International Marketing Research: Practices and Challenges

1. International Marketing Research:Practices and Challenges Dana-Nicoleta Lascu Chapter 6

2. Chapter Objectives • Define international marketing research and provide a description of its immense scope; offer examples of each type of research conducted in international marketing • Describe the steps involved in the international marketing research process while addressing, for each step, the international constraints involved • Introduce the concept of decision support systems for international marketing and describe the sales forecasting process

3. International Marketing Research • International marketing managers need to constantly monitor the different forces affecting their international operations • International marketing research is especially complex

4. International Marketing Research International marketing research is the systematic design, collection, recording, analysis, interpretation, and reporting of information pertinent to a particular marketing decision facing a company operating internationally.

5. Research of Industry, Market Characteristics, and Trends • Acquisition analyses • Diversification analyses • Market-share analyses • Export research

6. International Buyer Behavior Research • Brand preferences • Brand attitudes • Brands awareness studies • Purchase behavior studies • Consumer segmentation studies

7. International Product Research • Concept development and testing studies • Brand name generation and testing • Product testing • Competitive product studies • Packaging design studies • Test marketing #1

8. International Distribution Research • Import/export analyses • Channel performance and coverage • Plant/warehouse location studies

9. International Promotion Research • Studies of premiums, coupons, and deals • Advertising effectiveness research • Local media research • Studies pertaining to personal selling activities • Sales Force Compensation • Quota • Territory

10. International Pricing Research • Studies projecting demand • Currency and counter trade studies • Studies of inflation rates and pricing • Studies of negotiation tactics

11. The International Marketing Research Process • STEP 1Define the international research problem and agree on the research objectives • Exploratory Research • Descriptive Research • Causal Research • STEP 2Set specific objectives

12. The International Marketing Research Process, continued • STEP 3Develop the International Research Plan • STEP 4Define Information Sources • Secondary Data • Researchers must determine if the information is available, and, if so, how reliable it is • Internal data is useful only if company has collected similar info from relevant respondents in a country with similar environment

13. Secondary Data Constraints • Conceptual Equivalence • Concepts have different meanings in different cultural environments • Functional Equivalence • Products themselves may be used for different purposes in different country environments

14. Secondary Data Constraints, continued • Availability, Reliability,andValidity • Accuracy of secondary data can be questionable: Published statistics may be unreliable • Sources of reliable data: • World Bank • United Nations Development Program • Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) • Euromonitor

15. Primary Data • Information collected for a specific purpose, to address the problem at hand. • The costs of collecting primary data in foreign markets are likely to be much higher given the lack of an appropriate marketing research infrastructure

16. Primary Data Research Approaches • Qualitative research has been particularly useful as a first step in studying international marketing phenomena. • Focus Groups • Observation • Constraints: Responses can be affected by culture, individuals may act differently if they know they are being observed.

17. Primary Data Research Approaches, continued • Quantitative research are more structured, involving either descriptive research approaches, such as survey research, or causal research approaches, such as experiments. • Content Analysis • Survey Research • Experimental Research • Constraints: Respondent factors, infrastructure factors

18. Data Collection • STEP 5Design Data Collection Instrument • Emic instruments measure phenomena specific to each culture. • Etic instruments measure the same phenomenon in different cultures. • Constraints: Translation; Instrument Reliability; Reluctance to answer certain questions

19. Data Collection, continued • STEP 6Decide on the Sampling Plan • Sample Unit • Sample Size • Sampling Procedure • STEP 7Collect, Analyze, and Interpret Data

20. Decision Support Systems for Global Marketing • A coordinated collection of data, systems, tools, and techniques, complemented by supporting software and hardware designed for the gathering and interpretation of business and environmental data

21. Sales Forecasting • Sales Force Composite Estimates • Personal observations and expectations of the local sales force • Jury of Expert Opinion • Opinions of different experts about future demand • The Delphi Method • Experts to estimate market performance; findings are aggregated, and experts are queried again, in light of aggregate responses

22. Sales Forecasting, continued • Time Series and Econometric Models • Use data of past performance to predict future market demand • Analogy Methods • Estimation method that relies on developments and findings in markets • With similar levels of economic development, or • Where the product is in the same market development stage, or • In markets which share similar cultural characteristics

23. Sales Forecasting, continued • Point of Sale Research • Made with the help of store scanners, in markets where they are available • Involve comprehensive store audits

24. Chapter Summary • Defined international marketing research • Described steps involved in the international marketing research process and related international constraints • Discussed marketing decision support systems and international sales forecasting