International Marketing

COURSE 4

INTERNATIONAL MARKETING RESEARCH

 TOPICS

1. The Research Process in International Marketing

2. Defining the Problem and Establishing Research Objectives
3. Problems of Availability and Use of Secondary Data
4. Quantitative and Qualitative Research
5. Problems of Gathering Primary Data
6. Sampling in Field Surveys
7. Multicultural Research: A Special Problem
8. Research on the Internet: A Growing Opportunity
9. Estimating Market Demand
 WHAT IS MARKETING
RESEARCH?
The Research Process in International Marketing

MARKETING
RESEARCH

 the systematic gathering, recording, and

analyzing of data to provide information useful
to marketing decision making
The Research Process in International Marketing

International marketing research

involves two complications

The environments within which

Information must be
the research tools are applied are
communicated across
often different in foreign
cultural boundaries
markets
The Research Process in International Marketing

 The basic difference between domestic and foreign market

research is the broader scope needed for foreign
research, necessitated by higher levels of uncertainty

general information about the

country, area, and/or market
Three types of
information necessary to
information needed in
forecast future marketing
international marketing
requirements
research

specific market information used to

make product, promotion, distribution, and
price decisions and to develop marketing plans
The Research Process in International Marketing

Types of information
 General data on growth in the economy
(inflation, business cycle trends)

 Profitability analysis for the division’s

products
Economic and
demographic  Specific industry economic studies

 Population trends (migration, immigration, and

aging)

 Key economic indicators

The Research Process in International Marketing

Cultural, sociological, and

political climate

Overview of market
conditions

Summary of the
technological environment

 Competitive situation
International Marketing Research Process
Defining the Problem and Establishing Research Objectives

The research process should begin with:

 a definition of the research problem

What new offerings could we introduce to our existing customers?
 What improvements could we make to existing offerings to improve
customer satisfaction, and increase repeat sales and referrals?
 the establishment of specific research objectives
 To know the level of awareness of a specific brand
 To find consumer motives for buying a specific brand
 To know consumer perception toward a specific brand
Defining the Problem and Establishing Research Objectives

Difficulties in foreign research

1. Unfamiliar environment that tends to cloud problem

definition.
 Researchers either fail to anticipate the influence of the local
culture on the problem or fail to identify the self-reference
criterion (SRC) treat the problem definition as if it were in
the researcher’s home environment
.
 Example

This clouding is a problem that Mattel Inc. ran into headlong.

 The company conducted a coordinated global research program using
focus groups of children in several countries.
 Based on these findings, the firm cut back on customization and ignored
local managers’ advice by selling an unmodified Barbie globally. Not only
was it dangerous to ignore the advice of local managers; it was also
dangerous to ignore parents’ opinions involving toys.
 Sales of blonde Barbie dramatically declined in several foreign markets
following the marketing research error.
Defining the Problem and Establishing Research Objectives

2. Failures to establish problem limits broad enough to include

all relevant variables.
 Information on a far greater range of factors is necessary to
offset the unfamiliar cultural background of the foreign
market
Defining the Problem and Establishing Research Objectives

Consider proposed research about consumption patterns and attitudes toward hot milk-
based drinks.
 In the United Kingdom, hot milk-based drinks are considered to have sleep-inducing,
restful, and relaxing properties and are traditionally consumed prior to bedtime.
 People in Thailand, however, drink the same hot milk-based drinks in the morning on
the way to work and see them as invigorating, energy-giving, and stimulating.
 If one’s only experience is the United States, the picture is further clouded, because
hot milk-based drinks are frequently associated with cold weather, either in the
morning or the evening, and for different reasons each time of day.
The market researcher must be certain the problem definition is
sufficiently broad to cover the whole range of response possibilities and
not be clouded by his or her self-reference criterion.
Problems of Availability and Use of Secondary Data

Availability

Reliability

Comparability
Problems of Availability and Use of Secondary Data
 Availability
Quantity and quality of marketing – related data available are appropriate
for research in USA, Japan and several European countries. In many
countries, substantial data collection has been initiated only recently.
. In general, the availability and accuracy of recorded secondary data
increase as the level of economic development increases.

