Communication

Decisions for
International Markets
• Firms convey a set of messages to target
customers through a communication channel with the
objective to not only create a favourable response for its
market offerings but also to receive market feedback
on a regular basis
• The marketing communication mix involves
advertising, sales promotion, public relation, personal
selling, and direct and inter-active marketing, as
depicted in Figure 1
• A firm generally uses a mix of all these promotion
tools after considering the firm’s strategy and marketing
requirements
• Advertising is a paid form of communication carried
out through newspapers, magazines, radio,
television, and other mass media by an identified
sponsor
• Besides, it is also a non-personal form of
communication
• Sales promotion comprises short-term marketing
measures which stimulate quick buyers’ action and
result in immediate sale of the product
• It includes rebates and price discounts, firm’s
catalogues and brochures, samples, coupons, and gifts
• As a part of its image-building exercise, a firm invests
in public relations
• It may include sponsorship of sports and cultural
events, press releases, and even lobbying at
government level
• Direct marketing is also an effective marketing
communication tool wherein a firm has direct inter-
action with the customers
• Personal selling involves direct selling by firm’s
sales force and is considered to be a two-way method
of marketing communication, which helps in building
strong customer relationships.
 Advertising Sales
promotion

Personal Public
selling Customer
relations

Direct and
Inter-active
marketing

Figure 1, International Marketing Communication Mix

Communication mix for an international market is
influenced by the following factors:
• Market size
• Cost of promotional activity
• Resource availability, especially finances
• Media availability
• Type of product and its price sensitivity
• Mode of entry into international market
• Market characteristics.
Consumer Response Hierarchy
Models

• The objective of any marketing communication

strategy is to induce the target customer segment to
buy the product
• This can be achieved by conveying some aspect
of the product to the consumers
• The conveyed message is expected to change
the customers’ attitude towards the product and
make them buy it
• These response stages are known as cognitive,
affective, and behavioural stages, respectively
• Figure 2 depicts two such widely used hierarchy
models.
 Attention Awareness

Interest
Interest

Evaluation
Desire

Trial

Action
Adoption
‘AIDA’ Model
Innovation-Adoption Model

Figure 2, Consumer Response Hierarchy Models

‘AIDA’ Model

• In this approach the main objective of a firm is to

make the customers aware of the product and
seek their attention through effective marketing
communication, such as through effective
advertising
• The awareness would, in turn, generate interest
about the product in the consumers followed by the
desire to own
• The entire process would ultimately lead to
purchase.
Innovation-Adoption Model

• Another model on consumer adoption, developed

by Rogers, especially in reference to a new
product is the innovation-adoption model, depicted
in Figure 2
• In the innovation-adoption model, a firm creates
awareness and generates interest before the
customer gets a chance to evaluate it first hand
• The firm also gives a final trial to the new product
before it is actually adopted by the customers.
Process of International Marketing
Communication

• Marketing communication aims at conveying a

firm’s message as effectively and accurately as
possible
• The basic process of marketing communication, as
depicted in Figure 3, involves the following
constituents:
1. Sender 6. Receiver
2. Encoding 7. Noise
3. Message 8. Feedback
4. Medium
5. Decoding
 Noise

Home Country Foreign Country

Context Context

Encoding Decoding

Medium
Sender Receiver
(Firm) Message (Customer)

Feedback

Figure 3, Process of International Marketing Communication

1. Sender

• It refers to the marketing firm which is

conveying the message.
2. Encoding

• Before a message can be sent, it has to be

encoded
• Putting thoughts, ideas, or information into a
symbolic form is termed as encoding
• Encoding ensures the correct interpretation of
message by the receiver, who is often the ultimate
customer
• The use of words, signs, or symbols should be
such that they become familiar to the target
audience
• Firms often use symbols for encoding messages
that have a universal meaning
• Language and cultural issues need to be taken
care of while encoding the message.
3. Message

• A message may be verbal or non-verbal, oral,

written, or symbolic
• A message contains all the information or
meaning that the sender aims to convey
• A message is put into a transmittable form
depending upon the channels of
communication
• From a semiotic perspective, every marketing
message has three basic components: an
object, sign or symbol, and an interpretant
• The object is the product that is the focus of the
message (e.g., Marlboro cigarettes)
• The sign is the sensory imagery that represents
the intended meaning of the object (e.g., the
Marlboro cowboy)
• The interpratant is the meaning derived (e.g.,
rugged, individualistic, American).
4. Medium

