The global landscape is a rich tapestry of diverse cultures, traditions, and, most importantly, people. When venturing into international business expansion, one quickly encounters a myriad of local regulations and customs. Delving deeper, it becomes evident that the distinctions between states, provinces, and regions are profound, with each area exhibiting unique characteristics.
This diversity extends even to neighbourhoods, each with its own distinct customs and cultural identity. Given this complexity, the challenge arises: devising an international marketing strategy capable of engaging effectively across the multifaceted markets that your product or service aims to penetrate.
What is International Marketing?
International marketing refers to the process of distributing, promoting, and advertising a company's products or services across national borders. This process may involve marketing products in one or many foreign countries. Most companies that distribute their products in multiple countries have unique marketing plans for each location, allowing marketers to identify and segment potential customers based on the unique culture of a specific country.
This type of marketing can provide various benefits for companies looking to expand their customer base.
Boost Sales
Adopting global marketing strategies enables companies to tap into diverse customer pools across various countries. This broader market reach often translates into increased sales and improved profitability.
Economies of Scale
When a company produces goods or services in bulk, it can benefit from economies of scale, reducing production costs per unit. By selling these goods or services in multiple markets, companies can spread fixed costs across a larger volume of sales, making operations more cost-efficient.
Expand Market Share
By entering new markets, companies can gain a competitive edge over rivals and establish themselves as key players in various regions. This not only strengthens their market position but also allows them to diversify their revenue streams, reducing dependency on any single market.
Increase Brand Awareness
Through targeted promotions and other marketing strategies, companies can raise awareness of their brand, products, and services among diverse audiences worldwide.
Foundations of International Marketing Strategy
Miscommunication can ruin a business, as the wrong message can potentially harm your business even before you get a chance to rectify it. So, you may wonder how to avoid making mistakes similar to HSBC and Ford if you're marketing a product in a new country.
1. People - Understanding Customer Behaviour
It is important to understand that the people you are trying to sell a product to and the product itself are closely connected. However, it is crucial to start with understanding your target audience. If you don't know your audience well, you may end up trying to sell them a product that they don't want or need. Therefore, when you plan to expand your product or service to a new market, your first step should be to research whether there is a demand for your offering in that market.
2. Product - Alter Your Product to Fit the New Market
When you plan to sell your product or service in a foreign market, you may need to make some changes to it. It is essential that the product features and benefits align with the needs of the customers. Adapting a product to suit a specific market can be an effective strategy to gain market share internationally. It is important to conduct a market analysis and develop a unique selling proposition (USP) before making any changes to your product or service.
3. Positioning - Establish Brand Positioning
If you plan to expand your business into a new market, you may not have the same level of brand recognition as you do in Canada. To ensure a successful launch, it's crucial to develop a unique value proposition (UVP) that not only informs customers about the value of your product or service but also highlights how it stands out from competitors.
You need to figure out how to stay relevant in each international market, identify the value your product offers to customers in each market, and determine what sets you apart from established local competitors. In other words, you need to explain why customers should choose your product over a competitor's product.
4. Prices - Decide on a Price Point
Pricing may have to be adjusted for certain markets due to cultural or economic differences. Regardless of your goals, making a profit is a universal objective. When making pricing decisions, it's important to consider your desired profit margin. You need to have a comprehensive understanding of all your costs - both fixed and variable - that are involved in producing, transporting, marketing, and financing the exportation of your product or service. Establishing an optimal price point is integral to positioning your brand effectively, as it reflects the perceived value of your product or service in different international markets.
5. Promotion - Getting the Word in the New Market
Having a well-planned promotional strategy is crucial for the success of your business operation. Or, more appropriately, in today’s international marketing – a Go-to-Market Plan. It is important to make sure that your target audience is aware of the products or services you offer. When crafting your promotional messages, you should ensure that your unique selling proposition (USP) is clearly communicated in a way that resonates with your audience and reinforces the desired positioning of your brand in the market. Your choice of communication channels and promotional strategies may need to be tailored from one market to another due to varying practices.
6. Place - Finding Distribution Strategy
To effectively reach your target audience, it's crucial to make your product or service available in the places where they are most likely to look. It's important to have a good understanding of the behaviours and preferences of your buyer personas so you can tailor your approach accordingly. For instance, if your target audience prefers to shop in physical stores, it's wise to sell your product through a retailer or even open your own store. On the other hand, if your prospective customers are more likely to buy online, then you need to ensure that your offerings are available via the Internet.
How gigCMO's Fractional CMO Service Can Help Your Business Succeed Globally
International marketing is a great way to reach a large audience globally and increase brand awareness, sales, and exposure. However, developing an effective foreign marketing plan can be challenging for small and medium-sized businesses. Even large companies can make mistakes when entering new international markets, as they may need more knowledge to understand cultural aspects. Understanding the international market is important.
gigCMO's Fractional CMO Service is designed to help businesses thrive on a global scale by offering marketing leadership as a service driven by a comprehensive array of strategic and international marketing solutions through gigCMO’s business growth playbook, a systematic, scalable approach to marketing initiatives. It is a proven methodology based on the best practices of professors and practitioners of how to win - time and again. From crafting international marketing strategies to executing innovative campaigns, Fractional CMO Service provides expertise and guidance at every stage of the marketing process to help businesses achieve substantial growth and meet their objectives. Contact us today!
