International Marketing (mid ex)
bbq65b20a06
ipptchap004.pptxCultural Dynamics in Assessing Global Markets
Chapter 4
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Copyright © 2013 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Learning Objectives
LO1 The importance of culture to an international marketer
LO2 The origins of culture
LO3 The elements of culture
LO4 The impact of cultural borrowing
LO5 The strategy of planned change and its
consequences
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Culture’s Pervasive Impact
Culture influences every part of our lives
Cultures impact on birth rates
Birthrates have implications for sellers of diapers, toys, schools, and colleges
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Culture is a very important part of international marketing, it affects us from the time we wake up in the morning till we go to bed and even while we sleep the products we use are impacted by culture. Culture impacts birthrates; eg: contraception is not permitted by religion in primarily strict Catholic or Muslim nations. Rich and developed countries are not adding to their population due to lifestyle, higher education levels as well as women in the workforce. This will be reflected in a decline in birthrates in the developed world.
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Culture’s Pervasive Impact
Consumption of different types of food influences culture
Chocolate by Swiss, seafood by Japanese preference, beef by British, wines by France and Italy
Even diseases are influenced by culture
stomach cancer in Japan, and lung cancer in Spain
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Different types of food are consumed in different cultures (Exhibit 4.2). In hot, tropical countries, spicy food is eaten as spices preserve the food even without refrigeration. The geography of the country also shapes food habits, the Japanese eat a lot of fish and seafood since that is the primary source of food for a country made up of tiny islands in the pacific ocean. The French are famous for wines and champagne because the weather and soil are conducive for grape farming. Diseases also follow food habits such as lung cancer in Spain due to excessive smoking, liver disease in Germany due to consumption of fatty foods (Exhibit 4.3).
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Three Definitions of Culture
Culture is the sum of the “values, rituals, symbols, beliefs, and thought processes that are learned, shared by a group of people, and transmitted from generation to generation”
“software of the mind, problem-solving tool” (Hofstede)
“An invisible barrier… a completely different way of organizing life, of thinking, and of conceiving the underlying assumptions about the family and the state, the economic system, and even Man himself” (Hall)
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We as humans and consumers are able to adapt to changing environments through innovation. Individuals can learn culture from social institutions through socialization (where one is raised and how) and acculturation (adjusting to a new culture). We also learn and adapt to a culture through role modeling, or imitation of peers. People also make decisions about consumption and production through application of their cultural-based knowledge.
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Origins of Culture: Geography
Geography, which includes climate, topography, flora, fauna, and microbiology, influences our social institutions
Jared Diamond states that historically innovations spread faster east-to-west than north-to-south
Philip Parker reports strong correlations between the latitude (climate) and the per capita GDP of countries
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Geography includes more than just the weather and temperature, it is also what kind of plants and animals can be raised in the region and that influences society and consumption. According to Diamond, innovations spread faster from east to west. Before the advent of transoceanic shipping, ideas flowed over the Silk Road but not across the Sahara or the Isthmus of Panama. Parket advocates for a strong correlation between latitude and GDP, for example the GDP of Scandinavian countries are much higher than South American countries.
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Origins of Culture: History
The impact of specific events in history can be seen reflected in technology, social institutions, cultural values, and even consumer behavior
The military conflicts in the Middle East in 2003 bred new cola brands, Mecca Cola, Muslim Up, and Arab Cola
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See the cola pictures, Turkey has their own cola called “Cola Turkey,” a coca cola taste alike, but a local brand. Military conflicts in the Middle East bred these brands, because of an anti U.S. sentiment.
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Origins of Culture: Technology
Technological innovations influence cultural values
Jet aircraft, air conditioning, televisions, computers, and the internet have all influenced culture
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Every technological innovation has a profound impact on culture. For example, as we have moved from VHS tapes to DVDs to BluRay it has impacted our lifestyle, taking up less space and providing more convenience. The internet has changed the way we communicate and has made the world a smaller place.
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Religious Value Systems
School & Education
Government Policies
Social Institutions
Family Behaviors
Corporations
Media
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Social institutions including family, religion, school, the media, government, and corporations all culture, society and behavior.
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Origins of Culture: Social Institutions
Social institutions including family, religion, school, the media, government, and corporations all affect culture
The family, social classes, group behavior, age groups, and how societies define decency and civility are interpreted differently within every culture
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Origins of Culture: Social Institutions
Family behavior varies across the world, e.g., extended families living together to Dad washing dishes
Religious value systems differ across the world, e.g., Muslims not allowed to eat pork to Hindus not allowed to consume beef
School and education, and literacy rates affect culture and economic growth
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Origins of Culture: Social Institutions
Media (magazines, TV, the Internet) influences culture and behavior
Government policies influence the thinking and behaviors citizens of adult citizens, e.g., the French government offers new “birth bonuses” of $800 given to women as an incentive to increase family size
Corporations influence culture via the products they market, e.g., MTV
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Rituals
Thought Processes
Beliefs
Cultural Values
Symbols
Elements of Culture
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Underlying the cultural diversity that exists among countries are fundamental differences in cultural values , that is, the importance of things and ideas. The most useful information on how cultural values influence various types of business and market behavior comes
from the work of Dutch researcher Geert Hofstede.