• The channel used to convey the encoded

message to the intended receiver is termed as
medium
• The medium can be categorized in the
following manner :
4A. Personal
4B. Non-Personal
4A. Personal

• It involves direct inter-personal (face-to-face)

contact with the target group
• Sales people serve as the channel of
communication as they deliver the sales
message to the target customers
• Friends, peers, neighbours, and family
members constitute social channels
• ‘Word of mouth’ communication is a very
powerful source of personal communication.
4B. Non-Personal

• These are channels which convey message

without any inter-personal contact between the
sender and the receiver
• Since the message is communicated to many
persons at a time, these channels are also
referred to as mass media or mass
communication channels
• The non-personal channels of communication
may further be broadly classified as follows:
• Print media: Newspapers, magazines,
direct mails, etc.
• Electronic media: Radio and Television.
5. Decoding

• It is the process of transforming the sender’s

message back into thought
• Decoding is highly influenced by the self-
reference criteria (SRC), which is unintended
reference to one’s own culture.
6. Receiver

• It is the target audience or customers who

receive the message by way of reading,
hearing, or seeing
• A number of factors influence how the message
is received
• These include the clarity of message, the
interest generated, the translation, the sound if
words, and the visuals used in the message.
7. Noise

• The unplanned distortions or interference of the

message is termed as ‘noise’
• A message is subjected to a variety of external
factors that distort or interfere its reception
• Technical snags, such as problems in tele-
communication or signals, both at the sending
and the receiving end may cause distortion
• The competitors’ promotional activities often
create confusion in the minds of the customers
and are a major source of noise.
8. Feedback

• In order to assess the effectiveness of the

marketing communication process, feedback
from the customers is crucial
• The time needed to assess the communication
impact depends upon the type of promotion
used
• For instance, an immediate feedback can be
obtained by personal selling, whereas it takes
much longer time to assess the communication
effectiveness in case of advertisements
• In international markets, a firm has to
communicate with the customers and the
 channel intermediaries located in overseas
markets that have considerably different marketing
environment characteristics
• The differences in cultural environment, economic
development of the market, regulatory framework,
language, and media availability make the task of
international marketing communication much more
complex compared to domestic marketing.
 Marketing Communication
Strategies

• On the basis of promotional focus on market

intermediaries in the distribution systems or the end
customers, a firm has the following two options in
marketing communication strategies:
1. Push Strategy
2. Pull Strategy
1. Push Strategy

• In push strategy, the promotional programme

is primarily directed at the market
intermediaries in the distribution system
• It aims to motivate the market intermediaries
to stock, promote, and sell the products to the
ultimate customers, as depicted in Figure 4
• The market intermediaries, such as the
distributors, wholesalers, and retailers, are
offered a variety of incentives to push the
product in the market
• Generally, in push strategy, the distributors
are motivated to promote the product to the
 wholesalers, who, in turn, promote the product to
the retailers, who finally push the product to the
consumers
• The tools used in push strategy include personal
selling and sales promotion, contests for
salespersons, and trade shows.
 Marketing Marketing
Communication Communication
Channel End
Firm
Product intermediary Product customer
push push

Figure 4, Push Strategy

Push strategy is usually found to be more effective
under the following situations:
• Lack of product differentiation
• Weak brand identity or brand clutter
• Low brand loyalty
• Difficulty in appreciation product benefits
• Industrial products
• Institutional sales
• Lack of access to advertising media
• Low promotional budget
• Short and direct marketing channels
• Low wages, i.e., cost of employing salespersons is
lower than the advertising cost through the
distribution channels
• Besides, commoditization of brands has made it
difficult for the customers to differentiate between
the competing brands, making push strategy more
effective
• The biggest drawback of push strategy is that
hardly any brand loyalty is created even after
spending huge sums of money
• Besides, the channel intermediaries become more
demanding and ask for increase in their margins to
support the product
• In case the demand for a product is low, a
marketer has to accede to the demands of channel
intermediaries
• This triggers an unhealthy competition among the
marketers to offer more and more margins,
 which further squeezes their promotion budgets
for advertising
• In developing countries, the size of the retail
outlets is small and a majority of them are
managed by one or two persons only
• Therefore, the customers come in direct contact
with the sellers and often seek their opinion
about the product
• The margin of the seller on a particular product
often determines his opinion
• Under such situations, push strategy serves as
an effective promotional tool.
2. Pull Strategy

