purchase. But whomever
you choose: make sure that the agreements are formulated well, because one
never knows what future developments may bring. Do not just establish
detailed agreements on establishing the relationship, or maintaining it, but
also on terminating it. That time may come when your product is already
established in the market and your distributor has moved on to new
challenges, showing less interest in your product line than he or she did
before.
In the last case, promotion, you should definitely find out first what
channels are available in this regard, and then: which ones are appropriate
for your product and the group of customers that is interested in it. Your
product may be of a nature that requires a push strategy, which entails
personal selling; or it may require a pull strategy, entailing the
well-known radio, television, and newspaper ads. Your customers may be of
the kind that like soft, sophisticated advertising, or the kind that like
their stuff to be presented in a funny, plain way. Every aspect has to be
taken into consideration. Then, with the available budget, you will have to
choose for the best alternative. Important to remark here is, that the way
you convey your message may or may not be standardized. Sometimes it works
to just go with standard ads. Especially when your product is as globally
known as Coca Cola or McDonalds. Sometimes you can get away with a campaign
that is similar or close to one executed in another market that is
psychologically close to this one. But sometimes you will have to set up an
entirely new campaign. It all depends.
And these are just simple illustrations of the importance of communication
in international marketing. As mentioned in the first part of this article:
it's a topic that is responsible for the rate of success at any level.
Without communication there can be no unification, and without unification
there is no power. Consider that before your next word to anyone.
Joan Marques, Burbank, November 1, 2003
---------------------------------------------------
Joan Marques, holds an MBA, is a doctoral candidate in Organizational
Leadership, and a university instructor in Business and Management in
Burbank, California. You may visit her web site at www.joanmarques.com
Joan's manual "Feel Good About Yourself," a six part series to get you over
the bumps in life and onto success, can be purchased and downloaded at:
http://www.non-books.com/FeelGoodSeries.html
More articles on BUSINESS-MANAGEMENT
Odds and Ends
If you believe...
The Definition of Success
How to contribute your two cents toward a happier workplace.
What a shame
Million Dollar Considerations - Part 1
What You Should Know: International Marketer or Not!
Insight - our most underrated talent
The Power of Planning
Some Comments on Leadership
Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough.
From All Sides Now.
What You Should Know: International Marketer or Not! - Part 9
Growing Older.
Useful One-liners.
214
|
|
|
|
