International Marketing 15th edition Philip R. Cateora, Mary C. Gilly, and John L. Graham Overview 4 • The importance of culture to an international marketer • Definition and origins of culture • The elements of culture • The impact of cultural change and cultural borrowing • Strategies of planned and unplanned change Roy Philip 2 Definitions and Origins of Culture 4 • Traditional definition of culture – Culture is the sum of the values, rituals, symbols, beliefs, and thought processes that are learned, shared by a group of people, and transmitted from generation to generation. • Individuals learn culture in three ways – Socialization (growing up) – Acculturation (adjusting to a new culture) – Application (decisions about consumption and production) Roy Philip 3 Origins, Elements, and Consequences of Culture 4 Exhibit 4.4 Roy Philip 4 Geography 4 • Exercises a profound control – Includes climate, topography, flora, fauna, and microbiology – Influenced history, technology, economics, social institutions and way of thinking • The ideas of Jared Diamond and Philip Parker – Jared Diamond • Historically innovations spread faster east to west than north to south – Philip Parker • Reports strong correlations between latitude (climate) and per capita GDP Roy Philip 5 History 4 • History - Impact of specific events can be seen reflected in technology, social institutions, cultural values, and even consumer behavior – Tobacco was the original source of the Virginia colony’s economic survival in the 1600s – American values and institutions influenced by Adam Smith’s book The Wealth of Nations – Military conflicts in the Middle East brought about new cola alternatives such as Mecca Cola, Muslim Up, and Arab Cola. Roy Philip 6 Social Institutions 4 • School – the most important social institution – Direct link between a nation’s literacy rate and its economic development – Difficult to communicate with a market when a company must depend on symbols and pictures • The media – it has replaced family time • TV and the Internet • American educational system produces a lower percentage of college graduates than 12 other countries including Russia, Japan, and France Roy Philip 7 Social Institutions 4 • Government - influences the thinking and behaviors of adult citizens – Propaganda through media – Passage, promulgation, promotion, and enforcement of laws • Corporations - most innovations are introduced to societies by companies – Spread through media – Change agents Roy Philip 8 Elements of Culture (1 of 4) • • • • • 4 Values Rituals Symbols Beliefs Thought processes Roy Philip 9 Elements of Culture (2 of 4) 4 • Cultural values – Geert Hofstede – Individualism/Collectivism Index • Reflects the preference of behavior that promotes one’s self interest – Power Distance Index • Measures the tolerance of social inequality – Uncertainty Avoidance Index • Measures the tolerance of uncertainty and ambiguity – Cultural Values and Consumer Behavior Roy Philip 10 Hofstede’s Indexes Language, and Linguistic Distance 4 Exhibit 4.6 Roy Philip 11 Elements of Culture (3 of 4) 4 • Rituals – patterns of behavior and interaction that are learned and repeated – Marriages , funerals, baptisms, graduations • Symbols – Language • Linguistic distance – relationship between language and international marketing – Aesthetics as symbols • Insensitivity to aesthetic values can offend, create a negative impression, and, in general, render marketing efforts ineffective or even damaging Next Roy Philip 12 Language 4 • According to www.ethnologue.com: – A total of 7,413 known living languages exist in the world – 311 being spoken in the U.S.; 297 in Mexico, 13 in Finland, and 241 in China – EU has 20 official languages – India alone has 452 known languages! Back Roy Philip 13 Elements of Culture (4 of 4) 4 • Beliefs – Superstitions play a large role in a society’s belief system and therefore, to make light of superstitions in other cultures can be an expensive mistake – The number 13 in the western hemisphere is considered unlucky, where as the number 8 in China connotes “prosperity” – The practice of “Feng Shui” • Thought processes – Difference in perception between the East and the West • Focus vs. big-picture Roy Philip 14 Similarities – An Illusion 4 • A common language does not guarantee a similar interpretation of word or phrases – Difference between British and American English – http://www.woodlandsjunior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/americanb ritish/index.html • Just because something sells in one country doesn’t mean it will sell in another – Cultural differences among member of European Union a product of centuries of history Roy Philip 15