• The process of motivating the customers to

buy the product from the retailers through
promotional programmes, as given in Figure
5, is referred to as full strategy
• A retailer asks for a product from a wholesaler
and the wholesaler asks for the product from
a distributor who gets the product from the
firm.
 Product Channel Product End
Firm request request
intermediary customer

Marketing communication

Figure 5, Pull Strategy

Pull strategy is more effective in the following
situations:
• Perceived product differentiation
• Strong brand identity
• High brand loyalty
• High-involvement product category
• High promotional budgets
• Self-service in retail system, i.e., supermarket
culture
• The promotional techniques used for pull strategy
include advertising and sales promotion campaign
directed at consumers, such as discounts, gift
vouchers, samples, etc.
• In retail outlets where self-service is pre-dominant,
pull strategy is more effective
• Besides, pull strategy also facilitates long-term
brand loyalty among the customers
• However, in view of the market conditions and the
factors mentioned above, a firm may use a judicial
mix of pull and push strategies for market
promotion.
Tools for International Marketing
Communication

• An international marketing communication strategy

may use a variety of marketing tools, such as
advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion,
personal selling, public relations, trade fairs, and
exhibitions
• Each of these tools is discussed in detail in this
chapter.
A. Advertising
B. Direct Marketing
C. Personal Selling
D. International Trade Fairs And Exhibitions
E. Trade Missions
F. Sales Promotion
1. Advertising

• Any paid form of non-personal communication

by an identified sponsor is termed as
advertising
• It can be for a product, service, an idea, or
organization
• The non-personal means, such as
newspaper, magazine, TV, or radio can
transmit the message to a large number of
individuals often at the same time
• Advertising is the most widely used form of
promotion, especially for mass marketing.
1A. Standardization vs Adaptation
1A.1 Standardization
1A.2 Adaptation
1A. Standardization vs Adaptation

• An international marketing firm may opt for a

standardized advertising strategy or may
customize it depending upon the needs of various
markets
• The arguments in favour of standardized
campaign include economy of scale and uniform
projection of a firm’s image in global markets
• The adaptation of advertising may be either
due to mandatory reasons, such as regulatory
framework or due to competitive market
response.
1A.1 Standardization

