GLOBAL MARKETING CAN be described as a situation whereby a company or companies seek to promote their products or services worldwide so as to increase their profitability. In a rapidly changing economic environment, companies are seeking to expand their operations driven by competition and the need to take advantage of economies of scale. It should be noted that global marketing is a not a revolutionary process, but an evolutionary process, due to the various dynamics involved in expansion. There are four steps involved in the shift from domestic marketing to global marketing.
The first step is where companies are involved in domestic marketing. In this stage, companies are focused on the home market. Although the companies are successful in the short term, they may not be successful in the long term. The second step involves the company having a domestic focus but expanding its market to include exporting. The third step involves companies emphasizing more on the exporting of products. In this step, the company adapts to the international environment so that it can successfully compete with other companies. In the last step of the evolution process, the company develops a full global strategy, integrating a number of strategies into it operations. These strategies include extension, creation and adaption.
These stages may be quick in some companies, while in others, the changes may take a long time. Believe it or not, one of the most important global marketing techniques is the use of social media. The Internet has provided a wealth of opportunities for businesses. In addition, numerous people interact through social network sites, e.g. Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and Facebook. It so follows that a business can take advantage of these interactions so as to interact with more individuals and distribute information about its services and/or products. Consequently, many people the world over are bound to be aware of what the company is offering, thus driving up sales.
Another important global marketing technique that a business may use is research and analysis. Before venturing into new markets, it’s important for the company to know about the needs of consumers in the potential markets. Secondly, research ensures that a company’s roll-out of a product or services is bound to be successful.
Furthermore, another global marketing strategy is that the company should have the right mix of the four P’s of marketing. These P’s include price, product, placement and promotion. In terms of product, the company must ensure that each product is best suited for the place in which it’s being sold, taking into account factors like culture.
Secondly, the price of the product must also be suitable; this is relatively self explanatory—not too high and not too low. Placement refers to how the product is distributed in the market in relation to other products. It so follows that the distribution of the product in the market should be in line with the distributional channels of other similar products in that country. Promotion refers to all activities undertaken to make consumers aware of the availability of the product in the market. A business should ensure that information about the product is conveyed in a clear and concise manner to the consumers. Other global marketing strategies include competitive strategies, global sourcing and strategic alliances, among others.
