A Study of Cultural Barriers in Establishing Brand Names in China
The interest on cross-cultural marketing is becoming increasingly important due to global trade, with a growing focus on the Chinese market. The purpose of the study was to report the problems and issues encountered by a large Australian beer company trying to sell a product in China. The study examines brand establishment, loyalty and longevity in a different cultural setting. It also identifies marketing differences between the Australian and Chinese cultures. Identifying some of these trends may assist other multinational companies to establish and sustain products in a foreign market, particularly in China.
Foster is the largest beverage multinational company in Australia. It is also one of Australia’s largest companies to invest in China. As a beer manufacturer, Foster has much competition in a market that is directed by customer preference. For that reason, it is important for a company to focus on the customer’s preference to sustain success in a foreign market. It is suggested by the authors to investigate key cultural values in order to understand culturally different consumers.
It is proven that a well-developed marketing strategy plays an important role in the company’s success. It is important to understand the central values of Chinese cultures in order to satisfy their needs as customers. A major issue for a researcher is to understand the consumer’s integrated role in the family. In the past, Chinese tradition was such that children purchased alcoholic beverages for visiting parents. The effort was to buy traditional Chinese brands that their parents were familiar. Modern traditions are changing in that the parents are buying drinks that their children prefer in order to encourage them to visit them more often. This changing trend in purchasing modern international brands leaves a lasting influence on sales. What used to be marketing focused on traditional social relationships, the trend is changing to the younger mentality, such as modern image, youth, sports, and affordability.
In the past, Chinese consumers were unable to choose products that they wanted or needed. It was the choice of the government to decide which products were offered to the public based on economic strategy. Therefore, when international merchandise became available, personal experience did not play a role in making a decision. The main goal for the marketing group was then to educate the consumers in order to establish the brand name and loyalty. The development of the brand name helps to create product association and identity.
Mise, J. K., Nair, C., Odera, O., & Ogutu, M. (2013). Determinants of Brand Loyalty and Product Quality of Soft Drink Consumers. Asian Journal of Business and Management , 1 (1), 8-13.
Their research argue that the traditional consumer habits have changed and that the stereotypes are deemed dated. The rise of the new trending is formed after the increase of the upper-middle class in 1st tier cities. The values of the new sophisticated class of Chinese consumers resemble that of the western consumers. The this study the research looks into the medium that influence the perception of Chinese consumers, an example of a medium is the social media. Social media like the fashion magazines that push the view of brands. In addition the international brands make their way more and more into the Chinese market place, I.e. high profile fashion promotional events in 1st tier cities like Shanghai and
There are numerous ways that a company can create Brand loyalty. When the consumers can name the brand for themselves, they are more likely to care about it. To help create that relationship many companies create an entire culture around their brand. By giving the consumer some degree of culture in addition to the product you ar...
The second one is the socio-cultural segmentation. Intercultural management has been very successful by the Haagen Dazs marketers. Big variety of flavors can cover any need according to each country’s habits. For example, Europeans have some preferences in alcohol drinking, while Asian people have preferences in teas. Islamic countries are negative in romance images, while western po...
“Marketing across cultures”. Various sources will be used to study and analyze the chosen topic including : internet , business magazines, journals, books, etc. From all these , information drawn will help to complete the study of the topic and draw a satisfactory conclusion
The ability of the management in positioning and establishing the product is a success in any company that operates for marketing and profit acquisition. Furthermore, the ability of the company and its management to complete and maintain a competitive edge among its competitor throughout the product differentiation is another basis to say that is successful. Also, innovation and the constant development on the product lines and the growing number of customers also define the corporate standing of a company. Effective branding strategy and strong brand name are an important part of the profitable business. But, all the strategies and all marketing theories can be worth nothing without the compliance of the desires of consumers.
Biederman, P. S. (2005). Commentary on exporting a north american concept to asia: Starbucks in china. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 46(2), 288-290. doi: 10.1177/0010880405275536
Internationalization Phase, during this phase Chinese companies focused on ‘building brand, localization of products and services for new markets, and differentiation of products to support higher margins’ they did what was ‘good enough’ for the market (Teagarden & Cai, 2009:78). An important issue during this phase was to research and develop the products, and to keep the key talent of the company, such as managers and engineers.
Primary Objective: The wine market is very saturated and is a very successful high status symbol in the society. Despite the high profile of many international wine luxury brands, little is known about the processes by which these brands are created and maintained the main objective of the study is to understand the marketing practices in the wines industries/wineries and how these wine industries/wineries develop the brand equity of premium luxury wine brands.
Although several studies have looked at how cultures affect consumer behaviour in China, none have adequately compared it with other countries Invalid source specified., moreover, most have looked at the issue from the customer’s perspective by analyzing the motivation behind enormous consumption (Wong & Ahuvia, 1998)Invalid source specified. (Gao, Norton, Zhang, & To, 2009). Only few have evaluated established marketing strategies with cultural analysis, those who have done so only focused on segmentation and positioningInvalid source specified.. In this essay, luxury brands’ perspective will be used to analyze how culture influence on existing marketing mix employed.
Witkowski, T. H., Ma, Y., & Zheng, D. (2003). Cross-cultural influences on brand identity impressions: KFC in China and the United States. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 15(1/2), 74-88.
Consumer ethnocentrism is a factor that needs to be given considerable attention when coming up with marketing strategies for international businesses. This is because a product can have negative results in the market if the ethnocentrism levels of the target market are ignored. Hence it is paramount to understand the various effects ethnocentrism have on international business, and address the various marketing strategies that might counter ethnocentrism.
Our secondary research identified several key themes, all of which support the hypothesis that a product’s country-of-origin plays a significant role in the purchase decision process. These findings are summarized below:
Even with commodities, there are quite a few parameters which brands can use to position themselves to capture a place in the consumer’s memory and consequently in their shopping basket. A few of the more widely accepted of them are: Consistency of Product Quality, Customization of the product to the extent possible, Providing a wider range of products, Identifying the most profit generating segments of the market and modifying or adding an offering to cater to their specific needs, Unique packaging, Emotional Branding and even basing branding on building a unique image to the extent of professing to have a brand personality. In fact focusing on getting consumers to build an emotional identification with the brand and its personality has a far longer lasting effect and builds far greater loyalty than focusing on just functional and utility attributes which a competitor would also able to easily match if not surpass.
A good brand name can improve the sales demand and help to provide a good quality image to the people. The increase of sales will force to concentrate only in production. As a result of the quality deficiency can affect the demand in market. When we look back to our history we can see so many branded companies disappeared from our market. In some cases customers are not ready to buy even branded items. For example the MAGGI Instant Noodles brand originated from Switzerland where in 1863. The FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) ordered country wide call off all Maggi noodles because the FSSAI discovered high quantity of led and MSG (Monosodium Glutamate). The company lost their