• Using the same advertising strategy across

the country is termed as standardization
• However, the extent or degree of
standardization varies
Ad with no change: Same advertisement is
used with no change in theme, copy, or illustration
except for translation
Benetton Group Spa, the Italy–based global
clothing retailer, uses global advertising
campaigns with the same theme, ‘The United
Colours of Benetton’,
However, Benetton’s ad has shocking photos
to attract public attention on global issues related to
environment, terrorism, racism, and HIV
Many of Benetton’s ad campaigns have been
criticized in a number of countries
Benetton, however, is keen on continuing with its
shock advertising campaigns as long as the ad
manages to create and sustain the interest of the
customers.
Ad with changes in illustration: When ads use
different models, generally local models, for
different countries but maintain the same ad copy
and theme, it is also considered standardized
advertising
Virginia Slims, the worldwide market leader in
women’s cigarette, initiated a worldwide campaign
in which it used local models in different countries
• Advertising plays an important role in positioning a
brand
• Virginia Slims was always positioned as a
women’s cigarette right from its inception in 1968
• It later became an international market leader
• Initially Philip Morris positioned Marlboro as a
women’s cigarette in 1924 based on the slogan
‘Mild as May’
• Its marketing communication programmes featured
stylish women posed in plush settings to target
female audience
• During World War II, Marlboro was re-introduced
as a more ‘softer’ filtered brand and was targeted
at addicted male smokers who were afraid of getting
lung cancer
• However, this repositioning did not work in the
market as filtered cigarettes were considered to be
feminine
• It was only in 1955 that Marlboro made a
breakthrough by re-positioning itself as a men’s
cigarette and eventually became a global market
leader
• Lux has maintained a single advertising concept
world-wide
• It promotes the brand through cine stars
• Lux has been positioned as the ‘beauty soap of
film stars’
• However, adaptations have been made in different
countries depending upon the local context
Universal appeals in international advertising are
used in the following situations:
• Superior Quality: The promise of superior
quality may be used universally
For instance, BMW uses the slogan ‘ultimate
driving machine’ world-wide.
• New Product/Services: The world-wide launch
of a product under the sprinkler approach is
generally coupled with global communication
campaign
For instance, Microsoft used such campaigns
while launching Windows 95 and Windows 2000.
• Country of Origin: Brands in product categories
which have a strong country stereotype
 often leverage their route by emphasizing on
‘made in….’ cachet
The country of origin is often emphasized in case
of luxury and fashion products.
• Celebrities: Celebrities with universal appeal
are engaged for global products, whereas the
regional or national celebrities are employed for
regional communication
Swiss watchmaker SMH International promoted its
Omega brand with a TV commercial featuring
actor Pierce Brosnan after the release of James
Bond movie Golden Eye
Sachin Tendulkar and Aishwarya Rai have been
used in a number of advertising campaign in the
south asian region.
• Lifestyle: A large number of global upscale
brands use lifestyle ads to target customers
regardless of the country.
• Global Presence: In order to enhance the
brand’s image, firms project their ‘global presence’ by
communicating to the target audience that the product
is used world-wide and by using it they also would
become a part of global customers’ community.
• Market Leadership: Brands with a strong
country image often send a signal to the target
audience that it is the most preferred brand in their
home markets
The fact that the company is a market leader
nationally, regionally, or internationally gives out a
strong message to the customers.
• Corporate Image: Firms also use a uniform
marketing communication approach to project a
certain uniform corporate image.
Adopting a standardized advertising strategy is
gaining wider acceptance due to a large number of
factors, which are as follows:
• The preferences and lifestyles of consumers are
increasingly becoming homogeneous, enabling
psychographic segmentation of markets that can be
targeted through a uniform message
• The consumer behaviour is increasingly getting
similar in the urban centres across the world
The city dwellers exhibit similar working, shopping,
travelling, and lifestyle patterns across countries
• A sharp increase in international travel among
customers has made standardized advertising
strategy quite popular among the companies
• International reach of media, such as television
programmes, magazines and some of the
newspapers, has also boosted the use of
standardized advertisements
For instance, programmes on channels like Zee
TV, Star Plus, ESPN, Discovery, BBC, CNN, etc. are
telecasted and watched across the globe
• Standardized advertising approach facilitates
creation of uniform corporate image
• A firm achieves economies of scale if it follows
standardized advertising approach.
The major benefits of standardized advertising
include economies of scale and projection of uniform
image in international markets
Such an approach can be adopted in the following
marketing situations:
• The target market is segmented on the basis of
psychographic profile of the customers, such as their
lifestyles, behaviour, and attitudes
• Cultural proximity among the customers
• Technology intensive or industrial products
• Similarity in marketing environment, such as
political, legal, and social.
1A.2 Adaptation

• Modification in the advertisement message,

copy, or content is termed as adaptation or
customization
• However, the emphasis on communication
strategies varies between markets
• For example rich lather in bathtub and foamy
experience is stressed in the ad campaigns by
Lux in Europe where it is primarily sold as a liquid
soap, which may not be the case in other
countries
• Lux is mainly a shampoo in China, Taiwan, and
the Philippines, soap in India, and everything from
a soap to a shampoo in Japan
 • Hence, the benefits of the marketed product
are emphasized in each of the markets
Communication adaptation is often needed in
international markets due to:
• Difference in cultural values among the
countries
• Difficulties in language translation
• Variations in the level of education of the
target groups
• Media availability
• Social attitudes towards advertising, and
• Regulatory framework of the target market
• As the customer behaviour is greatly influenced by
the cultural factors in the target market, it is difficult
for a standardized communication strategy to be
effective across different country markets
• Therefore, to convey a similar concept across
various cultures, a firm has to adapt its advertising
campaigns in different markets in view of the
different cultural contexts
• For instance, in products with image-based
positioning, such as Pepsi, an ad in Western
countries may depict scantily clad women in swim
suites on a beach or in a bar, which is not feasible
to adapt in Islamic countries due to the statutory
framework and the cultural aspects
• Pepsi customizes its advertising campaigns to
depict its core values of youthfulness (spirited,
young, up-to-date, and out-going) associated with
‘generatioNext.’
• As celebrities enjoy a demi-god status in India,
Pepsi uses a number of celebrities, such as Shah
Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Sachin Tendulkar,
Amitabh Bachhan, Kajol, and Rani Mukherjee, in its
ads.
2. Direct Marketing

