Paper: International Marketing Research Code: 3/10/5/B

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Specific Instructions:

 There are four Questions in this assignment. The student should answer all the four questions. Marks allotted 100.

 Each Question carries equal marks (25 marks) unless specified explicitly

1. List the major challenges faced by researchers in obtaining information for

International Marketing Research.

"A well known exotic jewelry co. in India thinks that their products have a market in
European Countries. Explain the steps involved in market selection and advise how
the co. should proceed to identify the market.

Assuming that the research finds that France is the best market to start with, what is
the best mode of entry that can be adopted by the jewelry co. List any assumption
that have been made to arrive at the mode of entry. What are the information
requirements for the jewelry co. in France, during the:

a) Entry Phase.

b) Growth Phase, and

c) Maturity Phase.

Ans:

International Marketing Research follows the same path as domestic research, but there
are a few more problems that may arise. Customers in international markets may have
very different customs, cultures, and expectations from the same company. In this case,
secondary information must be collected from each separate country and then
combined, or compared. This is time consuming and can be confusing. International
Marketing Research relies more on primary data rather than secondary information.
Gathering the primary data can be hindered by language, literacy and access to
technology.

Businesses preparing to compete in the 21st century are increasingly confronted with
the task of crafting strategies that anticipate and respond to the rapid pace of change in
global markets. As a result, their information needs are changing and becoming ever
more complex and diverse. Timely, relevant information is essential to provide an
adequate basis for day-to-day decision-making as well to chart the firm’s path in an
increasingly fast paced, turbulent and competitive environment.
Information needs are changing in both developed and developing countries.
Established markets in industrialized countries are becoming more geographically
integrated as direct vertical links and information flows are established between
customers, retailers and suppliers. As a result, there is a growing need to conduct
research spanning country boundaries, in order to identify regional or global market
segments, or to examine opportunities for integrating and better co-ordinating strategies
across national boundaries. At the same time, speed in collection and interpretation of
results from multiple and geographically diverse sources become imperative in order to
anticipate market change and devise an effective response strategy.
As firms push the geographic frontiers of their operations to take advantage of
growing opportunities, they need to collect information from a broader and more diverse
range of markets. Increasingly, this entails conducting research in unfamiliar and distant
markets in the Far East, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. This in turn poses a
number of challenges, not only in collecting accurate and reliable information on existing
behavior patterns in an expeditious and cost effective fashion, but also in predicting
response to new and unfamiliar stimuli, and interpreting the implications for marketing
strategy.

The Changing Global Environment, Evolution of international marketing research

To understand the research needs of the 21st century it is important to consider how
they have changed over the past four decades. In the 60s and 70s, many U.S. firms,
faced by slackening rates of growth in their domestic markets, began to venture into
international markets. Japanese and European firms with smaller domestic markets also
expanded internationally in order to broaden the geographic scope of their operations
and take advantage of potential economies of scale or to respond to foreign competition
entering their domestic markets (Douglas and Craig, 1989). In this initial phase of
international market entry, firms were mostly concerned with collecting information to
identify and assess market opportunities in other countries to determine which markets
to enter, how to position products in these markets and how far to adapt different
elements of the marketing mix to local market conditions.
At this phase of the firm’s expansion, the country was typically used as the unit of
analysis for the research design, for developing the sampling frame, as well as for data
collection. Due to economic, political, linguistic and cultural barriers, the country was the
focal point of entry decisions. Equally, the firm’s international operations were often
organized on a country-by-country basis. Marketing research agencies were also
typically national organizations, with relatively few having the capability to conduct
research on a multi-country basis. Most secondary data as well as sampling lists were
available on a national basis.
As, however, firms have expanded internationally and product markets are
becoming increasingly integrated worldwide, the key decision issues facing the firm in
the 90s have changed dramatically. As a result, research and information needs have
changed and broadened. In industrialized nations such as North America, Europe and
Japan, regional market integration and the removal of barriers between countries, the
growth of a regional and global market infrastructure as well as increased mobility of
consumers have created pressures to consolidate and integrate marketing strategy
across countries. Consequently, increased attention is focused on conducting studies
which cover multiple countries examining differences and similarities in behavior and
response patterns across countries.
At the same time, as growth in these markets slows, future market potential lies in
emerging market economies, with countries such as China and India accounting for
over one-third of the world’s population. The explosive population growth in these
countries, together with the opening up of markets in the former Soviet Union makes
entry into these markets mandatory for firms aspiring to be global leaders in the future.
In entering these markets, as in initially entering international markets, firms need to
collect information to assess potential opportunities, to determine how to position, price,
promote and distribute their products and brands, whether to develop local variants, etc.

