Janell NaKia Harvey - Localizing Global Marketing Strategies: Emerging Research and Opportunities

ABSTRACT

International business communities will not automatically accept the tenets of a foreign nation's business ideals. It is imperative for business owners to truly understand the environment that they wish to communicate their business efforts to in an effort to garner consumers. Through market research strategies like environmental scanning and descriptive research, companies can better understand their potential customer base and build strategies towards gaining market share. Business leaders must strategize the systems used and tailor their efforts to specific audiences. Communities are different and global market strategies should differ as well according to audience. In this book, readers will learn the fundamentals of global market research and its relationship to the business-to-consumer market while gaining access to a number of resources.

INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, you will learn:

• What a global market is
• How to use various marketing research frameworks
• How to encounter and better understand global challenges

Globalization is the process by which a local business begins to operate on an international scale. Some notable global businesses are Exxon Mobile, Apple, Microsoft and Google. Anyone wanting to enter the global market must align his or her business with a series of steps in order to be successful. A business plan is essential. Business leaders also need a foreign market research plan. Identification of foreign partners and a distribution method is also vital. Leaders should determine the type of global market strategy that will work best for their business or service. Lets take a look at a prominent business that began in New York and eventually made its way to the global environment.

From City Bank of New York To Citi

In 1812, Colonel Samuel Osgood was hired as the first president of City Bank of New York. By 1897 the financial institution changed its name to National City Bank while launching a foreign department. Presently the bank is known as Citi. Data from its 2016 annual report indicate, Citis Global Consumer Bank serves more than 100 million customers in the fastest-growing cities in 24 countries worldwide (Citi, 2018,p. 8). Globally, this bank operates in Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Latin America. As the company expanded, its image and brand awareness changed too.

Clearly, undertaking a new international venture takes research, patience and careful consideration. Before delving into such a monumental task, leaders must carefully assess global private sector debt, critically analyze the political environment and identify marketing segmentation data analytics. Knowing which markets to enter is critical and failure to successfully identify them can lead to significant loss of revenue. Business leaders must ensure that theyve identified a clear mission and marketing goals that align firmly with it.

Certainly, we 21st Century marketers have access to many modern technologies that provide us with insurmountable customer related data that helps to drive marketing related decisions. Although Colonel Osgood wasnt privy to such resources, its obvious that he understood the fundamentals of international trade as well as the impact of the economic, political, legal and cultural environments. He optimized the resources that he had in an effort to create a strategic fit for his international constituents. These are all critical areas that global modern marketers must understand. The first key to an operative global marketing campaign is effective marketing research. Citi Bank notes on its website that it is, a global leader in credit cards, wealth management and commercial banking (Citi Bank, 2018, para. 1). Such a reputable claim is justifiable. They have an obvious positioning strategy that brings positive top of the mind awareness. If youve ever visited the companys website and reviewed their marketing strategies then you know that they use both a geographic and a demographic segmentation approach that is designed to specifically meet the needs of global partners. Citi Bank has global offerings and tailors itself to meet the specific needs of customers in Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America, North America and Canada.

If you bank with Citi Bank then you know that their marketing channels are rich and diverse. Key messages are generated on a number of social media platforms Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram and Google+ and Facebook. They even have a well-defined concept as it relates to reaching the global market that sets them apart from peers. They are heavily engaged in philanthropic efforts that benefit their surrounding communities. Their Womens Day Across the Globe grant enables female business owners the opportunity to bring their dreams into fruition. The program is presently open to Africa, Latin American and Middle Eastern countries. Initiatives like this can help lead to long term loyal relationships with current and potential customers. Perhaps you are considering entering a global market and launching the same successes as Citi. Clearly, they identified their mission and found ways to meet the needs of internal and external stakeholders. In the following sections, we will review a few strategies that will enable you the same opportunities.

Its first important to identify your global marketing research strategy. Begin by determining if there is a market demand for your product or service. Who are the present competitors within the community that you which to implement your business and what might you offer that is different and more effective. You also need to develop a market forecast, this will help you to determine projections concerning your potential market. If you already have connections with trustworthy business persons in other communities, it would be vital to get their input. Speak with them to learn more about the community. Before taking a deeper dive into the global economy, its important to thoroughly research the likelihood of business success. Through the marketing research process, you can identify which international audiences would benefit most from your product or service.

THE MARKETING RESEARCH PROCESS

The Marketing Research Process is defined as multi-step method that helps business professionals to identify new business ventures while evaluating their effectiveness. The following figure depicts the critical stages included in the Marketing Research Process.

Figure 1.

Each task is fundamental and should be carefully crafted when determining if a particular service or product should be offered in a certain country. Marketing is a function established to deliver value to a customer base. Before delivering a quality product or service to a potential group, businesses must discover a need. If a competitor presently delivers the same product or service that you offer within the community that you wish to expand into, take time to discover what is lacking through Step One of the Marketing Research Process. The first step, identify the problem , helps leaders to identify research goals and objectives. What do you hope to learn as a result of this strategy? Do you want to determine the number of customers earning a certain annual earning who are interested in purchasing your product? Whatever you choose to learn, make sure that you are specific. It is also critical during this stage that a research question is developed. Developing a research question is the second step. This will help your company to perfectly offer your product or service to the specific demographic that you wish to reach. Questions can be tailored to the specific customers that you want to reach or how best to segment your market. You can use these questions to interview potential customers. You could even turn these questions into a survey.