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Final exams are around the corner and another
semester is about to end. And this week in college the curriculum in
my marketing management class is centered on global marketing and the
new, global economy (which of course is primarily knowledge-based).
Undeniably, my students were quick to point out that the catalyst,
which is "shrinking" the world and giving new meaning to the
expression "the global marketplace," is certainly the Internet.
When we develop an online business we quickly realize that we're no
longer subjected to the traditional limitations of location,
communication and market cycles. The Internet offers new opportunities
and new tools that were once nonexistent in the brick-and-mortar
world. However, while global marketing in the traditional sense
requires a lot of planning, resources and time, and since online
marketing cuts a lot of that fat, many tend to think that no careful
thought is required when going "virtual." Not entirely so -- and
here's why.
Of course market entry barriers have been lowered due to the emergence
of the web, but there remains certain things we need to carefully
investigate, take into account and plan when we do go online. If one's
target market is primarily North American, the need for such strategic
thinking may not be so evident at first. And oftentimes, such a need
is easily ignored. But down the road things may change. And the web
*is* a fertile ground for change.
More than likely, over time an online
business will encounter a new set of challenges of which its owners
may have never thought. Things like taxes, laws, cultures, politics,
tariffs and so on, from another country in which one wants to conduct
business, can harm a business if not properly researched. And to
discuss these at length would require several textbooks. For now,
let's stick to the topic of marketing in a global, Internet-related
context.
Every country has its own unique set of advertising laws, customs and
values. Since I'm not a lawyer I can only guess that going online is
not a problem unless business is conducted in a country in which one
breaks any of its regulations. (In fact, new legal precedents are
being set almost each day.)
Moreover, certain marketing approaches may not necessarily break any
laws but may be considered unethical or outright insulting to a
specific culture. Admittedly, it would be quite a challenge (and
expensive) for a small business to adapt one's marketing. So the
basics would certainly be to take a careful look at one's target
market and the potential growth of one's online business.
How can one's online marketing be considered unethical let alone
insulting? A friend once told me that, in Singapore, chewing gum in
public is forbidden. So would marketing a new brand of chewing gum
online, and selling it to the Singapore market, break any laws? Maybe.
Maybe not. In other countries, I've been told that showing a woman's
bare legs, above the kneecaps (and no more), can be considered as
pornography. And pornography in some Asian countries, namely Japan, is
exceedingly legislated.
Here are more examples. Would
http://www.pigfarmer.com/, a site selling pork, do well in
Muslim populated countries? Would
http://www.fcuk.com/,
which really stands for "First Consultants UK," do well in purist
countries? (In fact, the site is actually being disputed in the High
Court of England and Wales. The domain name is also being disputed by
French fashion chain "French Connection UK," which was also charged by
the UK authorities recently because one of its storefronts displayed
the acronym "FCUK.")
These are things to consider. Arguably, some of these examples are
quite extreme. And attempting to follow every single law, in every
single country, is impractical and next to impossible. But the most
common errors committed by newly globalized businesses are
translations (or the lack thereof) of their advertising, which have
drove some companies to the brink of bankruptcy.
Here are some true yet funny examples. Read the bad marketing
translations at
http://wopr.caltech.edu/~mph/humor/archive1/msg00187.html. In
fact, some of these well-known blunders are pulled right from college
textbooks on marketing, and I've them in my marketing classes.
While these may bring a chuckle or two, it is nonetheless important to
ensure one's online marketing appeals to a global market -- if one
wishes to serve the global market. Online a company has definitely
entered the "global marketplace," even though it may only conduct its
business in, say, North America. In the very least for a North
American business, Spanish (for Americans) and French (for Canadians)
-- including language, culture and customs -- should be considered,
even when no translations are made and the international language of
business, being English, is used.
But it's food for thought, anyway. Let me ask you, how does your
product name, advertising or website copy sound to or in another
language?
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