• Selling products and services to the customers

without using any market intermediary is termed
as direct marketing
• It deals with the customers on one-to-one basis,
unlike the conventional mass-marketing
approach that deals indirectly with customers
• Direct marketing has little dependence on mass
promotion or advertising, whereas conventional
marketing relies heavily on mass promotion
• Technological advances, such as proliferation of
telecommunication and information technology,
have facilitated direct marketing across the world
• The rapid growth in credit card usage has
increased payments over the Internet, which has
facilitated international sales transactions
• Direct marketing offers the following benefits over
conventional marketing:
• Provides direct contact with the customers
• Facilitates finalization of sales deals through
inter-action
• Helps in mass customization of a firm’s market
offerings rather than mass marketing
• Facilitates effective and deeper market
segmentation
• Eliminates waste market coverage due to its
selective reach
• Personalized service
• Helps in building customer relationships.
2A. Direct Mailing
2B. Door-to-Door Marketing
2C. Multi-level Marketing
2A. Direct Mailing

• It involves sending letters, brochures or

catalogues, e-mails faxes, or even product
samples directly to the consumers, who may, in
turn, purchase the product through mail.
2B. Door-to-Door Marketing

• Receptivity of door-to-door marketing varies

considerably among the cultures
• In Japans even motorcars and stocks are sold
door to door
• Amway, Avon, and Tupperware are some of
the world’s largest firms that rely on door-to- door
marketing world-wide.
2C. Multi-level Marketing

• It involves a revolutionary distribution system

with little spending on advertising and
infrastructure
• In multi-level marketing, a core group of
distributors is recruited who generally pay the
company some registration fee and are
introduced to the company by a sponsor
• Each of these distributors picks up a product
worth a certain sum, for instance, Rs 1,000, and
then sell it directly to the customers
• The mark-up is generally pegged at 25%- 30%
• However, the distributors can charge a lower price
if they reduce their commission
• These core distributors appoint another level of
distributors and get additional commission from the
sales made by them
• Some of the major global firms involved in multi-
level marketing are Amway, Avon, Oriflame, Mary
Kay Cosmetics, etc.
• The major benefits of multi-level marketing involve
rapid, continuous, and automatic growth of
distribution networks
• Besides, it is a quick and cost-effective marketing
method
• As the marketing system depends upon the
 continuity of the network, any snap in its linkage
creates major setbacks for the entire distribution cum
sales system
• Since the direct sellers repeatedly approach the
prospects, it makes the prospects quite irritated
• The high-pressure tactics used to push the product
may adversely affect the brand image
• The firm has limited control over the sales force in
terms of prices offered
• After economic liberalization in the People’s
Republic of China, multi-level marketing firms,
such as Amway, Avon, and Mary Kay Cosmetics
grew rapidly
• By 1997, Amway had approximately 80,000 sales
 representatives who generated $ 178 million in
sales, and Avon had nearly 50,000 representatives
who produced $ 75 million
• It was reported that some other companies using
the so-called pyramid scheme were cheating
consumers
• Consequently, the Chinese government banned
direct selling in April 1998
• As a result, Avon was forced to open its own retail
stores.
3. Personal Selling

• It involves personal meeting of a firm’s

representatives with the customers
• As the languages, customs, and business
culture are different in different international
markets, personal selling becomes very
complex
• Generally, firms employ local salespersons for
personal selling in international markets.
Personal selling is generally employed in markets
where:
• Wages are low compared to advertising
Thus, personal selling is highly cost-effective
in low-income countries
• Customers are multi-linguistic, such as in
India, and a single language of communication
hardly succeeds, in such cases personal selling
plays an important role
• Countries where literacy level is low, personal
selling becomes an important tool to communicate
• In oriental cultures, the sellers’ one-to-one
contact with the customers pays, as it facilitates
the establishment of strong customer
relationships
• An international firm should also provide periodic
inputs to distributors’ sales force, such as through
periodic trainings, sales literature, and the facility
of direct mailing
• This way a firm makes its tasks easier and
improves efficiency
Personal selling has a special role to play in the
Japanese market due to some peculiar socio-cultural
features, which are as follows:
• Individuality and independence are not as highly
valued in Japan as they are in the West
Besides, Japanese marketers and salespeople are
less inclined to take credit for success or blame
other for failures
• Japanese companies rarely use non- financial
incentives to recognize, praise, or reward
salespeople for performing well
Good performance is simply expected, and
special praise is deemed unnecessary
• Loyalty to one’s employer is a fundamental
characteristic of Japanese society; commissions
are generally an unnecessary component of
compensation packages
Salespeople consider it their duty to generate
business for their companies
It is the honourable thing to do and no special
compensation is required for doing what duty
demands.
4. International Trade Fair and
Exhibitions