• There are exceptions; India is at a lower level of economic development

than many countries but has accurate and relatively complete
government-collected data
Problems of Availability and Use of Secondary Data

 Reliability
VALIDATING SECONDARY DATA- As a practical matter, the following questions should
be asked to effectively judge the reliability of secondary data sources
1. Who collected the data? Would there be any reason for purposely misrepresenting the
facts?
2. For what purposes were the data collected?
3. How (by what methodology) were the data collected?
4. Arethe data internally consistent and logical in light of known data sources
or market factors?
Problems of Availability and Use of Secondary Data
 Comparability

 In the less developed countries data can be many years out of date as well as having
been collected on an infrequent and unpredictable schedule.

 Even though many countries are now gathering reliable data, there are generally no
historical series with which to compare the current information.

 A related problem is the manner in which data are collected and reported. Too
frequently, data are reported in different categories or in categories too broad to be of
specific value. The term supermarket , for example, has a variety of meanings around
the world.
 WHAT IS QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH?
 Gathering Primary Data: Quantitative and Qualitative Research
 

 Quantitative Research
 A large number of respondents are asked to reply either verbally or
in writing to structured questions using a specific response format
(such as yes/no) or to select a response from a set of choices

 Questions are designed to obtain specific responses regarding aspects

of the respondents’ behaviour, intentions, attitudes, motives, and
demographic characteristics.
Gathering Primary Data

 provides the marketer with responses that can be presented

with precise estimations.

The structured responses received in a survey can be

summarized in percentages, averages, or other statistics
The typical instrument used is a questionnaire administered by
personal interview, mail, telephone, and over the Internet
Gathering Primary Data: Quantitative and Qualitative
Research

Qualitative Research

 seeks to interpret what the people in the sample are like—their

outlooks, their feelings, the dynamic interplay of their feelings and
ideas, their attitudes and opinions, and their resulting actions.

 is also helpful in revealing the impact of sociocultural factors on

behavior patterns and in developing research hypotheses that
can be tested in subsequent studies designed to quantify the
concepts and relevant relationships uncovered in qualitative data
collection.
 WHICH ARE THE MAIN TOOLS OF
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH?
Gathering Primary Data: Quantitative and Qualitative Research

 The most often used form of qualitative questioning is the

focus group interview, but the researcher could use also in-
depth interviewing of individuals, which can be just as
effective while consuming far fewer resources

 Procter & Gamble has been one of the pioneers of this type of research—
the company has systematically gathered consumer feedback for
some 70 years. It was the first company to conduct in-depth consumer
research in China. In the mid-1990s, P&G began working with the
Chinese Ministry of Health
 WHICH COULD BE THE PROBLEMS IN
GATHERING PRIMARY DATA?
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

the research problem is

well defined
the success of primary research hinges on
the ability of the researcher to get correct
and truthful information
the objectives are properly
formulated

 Most problems in collecting primary data in international marketing

research stem from cultural differences among countries
 range from the inability or unwillingness of respondents to
communicate their opinions to inadequacies in questionnaire
translation.
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Ability to communicate opinions

Willingness to Respond

Sampling in Field Surveys

Language and comprehension

Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Ability to Communicate Opinions

 The ability to express attitudes and opinions about a product or concept

depends on the respondent’s ability to recognize the usefulness and value
of such a product or concept.
 It is difficult for a person to formulate needs, attitudes, and opinions about
goods whose use may not be understood, that are not in common use within
the community, or that have never been available
 The more complex the concept, the more difficult it is to design research that
will help the respondent communicate meaningful opinions and reactions
 
 No company has had more experience in trying to understand consumers with communication
limitations than Gerber. Babies may be their business, but babies often can’t talk, much less fill
out a questionnaire.
Over the years, Gerber has found that talking to and observing both infants and their mothers are
important in marketing research.
 In one study, Gerber found that breast-fed babies adapted to solid food more quickly than bottle-
fed babies because breast milk changes flavor depending on what the mother has eaten.
 In another study, weaning practices were studied around the world.
Indian babies were offered lentils served on a finger.
 In some parts of tropical Asia, mothers give pre-chewed vegetables into their babies’ mouths.
 Hispanic mothers in the United States tend to introduce baby food much
earlier than non-Hispanic mothers and continue it well beyond the first year.