The word jewellery is derived from the word jewel, which was Anglicized from the Old
French "jouel" circa the 13th century. Further tracing leads back to the Latin word
"jocale", meaning plaything. Jewellery is one of the oldest forms of body adornment;
recently found 100,000 year-old beads made from Nassarius shells, are thought to be
the oldest known jewellery.

Jewellery is sometimes seen as wealth storage or functionally as holding a garment or

hair together. It has from very early times also been regarded as a form of personal
adornment. The first pieces of jewellery were made from natural materials, such as
bone, animal teeth, shell, wood and carved stone. More exotic jewellery was probably
made for wealthy people or as indications of social status. In some cases people were
buried with their jewellery.

Designing Marketing Research Plan for French Jewellery market

• Products and Services In the demand driven approach, research should discover
and describe the products and services required by the target group. For the
supply driven approach, research should gather user feedback on products and
services. Some of the areas for feedback include usefulness of products, ways in
which information is applied by users, ease of use, suitability of format or
medium, perceived quality and reliability of information supplied, suggestions for
improvement.

• Place or Distribution Channels and Service Centres The specific objective here is
to discover the ease or difficulty of obtaining the products and services, and the
timeliness of the information supplied. Included here is the quality of technical
 support for products, computer-based databases, CD-ROMs, and dial-in
information services.

• Pricing The objective is to appraise the price which users are willing to pay for
the products and services. In some instances, it is useful to find out the total
budget which users and buyers set aside for acquiring information products and
services. This is especially useful in the demand-driven approach where,
managers have the luxury of developing product(s) from scratch and pricing them
according to what the market is willing to bear. The concept of price should not
be taken only to mean the money which users will have to pay to obtain the
particular product you are selling. With many new information products, the total
cost of using your product may be significantly more than your price. For
example, a user buying his/her first CD-ROM will, very likely, have to invest at
the same time in hardware such as a CD-ROM drive, sound and video cards, a
more powerful computer before he/she can access the information on the disc
which you are selling to her. The concept of price also need not refer only to
money. For example, a publisher who plans to bring out a large odd-size
publication must consider the difficulties (the intangible cost) of shelving such an
item in libraries, book stores and distributors' warehouses, for the many years
that the title will be in circulation among the intended readers.

• Promotional Opportunities Under this specific objective, research should aim to

find out the media and other communication channels favoured by users and
buyers in acquiring information. What publications and periodicals do they read
regularly? Which radio stations and television channels do they tune in to? Who
do they consult with? Which meetings, conferences, trade fairs do they attend?
What associations are they members of? Which stores or distributors do they
make purchases from? And when they do all of the above? The information so
gathered should help in designing the media-mix for promotional activities.
 2. What are some ethical problems that marketing researchers face in
designing and conducting field studies in different countries?

Most companies have either entire International Marketing Research studies

or a portion of entire studies, such as interviewing, done by outside suppliers.
What factors will determine whether a firm decides to "Make or buy" i.e. to
conduct study themselves or contract out most or all of it?

A firm in US has designed an innovative piece of equipment to help physically

disabled to communicate. The equipment incorporates a system of electric
signals remitted with a slight turn of the head. This product is currently
successful in the US among the health-care organisations. Acting as
marketing consultant of the firm, suggest a course of action to help the firm
bring the product in the international market specially in the Indian market.

Ans:

The term market research encompasses a number of activities that are designed to
connect marketers to consumers through information gathering and evaluation. Market
research provides businesses with information about their customers, their competitors,
and their overall industry. It is commonly used to identify marketing problems and
opportunities, as well as to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of marketing
strategies. Small business owners, because of their usually limited financial resources,
have a particular need for adequate, accurate, and current information to aid them in
making decisions. Market research can help entrepreneurs evaluate the feasibility of a
start-up venture before investing a great deal of time and capital, for example, as well
as assist them in effectively marketing their goods and services. Employing such
marketing strategies as market segmentation and product differentiation would be
nearly impossible without first conducting market research.

