Question

Explain how a company might decide on a marketing mix for an international company.

Answer 1

Solution :

Marketing mix consists of 4P's - Product, Price, Place and Promotion.

Product :

Generally, the company aims to design the product to meet the needs of the target consumers.

An international company, has to consider cultural, economical, social background of various countries and tailor its product as per the requirements of the consumer in that country.

Example : Domino's Pizza, an international company has customised it's pizza flavours in India to suit the tastes and preferences of the Indian consumers.

Price :

Pricing is a quite complex process. The price fixed should be in such way that all the variable and fixed costs are recovered. In addition to the cost of the product, additional cost incurred to deliver the products in the international markets has to be considered. Costs like import duty, shipping cost, insurance, exchange rates, the destination country's policies, competition and other factors has to be considered in fixing the final price of the product.

Place :

The product should be made available to the consumers at the right place. The international company has to decide on channel of distribution for the delivery of the product. The channel of distribution depends on the country's disturbution system and the company's analysis on the feasibility of the chosen system. The global market is also connected through the internet. Hence , the internet can be used to reach more customers.

Promotion :

​​​​​The same promotional strategy can be used all over the world. However, the strategy has to be modified according to the social and cultural practices considering the language, cultural, religious, and other regional differences.