The Cultural Environment

International marketing requires constant concern for different cultures and therefore requires adaptation. Self-reference criterion - a tendency to rely on one own cultural values, personal experience and knowledge as the primary basis for making decisions. The SRC must be effectively overcome in order to adapt marketing programs to foreign countries.

Elements of Culture:
1) Language
Context

2) Religion 3) Values and Attitudes 4) Manners/Customs 5) Material Elements

Infrastructure Convergence

6) 7) 8)

Aesthetics Education Social Institutions

Learning about other cultures

experiential knowledge factual knowledge

Key Concepts
High-context culture
is where the social context in which what is said strongly affects the meaning of the message. Examples: Japan and Saudi Arabia

Low-context culture
is where the meaning of the message is explicitly expressed by the words and is less affected by the social context. Example: North America

Contextual Background of Various Countries

Japanese Arabian Latin American Spanish Italian

High Context Implicit

English (UK)
French North American (US) Scandinavian German

Low Context Explicit

Swiss

Language
Verbal
How words are spoken Gestures made Body position assumed Degree of eye contact

Local language capabilitys important role in international marketing

Aids in information gathering and evaluation Provides access to local society Important to company communications Allows for interpretation of contexts

Nonverbal Language
Hidden language of cultures
Time flexibility and sensibility Social acquaintance and rapport Personal physical space and personal touching Non-verbal gestures and signaling

Fractured Translations
English Translations made by Japanese firm added to labels to increase prestige for their products being sold in China.
Product Equivalent to Japanese Spam Toilet Paper Ready to Eat Pancakes Antifreeze Spray Pediatricians Slogan English Translation Liver Putty My Fanny Brand Strawberry Crap Dessert Hot Piss Brand Specialist in Deceased Children

SOURCE: Some Strawberry Crap Dessert, dear South China Morning Post, December 9, 1996 p. 12.

Whose English?
United States Trunk
4-8

United Kingdom Boot Bonnet Hood Lift

Hood Convertible Top Elevator

Toilet
Bathroom Vacuum ??? Bloody

W.C.
Tub or Shower Hoover Shag ???

Irwin/McGraw-Hill

The Major World Religions

Christianity - 2.0 billion followers Islam - 1.2 billion followers Hinduism - 860 million followers Buddhism - 360 million followers Confucianism - 150 million followers

Religion
Marketing in an Islamic Framework
Elements A. Unity. (Concept of Centrality, oneness of God, harmony in life.) B. Legitimacy. (Fair dealings, reasonable level of profits.) Implications for Marketing Product standardization, mass media techniques, central balance, unity in advertising copy and layout, strong brand loyalties, a smaller evoked set size, loyalty to company, opportunities for brand extension strategies. Less formal product warranties, need for institutional advertising and/or advocacy advertising, especially by foreign firms, and a switch from profit-maximizing to a profit-satisficing strategy. Use of excessive profits, if any, for charitable acts; corporate donations for charity, institutional advertising.

C. Zakat. (2.5% per annum compulsory tax binding on all classified as not poor.

Source: Mushtaq Luqmani, Zahir A Quraeshi, and Linda Delene, Marketing in Islamic Countries: A Viewpoint, MSU Business Topics, Summer 1980, pp. 20-21. Reprinted by permission.

Values and Attitudes

Values
are shared beliefs or group norms that have been internalized by individuals.

Attitudes
are evaluations of alternatives based on these values.

Work and Leisure

Attitudes Toward Work:
Have a Substantial Impact on Economic Performance Vary Greatly Among Countries

Work and Leisure

Country Austria Australia Canada Chile Germany Greece France Hungary Ireland Italy Japan Mexico S. Africa Spain U.K. U.S.A. Work Hrs. 1,744 1,847 1,892 2,400 1,704 1,775 1,790 1,756 1,727 1,721 1,893 2,094 1,999 1,721 1,880 1,946 Work/Fun Comp. Sup. 5.72 5.50 5.44 5.93 6.59 7.06 6.23 7.19 5.2 5.87 4.6 4.38 6.33 5.74 5.14 4.11 6.37 6.46 5.32 5.12 5.4 7.37 5.51 4.83 4.65 3.71 5.41 4.68 4.5 5.53 5.37 6.54

Values of Selected Countries*

Work Hrs. = Average number of working hours per year. Work/Fun = Young peoples desire to work/learn vs. have fun. (0 for fun - 10 for work/learn).

Comp. Sup. = Societys support of competitiveness (0 for least support - 10 for most support).
Source: The World Competitiveness Yearbook 1996, (Lausanne: IMD, 1996), pp. 556, 579, 581.
*See text for complete listing of countries and statistics.

Cultural Analysis for International Marketing

Cultural Dimensions
Individualism vs. Collectivism Small vs. Large Power Distance Masculine vs. Feminine Weak vs. Strong Uncertainty Avoidance

*Source of this entire list: Philip R. Harris and Robert T. Moran: Managing Cultural Differences, 2nd ed. (Houston: Gulf, 1987) pp. 212-215.

Power Distance and Individualism-Collectivism

0 Small Power Distance Collectivist

Large Power Distance Collectivist

Example Countries:
1. Costa Rica 2. Korea and Mexico 3. Brazil & India 4. Israel and Ireland 5. Australia and U.S.A. 6. France and Italy
Source: Geert Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations, McGraw-Hill, 1991, pp. 23, 51, 83 & 111. Reprinted with permission of the McGraw-Hill Companies.