Although market research can be costly, it is often even more costly to make erroneous
decisions based upon bad or inadequate information. In fact, an average business
spends between 25 and 50 percent of its annual marketing budget on research
activities. Conducting large-scale market research in-house is not possible for many
small businesses, since it requires a comprehensive understanding of the problem to be
addressed, the market, and the application of research procedures. But there is a great
deal of helpful information available to entrepreneurs who know where to look, and
there are many consultants, advertising firms, and market research specialists who offer
their services to small businesses for a fee.

The information gathered through market re-search can be divided into two main
categories. The first category—primary information—generally does not exist in a
coherent form before the marketer gathers it in response to a particular question or
problem. The most common methods of gathering primary market research information
are through direct mail, telemarketing, and personal interviews. The other category—
secondary information—has already been compiled and organized by a source other
than the marketer. Rather than looking at a specific marketing problem faced by an
individual company, secondary information generally tracks trends within a market, an
industry, a demographic group, or a geographic region. A great deal of valuable
secondary information is available to small business owners at little or no cost. Some
possible sources of secondary market research information include government reports,
trade association records, newspaper and magazine surveys, university-sponsored
research, local chamber of commerce records, on-line services, and competitors' annual
reports.

Market research can provide small business owners with the information they need to
answer a wide range of questions, including: Who are my customers? Where are they
located? How much and how often will they buy? and What product attributes do they
prefer? Given the importance of market research—and its potential cost—experts
recommend that businesses follow a step-by-step approach in order to gain the most
benefits from their research activieties.

The first step in the market research process is to define the marketing problem to be
addressed. Next, a marketer should determine what information is needed to solve the
problem, as well as what sources should be used to acquire the information. Many
businesses make a preliminary investigation at this early stage in order to give their
definition of the problem more focus and to develop tentative answers that can be
tested during the next stage of the process. The third step involves planning the
research. This step includes selecting the techniques to be used for gathering data and
deciding on an appropriate group, or sample, to be included in the research. Fourth, a
marketer actually gathers the necessary data. The fifth step involves analyzing and
interpreting the information that has been gathered. Finally, the marketer reaches a
conclusion about the marketing problem and translates the findings into changes in the
firm's overall marketing strategy.

There are three general types of market research suppliers that can assist small
businesses with one or more steps in the above process. Some firms specialize in
conducting overall market research that they release to a variety of clients for a fee.
This type of firm includes syndicated services such as A.C. Nielsen and Company,
which provides viewership ratings for national television programs. There are also
custom market research firms that handle all aspects of the process, from defining the
marketing problem and designing research techniques to evaluating results and
formulating new marketing strategies. In contrast, smaller, specialty line suppliers
usually concentrate on one aspect of the process. Marketers who wish to secure the
services of a market research firm usually obtain bids from a number of suppliers. The
following sections provide more information about the various types of market research
that such suppliers perform.

Types of Market Research

AUDIENCE RESEARCH. Research on who is listening, watching, and reading is

important to marketers of television and radio programs and print publications—as well
as to advertisers who wish to reach a certain target audience with their message.
Television and radio ratings demonstrate the popularity of shows and determine how
much stations can charge for advertising spots during broadcasts. Publication
subscription lists, which are audited by tabulating companies to ensure their veracity,
are important in determining the per page rate for advertising.
PRODUCT RESEARCH. Product research includes simple, in-person research such as
taste tests conducted in malls and in the aisles of grocery stores, as well as elaborate,
long-term "beta testing" of high-tech products by selected, experienced users. The
objective of product research can be simple; for example, a company may tweak the
taste of an existing product, then measure consumers' reactions to see if there is room
in the market for a variation. It can also be more extensive, as when a company
develops prototypes of proposed new products that may be intended for market
introduction months down the road.

In product research, as in all market research, there is a danger to paying too much
attention to the wrong things. For instance, the introduction of New Coke was based on
the outcome of taste tests that showed the public wanted a sweeter product. But later
an angry public, outraged that Coca-Cola was planning to change the familiar formula,
forced the company to ignore its taste tests and leave the original Coke on the market.
The company had put too much stock in the results of the taste test studies, and had
failed to factor in research that showed consumers were happy with the product as it
was.

BRAND RESEARCH. Brands, the named products that advertising pushes and for
which manufacturers can charge consumers the most money, are always being studied.
Advertisers want to know if consumers have strong brand loyalty ("I'd never buy another
brand, even if they gave me a coupon"); if the brand has any emotional appeal ("My
dear mother used only that brand"); and what the consumer thinks could be improved
about the brand ("If only it came in a refillable container").