• Trade fairs and exhibitions are the oldest and

the most effective methods to explore
marketing opportunities
• Trade fairs are organized gatherings where
the buyers and the sellers meet and establish
communication.
Trade fairs may be of the following types:
4a. General Trade Fairs
4b. Specialized Trade Fairs
4c. Consumer Fairs
4d. Minor Trade Fairs
4e. Solo Exhibitions
4f. Catalogue Shows
4a. General Trade Fairs

• All types of consumer and industrial goods are

exhibited in trade fairs
• Such trade fairs are open both for general
public and business-persons
• Generally, in less-developed countries
general trade fairs are the only option.
4b. Specialized Trade Fairs

• Such trade fairs focus on a specific industrial

or trade sector, such as apparels or food
• Specialized trade fairs are targeted at
business visitors but usually are also open for the
general public on specific days and at specific
times
• Specialized trade fairs provide excellent
opportunity to explore contacts in international
markets, such as importers, agents, distributors,
etc.
• Even established firms participate in
specialized fairs in order to establish contacts.
4c. Consumer Fairs

• Generally targeted at individual customers, the

consumer fairs focus on household goods.
4d. Minor Trade Fairs

• These are fairs held at a small level, such as

toy or shoe fairs.
4e. Solo Exhibitions

• Exhibitions held by a specific country or group

• In these exhibitions, a number of dealers of a
particular product field put up the show in a
hotel, hall, or lounge
• Solo exhibitions may be international,
regional, national, or provincial in terms of its
scope and participants
• Solo exhibitions provide opportunity for buyer-
seller interface
International trade fairs offer the following benefits:
• They provide an opportunity to get information on
the competing products, their attributes, prices,
etc. in the market
• They help in assessing customer’s response to a
firm’s products
• They serve as a meeting place for potential
importers, agents, and distributors in the
International market
• They provide publicity and generate goodwill
• They provide an opportunity to meet the existing
clients in the market and assess their performance
vis-à-vis competitors
A firm needs to consider the following parameters
while selecting an international trade fair:
• Compatibility of the fair with the firm’s product
profile and marketing objectives
• Location of the fair
• Visitors’ and participants’ profile
• Performance of the fair in terms of the sales
concluded, the type of exhibitors, and the number
of visitors during the previous years
• Experience of previous business exhibitors
• Cost of participation vis-à-vis other promotional
alternatives
In order to generate business and to make the
participation in an international trade fair meaningful, the
following issues need to be taken care of:
• Visit the overseas market in advance, one year to six
months before the fair, to gather information about the
markets, business dynamics, and to get oneself
familiarized with the market
• Carry out a market analysis in advance in terms of
the social, cultural, linguistic, economic, legal, and
political issues that influence the marketing opportunities
• Before participation one should prepare as detailed a
plan of display as possible
• Prepare exhibition materials, such as literature,
promotional CD ROMs, videotapes, media kits, business
cards, display items, signage, and promotional products
• Immediate follow up after participation in the fair
is crucial to achieve business generation
Therefore, all queries should be answered within a
week’s time after the trade fair
The effectiveness of the firm’s participation in trade
fairs may be assessed from the following:
• Securing business leads and contacts
• Volume of sales order
• Securing contacts
• Finding international trade partners
• Conducting market and competitor research
• Acquiring information about new products,
processes, and technology
• Meeting with existing customers
• Creating awareness about the firm.
4f. Catalogue Shows

• As participation in trade fairs involves

considerable cost and time, the display of
catalogues, sometimes accompanied with trade
samples, provides an opportunity to create
market awareness about the firm’s products
• Generally, the government organizations and
industry associations actively promote such
catalogue shows.
5. Sales Promotion

• Sales promotion entails various tools that are

used as short-term incentives to induce a
purchase decision
• Due to increased competitive intensity in the
market, firms make use of sale promotion to get
short-term results
• Besides, the buyers also expect some purchase
incentives in view of competitors’ offerings
• It is estimated that manufacturers as a group
spend about twice as much on trade promotion
as they do on advertising, and an equal amount
is spent on consumer promotions
• The promotional offer has a local focus and
generally varies from country to country
The basic objectives of consumer promotion
programmes are as follows:
• To solicit product enquiries
• To generate trials for new or related products
• To generate additional sales
• To motivate customers for repeat purchase
Sales promotion can be categorized as follows:

5a. Trade Promotions

5b. Consumer Promotions
5a. Trade Promotions

• These are the promotional tools aimed at the

market intermediaries
• Due to increase in market competition and
inter-firm rivalry, firms often offer promotional
schemes to the market intermediaries to
enhance the feeling of loyalty among the
customers and push their products in the market
• Various tools used for sales promotion include
offering margins higher than the competitors,
incentives for not keeping competitors’ products,
organizing joint promotions, providing financial
assistance for promotional budgets, etc.
5b. Consumer Promotions

• These are the promotional tools directed at

the ultimate consumers
• Various tools used for consumer promotion
include discounts, free samples, contests, gifts,
gift coupons, festival sales, special price offers
for bulk purchase, etc.
6. Public Relations

• In overseas markets, it is increasingly

becoming important for a firm to be an
‘insider’
• Public relations aim at building corporate
image and influencing media and other target
groups to have a favourable publicity
Various methods used for public relations are as
follows:
• Sponsorship of sports, cultural events, etc.
• Press release
• Contribution to awards and prices for
sports and other events
 • Publicity of a firm’s promotional campaign
• Lobbying at government level
• Public relations may aim at internal as well as
external communication directed at employees,
shareholders suppliers of inputs and components,
customers, and the general public
• Indian firms, such as JK Tyres, also sponsor sports
events in Europe, as a part of its public relation
activity
• A firm attempts to create links with the media,
politicians, bureaucrats, and other influential groups
and persons in the target market to gain positive
publicity
• In high-income countries, professional firms offer
 specialized public relations services, whereas in
low-income countries the ‘word of mouth’ mode of
publicity is widely used for spreading a message.
Factors Influencing International
Communication Decisions

As the marketing environment across countries

varies considerably, there are various factors that
influence international marketing communication.
A. Culture
B. The Cultural Contexts
C. Language
D. Education
E. Media Infrastructure
F. Government Regulations
A. Culture

• It is a well-known fact that the culture of a

country influence the customers’ behaviour
immensely
• Customers are quite sensitive about the
cultural aspects depicted in marketing
communications
• Advertising themes incorporating social
acceptance, mutual dependence, respect for
elders and traditions, harmony with nature,
use of seasons, innovation and novelty,
distinctive use of celebrities, changing family
role are often effective
• Let us now illustrate, some of the marketing
blunders in international markets which occurred
due to the faulty understanding of different cultures
on the marketers’ part
• Parker Pen Company successfully used the
slogan ‘Avoid Embarrassment – Use Quink’ in
the US
The product was marketed in Latin America
with the Spanish translation ‘Evite Embarazos
– Use Quink’ of the above slogan that un-
intentionally meant ‘Avoid Pregnancy – Use
Quink’ resulting in an embarrassment for the
company
• Procter & Gamble showed an animated stork
delivering Pampers diapers in its ad
campaigns in the United States
 The same ad copy was used in Japan, only
the language was changed
However, this ad did not work in Japan
The subsequent market research revealed that,
unlike the Western folklore, storks, according to
the Japanese folklore, are not expected to deliver
babies
On the contrary, Japanese people believe that
it is the giant peaches that float on the river that
bring babies to the deserving parents
Subsequently, Procter & Gamble changed the
theme of the ad campaign to ‘expert mom’, a
nurse who is also a mother theme
 • Muhammad Ali is immensely popular in the
Middle East
One of the car manufacturers used
Muhammad Ali in its ad campaign for the region
The ad theme was, ‘I am the greatest’
The ad backfired and offended the Muslims
who regard only the God as great
• Islamic countries impose certain restrictions on the
presentation of women in TV commercials
• The most stringent laws regarding presentation of
women are in Saudi Arabia where the TV
commercials can show only a veiled woman or her
back
• For advertising Pert Plus Shampoo, Procter &
Gamble had to adopt an unusual strategy in
Saudi Arabia
• Since the focus had to be on the prospect’s hair,
the ad showed the hair of a woman from the
back and another veiled woman from the front.
B. The Cultural Contexts

• The culture has broadly been divided as high-

context and low-context culture
• Oriental countries, such as Japan, China,
India, and Middle East generally have high-
context cultures where the contextual
background of communication is extremely
significant unlike low-context countries
• Therefore, marketing communication in high-
context culture has to be more implicit than
explicit
The cultural contexts can be applied to international
communication in the following manners:

B1. Conversational Principles

B2. Presentation Principles
B3. Return Word Principles
B1. Conversational Principles

