Development and Marketing of Products and Services for Global Markets

Development and Marketing of Products and Services for Global Markets

Name:

Institution:

Development and Marketing of Products and Services for Global Markets

Globalization, defined as the enhancement of social, cultural, economic, and political interdependence between countries, regions and societies, has been termed as revolutionary to international business, marketing and strategic management. Global marketing opportunities and emergence of threats to international business are express products of globalization. Globalization has brought about the emergence of numerous opportunities for trade and investment, enhanced market potential, resource accessibility, as well as heightened the levels of competition, risk, and uncertainty inherent in new markets. Globalization has been revolutionary towards business practices around the world. Multinational entities have been prompted to shift their practices such as hiring of employees to cater for diverse needs of their subsidiary entities in foreign and local markets (Wu, Mahajan, & Balasubramanian, 2004). Addition, these entities are able to access and source for customers in new markets and in the process enabling growth and profitability away from their traditional markets. In addition, it has brought about the need for cooperative market arrangements between companies, which are driven by the sole aim of enhanced access into new markets.

International promotional strategies in the global market are influenced by a variety of factors such as communication objectives, target market segment or audience, budget influences, the forms of promotion available, and environmental factors such as culture, language, and regulatory policies established in a given market. The advertising budget influences the international promotion strategies by considerations of issues such as comparative parity, sales percentage, task methods, and objectives (Venkatesh, Mahajan & Eitan, 2000). In addition, this is also influenced by standardization and customization with an aim of ensuring that the product meets the needs of consumers within a given market segment. Organizations operating in new markets can either customize their products or services to meet the distinctive consumer needs, wants and preferences within a given market segment. In addition, standardization of promotional strategies can be done to appeal to similar consumer needs across different market segments. For instance, Coca Cola’s advertisements have been customized as well as standardized for use across different markets (Wu, Mahajan, & Balasubramanian, 2004). The need for customization is driven by the need to overcome various regulatory, religious, lingual, and cultural barriers. On the other hand, standardization seeks to affirm that the entity has a similar duty of excellence towards all consumers irrespective of geographical location, culture, and race (Zou, & Cavusgil, 2002). The choice of portfolio offerings in terms of products and marketing strategies assumes as a similar approach given that it is influenced by the distinctive consumer needs, wants, and preferences across varied market segments.

International distribution strategies for modern firms are critical towards successful entry and presence in global markets. Distribution strategies in international markets are influenced by issues such as identified target markets and segments, market goals and objectives such as market share, trade volumes, profit margin expectations, personnel, and financial commitments, distribution channels, and control issues (Rugman, & Verbeke, 2004). In essence, the product or service set to be delivered by a company is a critical consideration towards selection of the appropriate channel of distribution within an identified market. In addition, the perishability of a product, its overall unit value, technicality, and standardization processes are critical influences that influence the distribution channel strategies set to be selected by an entity (Zou, & Cavusgil, 2002). Furthermore, the level of experience, exposure and market acceptance of a product or service are critical influences towards the overall distribution channel strategies selected by an organization.  The budget or financial resources and capabilities of an entity also influence the distribution channel selected and dedicated to a given product or service portfolio of an entity targeted at a selected market segment.

References

Rugman, A. M., & Verbeke, A. (2004). A Perspective on Regional and Global Strategies of Multinational Enterprises. Journal of International Business Studies, 35 (1): 3-18.

Venkatesh, R., Mahajan, V. & Eitan, M. (2000). Dynamic Co-Marketing Alliances: When and Why Do They Succeed or Fail?. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 17: 3-31.

Wu, F., Mahajan, V., & Balasubramanian, S. (2004). An Analysis of E-Business Adoption and Its Impact on Business Performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 31 (4): 425-47.

Zou, S. & Cavusgil, T. (2002). The GMS: A Broad Conceptualization of Global Marketing Strategy and Its Effect on Firm Performance. Journal of Marketing, 66 (October): 40-56.