[CONSUMER ETHNOCENTRISM] January 28, 2013

Concept learnt in class: Consumer Ethnocentrism

What is Consumer Ethnocentrism?
Consumer ethnocentrism is a psychological concept that refers to individuals who believe that their country's products are superior to those of other countries. This concept also describes consumers in one country thinking that purchasing products in other countries is immoral or inappropriate because doing so is unpatriotic. It is a common belief amongst groups showing signs of consumer ethnocentrism that purchasing foreign-made products means not supporting the economy and the job market of the home country. It has been found that consumer ethnocentrism is closely correlated to patriotism, socioeconomic conservatism and dogmatism. So, a consumer who holds high ethnocentric beliefs will be dogmatic and not open to foreign cultures and as such will have an unfavourable attitude towards foreign products.

How this concept can be exploited by the marketers:

The concept of "consumer ethnocentrism" is designed to capture individual consumer cognitions and emotions as they relate to product offerings from other countries. If the domestic market is ethnocentric, the companies can play up its ties to that country in advertising and promotions. When operating abroad in ethnocentric countries, the companies have to minimize the ties to their home country. The can do so by operating a foreign subsidiary under a different name and with a different marketing campaign that focuses on your ties to the local country. An insight into consumer ethnocentrism will help the companies to maximize the benefits of ethnocentrism while minimizing its drawbacks.

An Example:
Market in discussion: Beverage industry [Beer]

Brand in discussion: Budweiser(Anheuser-Busch) Budweiser (Anheuser- Busch) is a great example of a brand that has used ethnocentrism to its advantage. From the very beginning, Budweiser projected itself as an American brand in order to relate itself to the American way of life. The great American hero for the great American hero print ad in the late 1960 was one such attempt [http://www.flickr.com/photos/brookston/4817122640/]. Moreover, in its commercials, Budweiser has showcased the basic American beliefs of individualism, freedom and patriotism. By understanding the linkages between these beliefs and the desire of the people to promote
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[CONSUMER ETHNOCENTRISM] January 28, 2013 local products (studies on ethnocentrism show that American people think that it is important to support domestic products because it helps the economy and the people around them), the company positioned itself as The Great American Lager. Budweiser, over the years, has used several clever commercials to attach itself with the American way of living. The latest in the series of the commercials is the Wassup commercial [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDTZCgsZGeA]. This links baseball to the Bud so as to say that the game is incomplete without the Budweiser beer. Budweiser also tried to connect to the American people by paying homage to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the country [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3eQmzw6n3k]. In another marketing campaign, Budweiser used the red, white and blue of the American flag on the beer cans on the 4th of July to mark the independence day of USA. [http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff212/brewedforthought/Other/American-Beermed.jpg] [http://www.tasty-takes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Budweiser-Patriotic-Can.jpg] What was Budweisers strategy in other countries? To try to reduce the American quotient of the brand and associate itself with the foreign country. Two examples have been given below : To become big in England and Europe, Budweiser again took to sports to gain a favourable opinion. What it did was associate itself with football, a game people in England live and die for. Association with FA cup (one of the most prestigious football cups in England) to patronize the English fans and association with FIFA in which they did not focus on the American aspect(because English people have been found to be ethnocentric in nature) was some of the ways they tried and succeeded to a great extent. In one of the campaigns, Budweiser came up with a way to connect with the Canadian people using sports as a means.[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0qZYqdsYAg]. Ice Hockey being so big in Canada was a nice way to connect with the Canadian people. Some of the other print ads of this company through which the company tried to link itself to the home country can be seen at: [http://brookstonbeerbulletin.com/tag/budweiser/page/8/]

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[CONSUMER ETHNOCENTRISM] January 28, 2013

How this concept could be used by a brand in the Indian context:

This approach can be useful in some industry which is dominated by foreign players like the denim industry. The apparel industry in India is flooded with products from multi nationals like Levis Strauss and Co, Pepe Jeans, Lee Cooper etc. Most of the Indian brands also focus on the western outlook. So, a new Indian brand which wants to establish itself and get some market share can target the Indian people with high ethnocentric beliefs. India has a huge section of people living in semi-urban and rural areas with high aspirational values. But these people do not have the high disposable income to buy the highly priced denim. An Indian brand can penetrate this market by linking itself to an Indian celebrity (trust is an important factor in the Indian markets) and emphasizing ethnicity of the brand to draw out the patriotic sentiments of the people. Something on the lines of what Siyaram suiting did combining ethnocentrism with aspiration: young, educated and highly motivated with a strong orientation towards the country. Siyaram also made Vijendra Singh(the boxer who brough glory to the country by winning the bronze medal winner at the Olympics) their brand ambassador again trying to exploit the nationalistic beliefs of the Indian consumers. Moreover, in the commercials also the brand tries to portray the Indianness by linking it to the ethnic routes of the country. The marketing campaign coming back to home coming back to Siyaram was to focus on the ethnocentric beliefs of the Indian consumers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDqKaMH5fcI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPtK2mmGlhE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WWFpOf1QGA

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