Brand research, too, has its perils. Campbell's Soup once convened a focus group
comprised of its best soup customers. One of the findings was that those customers
saw no need for a low-salt alternative soup Campbell's wanted to market. Concerned
that the general public seemed to want low-sodium products, Campbell's retested
groups other than their best customers. This research found a market interested in a
low-sodium soup. The loyal Campbell's customers loved the saltier product, while a
larger group of potential customers preferred the low-salt alternative.
Understanding the impact that cultural influences have on basic values, priorities,
beliefs, and behaviors is of critical importance. Academic researchers must recognize
the likelihood for differences in perceptions when working with participants from diverse
cultural backgrounds. Respect and acknowledgement of community values, differing
worldviews, and ethical practice are salient issues for cross-cultural researchers. Taking
the necessary time to get to know and understand community workings is critical also.
Researchers must recognize that almost all marginalized and minority groups have
shared certain undesirable experiences in common such as prejudice and stereotyping,
socioeconomic and career disadvantages; and struggling to maintain their own ethnic
identity while adapting to life in the dominant culture. Collaboration and consensus,
communication, and negotiating partnerships are necessary considerations for
researchers entering cross-cultural situations. Participatory Action Research (PAR)
methods are particularly appropriate in these contexts.
The preceding issues and implications are designed to enhance knowledge about
cultural differences and to provide appropriate suggestions for possible research design
and methodology with diverse cultures. The hope is to provide researchers with ideas
and direction for cross-cultural research methods that are respectful, synergetic, and
aim to benefit the community.
 3. Do you think that a research design is always necessary before a
research study can be conducted?

In what ways do exploratory, descriptive and casual research designs differ?

How will these differences influence the relative importance of each research
approach at each phase of research development process?

Ans:
Researchers need to be aware that there can be incongruence between their own views
or theoretical frameworks and those of the group or culture in the research project.
Where differences exist between researcher and participant, they must be respected,
and care must be exercised to not project one’s own values onto the research process,
nor judge a participant’s behavior that varies from one’s own culturally sanctioned
standards (Lee, 1995). For example, mental health professionals and researchers have
tended to adopt Western European, largely male cultural definitions of what constitutes
healthy and normal functioning (Thomason, 1999). Self-reliance, self-actualization,
assertiveness, autonomy, in sight, and resistance to stress are seen as some of the
tenets of healthy mental functioning (Sue & Sue, 1990). These are the goals toward
which clients are often encouraged to strive; these qualities are not, however, valued
equally in all cultures. For example, effective healing for First Nations means working on
interconnectedness rather than autonomy, which is often the goal for individual focused
Therapy. Therefore when considering research procedures or instruments across
cultures, it is important to take varied meanings into account (Peavy, 1998). Educational
attainment and achievement is another area that is greatly impacted by cultural
definitions and expectations for success in life and work. For instance, some collectively
oriented cultures view individual educational and vocational achievement as important
only when it positively impacts the group, in contrast to a typical Euro-North American
emphasis on individual growth and goal attainment. When working with participants in a
cross-cultural situation, researchers must be aware of differences related to local
norms, mainstream culture knowledge, language proficiency skills, educational
opportunities, and culturally appropriate role models. Additionally, minority and
marginalized groups face limited access to educational and employment opportunities.
Research interpretation and recommendations can thus be impacted by factors such
access to educational and employment opportunities, or socioeconomic status (Herring,
1999).
 4. "An important point in the process of international marketing
research is that the duplication of research work is to be avoided"- elaborate.
List the different types of primary research and describe them briefly.

What are the various steps to be followed before Primary Data collection for
international marketing research can be started? What are some of the
different methods of collecting primary data?

Ans:

International Marketing Research follows the same path as domestic research, but there
are a few more problems that may arise. Customers in international markets may have
very different customs, cultures, and expectations from the same company. In this case,
secondary information must be collected from each separate country and then
combined, or compared. This is time consuming and can be confusing. International
Marketing Research relies more on primary data rather than secondary information.
Gathering the primary data can be hindered by language, literacy and access to
technology.

The task of marketing research is to provide management with relevant, accurate,

reliable, valid, and current information. Competitive marketing environment and the
ever-increasing costs attributed to poor decision making require that marketing research
provide sound information. Sound decisions are not based on gut feeling, intuition, or
even pure judgment.