All this research helps the company decide which products are appropriate
for which markets.
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Willingness to Respond
Cultural differences offer the best explanation for the unwillingness or the inability of
many to respond to research surveys - The role of the male, other gender-related issues
can affect willingness to respond.
 - In some countries, the husband not only earns the money but also dictates exactly
how it is to be spent. Because the husband controls the spending, it is he, not the
wife, who should be questioned to determine preferences and demand for many
consumer goods.
 - In some countries, women would never consent to be interviewed by a man or a
stranger.
 - A French Canadian woman does not like to be questioned and is likely to be reticent
in her responses.
 - In some societies, a man would certainly consider it beneath his dignity to
discuss shaving habits or brand preference in personal clothing with anyone—
most emphatically if not a women interviews.
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Sampling in Field Surveys

 The greatest problem in sampling stems from the lack of adequate demographic
data and available lists from which to draw meaningful samples
 In many countries, telephone directories, cross-index street directories, census tract
and block data, and detailed social and economic characteristics of the population being
studied are not available on a current basis
 The effectiveness of various methods of communication (mail, telephone, personal
interview, and Internet) in surveys is limited
 The adequacy of sampling techniques is also affected by a lack of detailed social
and economic information. A lack of detailed information, however, does not prevent
the use of sampling; it simply makes it more difficult
 Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Language and Comprehension


Differences in idiom and the difficulty of exact translation create problems in eliciting
the specific information desired and in interpreting the respondents’ answers

A researcher cannot assume that a translation into one language will sufficient in all
areas where that language is spoken.
For example, a researcher in Mexico requested a translation of the word outlet , as in retail outlet , to
be used in Venezuela. It was read by Venezuelans to mean an electrical outlet, an outlet of a river into
an ocean, and the passageway into a patio.
it will always be necessary for a native speaker of the target country’s language to take the final cut
of any translated material.


In all countries all marketing communications, including research questionnaires, must be written
perfectly . If not, consumers and customers will not respond with accuracy, or even at all.

 
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

 Marketers use three different techniques, back translation, parallel translation, and
decentering
a. Back translation - the questionnaire is translated from one language to
another, and then a second party translates it back into the original, and the
two original language versions are compared
b. Parallel Translation - more than two translators are used for the back
translation; the results are compared, differences discussed, and the most
appropriate translation is selected
c. Decentering - is a hybrid of back translation.
It is a successive process of translation and retranslation of a questionnaire,
each time by a different translator
Problems of Gathering Primary Data

In one study regarding advertising themes, a soft-drink

company wanted to use a very successful Australian
advertising theme, “Baby, it’s cold inside,” in Hong Kong. It
had the theme translated from English into Cantonese by
one translator and then retranslated by another from
Cantonese into English, in which the statement came out as
“Small mosquito, on the inside it is very cold.” Although
“small mosquito” is the colloquial expression for “small
child” in Hong Kong, the intended meaning was lost in
translation.
 Multicultural Research: A Special Problem
 Multicultural studies become more important, as companies become
global marketers

 A company needs to determine to what extent adaptation of the

marketing mix is appropriate
 market characteristics across diverse cultures must be compared
for similarities and differences before a company proceeds with
standardization on any aspect of marketing strategy
 Multicultural Research: A Special Problem

 Different methods may have varying reliabilities in different countries

 Such differences may mean that different research methods should be

applied in individual countries.
 In some cases, the entire research design may have to be different
between countries to maximize the comparability of the results.
For example, in Latin American countries, it may be difficult to attract
consumers to participate in either focus groups or in-depth interviews
because of different views about commercial research and the value of
their time.
 Estimating Market Demand

 In assessing current product demand and forecasting future demand,

reliable historical data are required.
 When the desired statistics are not available, a close approximation can be
made using local production figures plus imports, with adjustments for
exports and current inventory levels.
 Given the greater uncertainties and data limitations associated with foreign
markets, two methods of forecasting demand are particularly suitable for
international marketers: expert opinion and analogy.
Estimating Market Demand
Experts are polled for their opinions about market size and
Expert Opinion growth rates.
 Experts = companies’ own sales managers or outside
consultants and government officials.
 The key in using expert opinion to help forecast demand
is triangulation (comparing estimates produced by
different sources).

Demand for a product develops in much the same way in

Analogy all countries, as comparable economic development
occurs in each country (ex. GDP).
Research on the Internet: A Growing Opportunity

 There are more than 1.8 billion users in more than 200 countries.
 The Internet provides a new and increasingly important medium for
conducting a variety of international marketing research.
o Online surveys and buyer panels
o Online focus groups
o Web visitor tracking - Servers automatically track and time visitors’
travel through Web sites
o Advertising measurement - Servers track links to other sites, and their
usefulness can therefore be assessed
Customer identification systems - Many companies are installing
registration procedures that allow them to track visits and purchases over
time, creating a “virtual panel”.
THANK YOU!