International Marketing Research
International Marketing Research
International Marketing Research
Introduction
Information is the key component in developing successful marketing strategies.
Information needed on market information for decisions about product, promotion, distribution, and price.
A marketer must find the most accurate and reliable data possible within the limits imposed by time, cost, and the present state of the art.
Marketing Research
Marketing research is traditionally defined as the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data to provide information useful in marketing decision making. Research processes and methods are same whether applied in Columbus, Ohio, or Colombo, Sri Lanka. International marketing research involves two additional complications: First, information must be communicated across cultural boundaries. Second, the environments in which research tools are applied are often different in foreign markets.
Foreign market research is the broader scope than domestic Research can be divided into three types based on information needs: (1) general information about the country, area, and/or market; (2) information necessary to forecast future marketing requirements by anticipating social, economic, consumer, and industry trends within specific markets or countries; and (3) specific market information used to make product, promotion, distribution, and price decisions and to develop marketing plans
5. Analyze, interpret, and summarize the results. 6. Effectively communicate the results to decision makers.
Begin with a definition of the research problem and the establishment of specific research objectives.
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. Once the problem is adequately defined and research objectives established, the researcher must determine the availability of the information needed. Problems of availability and use of secondary data Availability of data on foreign markets may be difficult to find. Problems with the reliability and comparability of data.
3. How were the data collected? (methodology) 4. Are the data internally consistent and logical in light of known data sources or market factors?
Often the market researcher must collect primary datathat is, data collected specifically for the particular research project at hand
It is also used where interest is centered on gaining an understanding of a market, rather than quantifying relevant aspects
Most problems in collecting primary data in international marketing research stem from cultural differences among countries. Inability of respondents to communicate their opinions to inadequacies in -questionnaire translation
Other problems of gathering primary data include: (1) Ability to Communicate Opinions: 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 (2) Willingness to Respond: Cultural differences offer the best explanation for the unwillingness or the inability of many to respond to research surveys
The greatest problem in sampling stems from the lack of adequate demographic data and available lists from which to draw meaningful samples
The kinds of problems encountered in drawing a random sample include the following: (1) No officially recognized census of population. (2) No other listings that can serve as sampling frames. (3) Incomplete and out-of-date telephone directories. (4) No accurate maps of population centers. Thus, no cluster (area) samples can be developed.
Multicultural research involves dealing with countries that have different languages, economies, social structures, behavior, and attitude patterns An important point to keep in mind when designing research to be applied across cultures is to ensure comparability and equivalency of results Such differences may mean that different research methods should be applied in individual countries
For many companies the Internet provides a new and increasingly important medium for conducting a variety of international marketing research Different uses for the Internet in international research: (1) Online surveys (2) Online focus groups (3) Web visitor tracking (4) Advertising measurement (5) Customer identification systems (6) E-mail marketing lists
In assessing current product demand and forecasting future demand, reliable historical data are required
Given the greater uncertainties and data limitations associated with foreign markets, two methods of forecasting demand are particularly suitable: (1) Expert Opinion: In this method, experts such as sales managers or outside consultants and government officials are polled for their opinions about market size and growth rates (2) Analogy: This assumes that demand for a product develops in much the same way in all countries as comparable economic development occurs in each country