Individualism Index

Small Power Distance 112 Individualist 10

Large Power Distance Individualist 110

Power Distance Index

Manners and Customs

Potential problem areas for marketers arise from an insufficient understanding of:
different ways of thinking. the necessity of saving face. knowledge and understanding of the host country. the decision-making process and personal relations. the allocation of time for negotiations.

A house should be dusted and polished three times a week

Italy United Kingdom France Spain Germany Australia United States 89% 59 55 53 45 33 25

I attend church regularly

Spain Italy Germany United States United Kingdom France Australia 77% 75 70 65 36 23 16

My children are the most important thing in my life

Germany Italy France United States Spain Australia 86% 84 73 71 67 48

There is too much emphasis on sex nowadays

United Kingdom Italy United States France Australia Germany 82% 79 66 52 31 24

Everyone Should Use a Deodorant

United States Canada United Kingdom Italy France Australia 89% 79 71 69 59 53

Cultural Factors
Never touch the head of a Thai or pass an object over it. The head is considered scared in Thailand. Avoid using triangular shapes in Hong Kong, Korea, and Taiwan. It is considered a negative shape. The number 7 is considered bad luck in Kenya, good luck in Czech Republic and has a magical connotation in Benin, Africa. The number 10 is bad luck in Korea. The number 4 means death in Japan. Red represents witchcraft and death in many African countries. Red is a positive color in Denmark.
SOURCE: Business America, July 12, 1993

Its Not the Gift That Counts, but How Your Present It

Japan
4-4

Do not open a gift in front of a Japanese counterpart unless asked, and do not expect the Japanese to open your gift. Avoid ribbons and bows as part of the gift wrapping. Bows as we know them are considered unattractive, and ribbon colors can have different meanings.

Do not offer a gift depicting a fox or badger. The fox is the symbol of fertility; the badger, cunning.

Europe

Avoid red roses and white flowers, even numbers, and the number 13. Do not wrap flowers in paper. Do not risk the impression of bribery by spending too much on a gift.

Irwin/McGraw-Hill

Copyright2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Its Not the Gift That Counts, but How Your Present It
Arab World Do not give a gift when you first meet someone. It may be interpreted as a bribe. Do not let it appear that you contrived to present the gift when the recipient is alone. It looks bad unless you know the person well. Give the gift in front of others in less personal relationships.

4-5

Latin America

Do not give a gift until after a somewhat personal relationship has developed unless it is given to express appreciation for hospitality.
Gift should be given during social encounters, not in the course of business.

China

Never make an issue of a gift presentationpublicly or private. Gifts should be presented privately, with the exception of collective ceremonial gifts at banquets.

Irwin/McGraw-Hill

Material Elements
Material culture
Results from technology and is directly related to how a society organizes its economic activity. Material culture is manifested in
Economic infrastructure Social infrastructure Financial infrastructure Marketing infrastructure Cultural convergence

The degree of industrialization can provide a marketing segmentation variable.

Aesthetics
What is or is not acceptable as good taste varies widely in cultures. The symbolism of colors, forms, and music carries different meanings in different cultures.

Education
Assessing the educational level of a culture
formal and informal education literacy rates enrollment in secondary or higher education qualitative aspects of emphasizing science

Education affects
employee training competition for labor product characteristics

Education
Educational Statistics of Selected Countries (in %)*
Country Austria Australia Canada Chile Germany France India Ireland Italy Japan M exico South Africa Spain United Kingdom United States Secondary University Literacy 104 37 98 82 40 99 104 99 98 72 23 95 97 36 99 101 46 99 44 6 52 101 38 99 76 34 97 97 32 100 55 14 87 69 14 82 108 40 95 86 28 99 90 46 100
Secondary = Percentage of relevant age group receiving full time secondary education. Scores in excess of 100% indicate adults also participating in that education. University = Percentage of population 20 - 24 years old enrolled in higher education

Literacy = Percentage of Population over 15 years old

Source: The World Competitiveness Report 1996 (Lausanne: IMD, 1996), pp. 560, 561, 567.

*See text for complete listing of countries and statistics.

Social Institutions
Kinship relationships
immediate and extended family

Social stratification Reference groups

Primary reference groups
family, coworkers

Secondary reference groups

professional associations, trade organizations

The Family
Family Roles Display Great Variances between Cultures
Nuclear Family

The Family
Country Austria Australia Canada Chile Germany Greece France Ireland Italy Japan Mexico S. Africa Spain U.K. U.S.A. Pop. Growth Fem. Work 0.6 41 1.4 43 1.3 45 1.6 32 0.5 42 0.5 36 0.5 44 0.1 33 0.1 38 0.4 41 2.1 31 2.3 37 0.2 36 0.3 43 0.9 46

Family Statistics of Selected Countries (in %)*

Pop. Growth = Population Growth: percentage per year, 1985-1995. Fem. Work = Female participation in the labor force as a percentage of the total labor force, 1995. Source: 1997 World Bank Atlas, Washington, DC: World Bank, 1997, pp. 16-17.

*See text for complete listing of countries and statistics.

The Training Challenge - Global Managers

Internal education programs that increase cultural sensitivity
Culture-specific information Culture-general information Self-specific information

Specialized training for global managers

Area studies
Environmental briefings Cultural orientation programs

Cultural assimilator Sensitivity training Field experience

Business Customs
Cultural Imperatives Cultural Adiaphora

5-2

Cultural Exclusives

Irwin/McGraw-Hill