128 CHAPTER 6 MARKETINGINGLOBALMARKETS
strategiesacross markets.Thus, howinternationalmarketingisdefinedandinterpreted
dependsonthelevelof involvementofthecompanyintheinternationalmnxketplace.There-
fore, t hefollowingpossibilitiesexist:
- Domesticmarketing.This involvesthecompanymanipulatinga seriesofcontrol-
lablevariables,suchasprice,advertising, distribution, andtheproduct,ina largely
uncontrollableexternalenvironment that isrradeupofdifferen~economicstruc-
tures,competitors,culturalvalues, andlegalinfrastructurewithinspecificpolitical
orgeographiccountry boundaries.
Internationalmarketing.T hisinvolvesthecompanyoperatingacrossseveralmar-
ketsinwhichnotonlydo theuncontrollable variablesdiffersignificantlybetween
onem arket andanother, butthecontrollablefactor~inthefonnofcostandprice
structures, opportunities foradvertising, anddistributiveinfrastructurearealsolikely
(0differsignificantly.Degreeofcommitmentis expressedasfollows:
,'.Exportmarketing.Inthis casethefirmmarkets itsgoods and/orservicesac,'oss
national/political boundaries.
"Multinationalmarketing.Herethemarketingactivit.esofanorganizationinclude
activities,interests,oroperationsinmorethanonecountry,andwhe,:,ethereis
somekindofinfluenceorcontrolofmarketingac!.ivitiesfromoutsidethecoun-
tryinwhichthegoods orserviceswillactuallybesold.Eachofthesemarkets
is typicallyperceivedtobeindependentanda profitcenterinitsownright.
- Globalmarketing.Theentireorganizationfocusesontheselectionandexplo-
rationof globalmarketingopportunitiesandmarshalsresourcesaroundthe
globewiththeobjectiveofachievinga globalcompetitiveadvantage. Thepri-
maryobjectiveofthecompanyistoachievea synergyintheoveralloper1-
tion, sothatbytakingadvantageofdifferentexchangerates,taxrate,labor
rates , skilllevels, a ndm arketopportunities, theorganizationasa wholewill
begreaterthanthe sumofits parts.I
ThusToyotaM otorsstartedoutasa domesticmarketer, eventually exporteditscars
toa fewregionalmarket~,grewtobecomea multinational marketer, andtodayisa true
globalmarketer,buildingmanufacturingplants intheforeign countryaswellas hiringlocal
labor,usinglocaladagercies, and complyingtothatcountry'sculturalmores.Asit moved
fromone leveltothenext,it alsorevisedattitudestowardmarketingandtheunderlying
philosophyofbu~.iness.
Ultimately,thesuccessfulmarketer is theonewhois bestabletomanipulatethecon-
trollabletoolsofthe marketingmixwithintheuncontrollableenvironment.Theprincipal
reasonforfailureininternationalmarketingresultsfroma companynotconductingthenec-
essaryresearch,andas a consequence,misunderstandingthedifferencesandnuancesof
the'llarketingenvironmentwithinthecountrythathasbeentargeted.
StandardizationandCustomization
In 1983, Harvard marketingprofessorTheodoreLevittwroteanarticleentitled,"TheGlob-
alizationofMarkets,"andnothingaboutmarketinghas beenthesamesince.^2 According
toLevitt, a neweconomicreality-the emergenceofglobalconsumermarketsforsingle-
standardproducts-hasDeentriggeredin partby technologicaldevelopments.Worldwide
communicationsensuretheinstant diffusionofnewlifestyles andpavethewayfora whole-
saletransferof goodsandservices.