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Cultural Values
Hofstede, who studied over 90,000 people in 66 countries, found that the cultures differed along four primary dimensions
Individualism/Collective Index (IDV), which focuses on self-orientation
Power Distance Index (PDI), which focuses on authority orientation
Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI), which focuses on risk orientation; and
Masculinity/Femininity Index (MAS), which focuses on assertiveness and achievement
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The four 4 dimensions of culture proposed by Hofstede are described briefly above and in the following slides. Because MAS has proven least useful, our text does not consider it further.
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Rituals and Symbols
Rituals are patterns of behavior and interaction that are learned and repeated vary from country to country
e.g., extended lunch hours in Spain and Greece
Language as Symbols: the “languages” of time, space, things, friendships, and agreements
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Rituals are important in every culture. How Easter is celebrated in the U.S. with the Easter Bunny’s visit and a traditional meal, is very different from how it is celebrated in Mexico, where it is tradition to visit the tombstones and pay homage to the dead. Wedding gowns are typically white in the West, but very colorful and bright in the country of India where the groom arrives on a horse with an entourage (refer to the movie Monsoon Wedding mentioned in the text). Symbols in a culture include language, both verbal and non-verbal and includes the perception of time, space and relationships.
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Rituals and Symbols
In Canada, language has been the focus of political disputes
Differences in language vocabulary varies widely, even English is different in different countries
Aesthetics as Symbols
the arts, folklore, music, drama, and dance of a culture influences marketing
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In Canada, French versus English has been a point of contention between regions. Aesthetics includes a country’s music, art, folklore and drama.
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Whose English?
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United States
Trunk
Hood
Convertible Top
Elevator
Toilet
Bathroom
Vacuum
United Kingdom
Boot
Bonnet
Hood
Lift
W.C.
Tub or Shower
Hoover
Exhibit 4.8 Metaphorical Journeys through 23 Nations
Source: Martin J. Gannon, Understanding global Cultures, Metaphorical Journeys through 23 Nations, 2nd ed. Copright 2001.
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Beliefs
Beliefs, which mainly stem from religious training, vary from culture to culture
The western aversion to the number 13 or refusing to walk under a ladder
Japanese concern about Year of the Fire Horse
The Chinese practice of Feng Shui in designing buildings
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In Asian countries such as Japan and China the number 4 represents death and it is avoided at all costs, some building even skip the fourth floor and go from 3 to 5. Similar to the superstition about the number 13 in the West. Other examples of beliefs/superstitions are: not opening an umbrella in the house (Western) or not passing salt directly to a person (Eastern).
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Thought Processes
Thought processes also vary across cultures
“Asian and Western” thinking
Other examples?
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Nisbett in his book discusses differences between Asian and Western thinking. Asians (although grouping all Asian countries into one category is not generally preferred) tend to see the big picture and have a more long-term orientaion. When compared to people in the West (North America and Europe).
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Cultural Sensitivity and Tolerance
Successful foreign marketing begins with cultural sensitivity —being familiar with nuances
A new culture can be viewed objectively, evaluated, and appreciated.
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Cultural sensitivity, or cultural empathy, must be carefully cultivated. For every amusing, annoying, peculiar, or repulsive cultural trait we find in a country, others see a similarly amusing, annoying, or repulsive trait in our culture. For example, we bathe, perfume, and deodorize our bodies in a daily ritual that is seen in many cultures as compulsive, while we oft en become annoyed with those cultures less concerned with natural body odor. Just because a culture is different does not make it wrong.
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Cultural Sensitivity Has to Be Cultivated
Cultural sensitivity can be developed by acquiring knowledge about a culture including:
Different meanings of colors, and different tastes
General facts about a culture
It can also be developed by learning the more in-depth meaning of cultural facts:
The meaning of time, and attitudes toward people
Developing a degree of insight
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Resistance to Change
Although some cultures embrace change others are resistant to it
Working women in masculine societies like Saudi Arabia
Lack of acceptance of GM foods (or “Frankenfood”) in Europe
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Typically everyone is resistant to change, some are more resistant than others. For example, western companies have tried to change the habit of Indians of eating warm breakfasts. However, in India, people still continue to do things like using warm milk in their cereal to have a “warm” breakfast instead of having cold cereal.
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