Marketing managers make numerous strategic and tactical decisions in the process of
identifying and satisfying customer needs. They make decisions about potential
opportunities, target market selection, market segmentation, planning and implementing
marketing programs, marketing performance, and control. These decisions are
complicated by interactions between the controllable marketing variables of product,
pricing, promotion, and distribution. Further complications are added by uncontrollable
environmental factors such as general economic conditions, technology, public policies
and laws, political environment, competition, and social and cultural changes. Another
factor in this mix is the complexity of consumers. Marketing research helps the
marketing manager link the marketing variables with the environment and the
consumers. It helps remove some of the uncertainty by providing relevant information
about the marketing variables, environment, and consumers. In the absence of relevant
information, consumers' response to marketing programs cannot be predicted reliably or
accurately. Ongoing marketing research programs provide information on controllable
and non-controllable factors and consumers; this information enhances the
effectiveness of decisions made by marketing managers.

There are two main sources of data - primary and secondary. Primary research is
conducted from scratch. It is original and collected to solve the problem in hand.
Secondary research already exists since it has been collected for other purposes. It is
conducted on data published previously and usually by someone else. Secondary
research costs far less than primary research, but seldom comes in a form that exactly
meets the needs of the researcher.

A similar distinction exists between exploratory research and conclusive research.

Exploratory research provides insights into and comprehension of an issue or situation.
It should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme caution. Conclusive research
draws conclusions: the results of the study can be generalized to the whole population.

Exploratory research is conducted to explore a problem to get some basic idea about
the solution at the preliminary stages of research. It may serve as the input to
conclusive research. Exploratory research information is collected by focus group
interviews, reviewing literature or books, discussing with experts, etc. This is
unstructured and qualitative in nature. If a secondary source of data is unable to serve
the purpose, a convenience sample of small size can be collected. Conclusive research
is conducted to draw some conclusion about the problem. It is essentially, structured
and quantitative research, and the output of this research is the input to management
information systems (MIS). Exploratory research is also conducted to simplify the
findings of the conclusive or descriptive research, if the findings are very hard to
interpret for the marketing managers.

Primary Research

Primary research is research used to collect data for a specific task. Types of primary
data collection methods include:

• Personal Observation: The observation of the respondent by a trained observer

or by electronic equipment (camera). The aim is to observe consumer responses
and behaviour to a product or customer service.

• Personal Interviews: Face to face interview between an interviewer and the

respondent at home or in shopping centres.

Advantages of personal interviews

• In-depth answers possible.

• Qualitative data obtained from small sample.
• Observation improves accuracy.
• Rapport leads to fewer refusals.

Disadvantage of personal interviews

• Cost: Professional Interviewer expensive.

• Interviewer bias.
• Can be slow and time consuming.
• People not at home.
• Invasion of privacy.
• Postal surveys: Mailing or distributing door to door a written questionnaire to a
sample of buyers for their completion at home or at work.

Advantages of postal surveys

 • No travel expenses so economic if good return rate.
• No interviewer Bias
• Anonymous returns
• Can be completed at respondents’ leisure.

Disadvantages of postal surveys

• Low response rate approximately 3%

• Take longer
• Have to be short.
• Questions may be misinterpreted, and there is no interviewer their to guide the
respondent.

• Telephone Surveys: Involves the interviewer contacting the target respondent

and asking them questions and recording responses.

Advantages of telephone surveys

• Easy to administer
• Quick.
• Allows for reaction and some in-depth interviews.
• Questions can be modified.

Disadvantages of telephone surveys

• Professional interviewers are expensive.

• Invasion of privacy.
• Telephone charges can be high.
• Not everyone has a telephone, so not representative of the population.
• High non-response rate because of engaged/no answers, plain refusals.

• Focus Groups: A discussion between six to beight individuals with the aim to
produce qualitative data (opinions and attitudes) on the topic being discussed.
 The topic may be their opinions on a new product the organisation wishes to
introduce. The person who monitors the group is called 'the moderator'

Advantages of focus groups

• Generates information helpful in structuring consumer questionnaires.

• Provides background information on product.
• Secures impressions on new product concepts.

Disadvantage of focus groups

• The group may have one or some dominant people within it who may actually
dissuade some other group member to make a full contribution.
• Difficult for moderator to interrupt once a discussion gets going.
• Bias from moderator.