• In high-context cultures, the customers look

keenly at the details of the sales executives and
the company
Therefore, any promotional or advertising campaign
in such cases should aim at establishing the firm’s
credibility and background
• There should be clarity in presentation Jargons
and slangs should be avoided
One should speak slowly and without a strong
accent, unlike Western markets
• Focus on identification with the international
recipients by way of using phrases or words from
the recipient language or use of historical or
contemporary illustrations
• Body language and tone of voice should be
consistent with the message.
B2. Presentation Principles

• One should show respect for cultures that are

more formal
It needs structured presentation in terms of
format and content of communication
• It should give due respect and appeal to
different foreign audience
• One should be patient with the pace of
different cultures
The length of message is often viewed as an
indication of the importance the promoter
attaches to its subject.
B3. Return Word Principles

• In low-context cultures, communication is

generally direct, to the point, and immediately
stated
However, emphasis needs to be given on
politeness and decorum of the message,
besides, proper translation in high-context
cultures is very important
It needs modifications in slogans or branding
so that the message does not offend the
target audience.
C. Language

• Translation from one language to another is

crucial in international communication
• The literal translation may fail to convey the
desired message across the countries due to
cultural factors
• For instance, the word ‘yes’ is understood
differently in different countries
• In low-context societies, such as the USA and
Europe, ‘yes’ means ‘yes’, but in high-context
societies, such as Japan, ‘yes’ means ‘I am
listening to what you are saying’ and it does
not necessarily mean ‘yes’
• In Thailand, ‘yes’ means ‘OK’
• Such vast differences in the meaning of ‘yes’ is
due to the fact that in high-context cultures, the
other person is given opportunity to save one’s face
and direct refusals are hardly appreciated by the
society
• Some instances of the translation blunders in
international communication are as follows:
• Pepsi used the German translation of the
slogan ‘come alive with Pepsi’ in its ad campaign
in West Germany
However, the slogan when translated to
German actually meant ‘come out of the grave
with Pepsi’ and failed to generate any market
response from the customers
• General Motor translated its slogan ‘Body by
Fischer’ to ‘Corps by Fischer’ in Belgium that
offended the Belgian customers.
D. Education

• The level of literacy plays an important role in

deciding what communication tool and
message should be used in an international
market
• Market segments with lower level of adult
literacy need to be addressed by way of more
audio-visual content rather than a written
message
• It should be ensured that the visuals convey
the desired message rather than the text part
of the communication.
E. Media Infrastructure

• Availability of media, that varies widely, often

influences the advertisers’ options for using a
particular medium
• A cross-country comparison of the share of
advertising expenditure on various mediums of
communication is given in Table 5
• It reveals that the advertising expenditure of print
media in India was 53% compared to 59% in
UK, 46% in US, 40% in China, and 28% in
Mexico, whereas the share of advertising
spending on TV was 38% in India compared to
29% in UK, 37% in US, 43% in China, 55% in
Thailand, and 57% in Mexico in 2001
• The radio spending was highest at 15% in Mexico
and 14% in US compared to merely 2% in India.
 Print TV Radio Other Total
India 53 38 2 8 100
China 40 43 4 13 100
Mexico 28 57 15 0 100
Thailand 32 55 9 4 100
US 46 37 14 4 100
UK 59 29 5 7 100

Table 5, AD Spend Share – Global Comparison (2001)

F. Government Regulations

• The regulatory framework of a country

influences the communication strategy in
international markets
The government regulations in various
countries relate to the following issues:
• Advertising in foreign language
• Use of pornography and sensuality
• Comparative advertising referring to the
competing products from rival firms
• Advertisements related to alcohol and
tobacco
 • Use of children as models
• Advertisements related to health food and
pharmaceuticals
Some of the advertising regulations in various
countries include the following:
• In Malaysia, the Ministry of Information’s
advertising code states that women should not
be the principal object of an advertisement and
should not be used to attract sales unless the
advertised product is relevant to women
• The Ministry of Information in Saudi Arabia
prohibits any advertising depicting unveiled
women
• Portuguese law prohibits sex discrimination or
the sub-ordination or objectification of women
in advertising
• Use of foreign words and expressions when
French equivalents can be used are
prohibited in France
• Norway prohibits any advertising that portrays
men or women in an offensive manner or
implies any derogatory judgment of either sex
• Most Arab countries prohibit explicit depiction
of sensuality.