The relationships between the United States and other countries, especially the developing ones, can be characterized as the relationships between the advertiser and the would-be customer or probably it would be better to say, the consumer. If we speak about advertising, it is always of paramount importance to take into account the needs of the target audience or audiences. As far as the United States is concerned, we can say that as target audiences, its government can choose the Islamic, Eastern European, and Asian worlds (it such formulation is ethical and appropriate).
The “products” that the government can “sell” can be the following: first, the desire for financial prosperity (very often, such brands as Coco-Cola, Ford, and Nike are associated exactly with the notion of economic well-being). Another product, which has been successfully “advertised” by the American government, is democratic values (such as instance, cultural diversity, freedom of speech, universal suffrage, and equal employment conditions for both sexes).
The question arises, whether such marketing foreign policy is ethical. The only possible answer is no because these countries are quite able to achieve these goals on their own, without Americas prompt. However, such policy is quite beneficial, because America has managed to secure its status in many countries of the third world.
It has already been mentioned that The United States successfully markets itself through such brands as Coca-Cola and Nike. We may take such alternative of Coca-Cola in Islamic countries as Mecca Cola. Perhaps it would be better to have a look at its poster
Some Muslims were indignant at such a poster because it makes use of the holiest city in the Muslim world, Mecca.
However, such policy can lead to rather detrimental results especially in the long term, because people in other counties may have a distorted perception of American culture. It may seem to them that it comes down to only to Coca-Cola, Nike, and Ford. In addition to that, when people, living in developing countries understand that these values are imposed on them, they may lose confidence in America, especially if we are speaking about the Arabic countries. The main reason for it is that some parts of American culture are incompatible with the Muslim faith. In conclusion, we say that this conflict of cultures (Eastern and Western) will not be resolved at least in the near future.
In recent decades, large American companies have always tried to work up markets of other counties, especially those belonging to the so-called “third world”.
Starbucks, a coffee shop chain faced some difficulties entering the Chinese markers. First, one should bear in mind that the Chinese mostly give preference to tea drinking. The policy, chosen by the company management consisted of the following: the prices were similar to those ones of the US shops, for example, $ 4.50 for a grande latte. There are several reasons for such pricing policy, Chinese coffee shop companies were hardly able to stand this completion, In turn, they will also have to lower the prices, but such pricing policy resulted in the loss of profits.
It is also worth mentioning that Starbucks preferred to import coffee beans to China, although China had its own coffee plantations. Supposing that that company chose to use Chinese coffee beans, it would eventually result in the lowering of the prices. First, the cost of transportation would be reduced. Moreover, Chinese coffee is less expensive than its Brazilian counterpart. Moreover, Starbucks would probably receive some support from the Chinese government for boosting the countrys coffee production. According to the statistical data, the production of coffee in this county has considerably increased during the recent ten years. For example
If the company chooses a price higher, which is hardly possible, it will have to pay special attention to the quality and range of the products, because this is the only way to win the completion.
If we try to explain the lower ratio of sales to sales calls in Latin America, in comparison with the United States, we should mention that the major problem lies in the cultural difference between these two counties. Personal selling in Brazil usually takes much longer than in the USA. For example, in Latin American countries, it is necessary to schedule a lunch together even despite the fact that every detail of the contract was thoroughly discussed during the phone conversation. Although the sale may eventually take place the tempo leaves much to be desired.
It seems that the American approach is hardly appropriate in this case, because the pursuit of profits may only have a detrimental effect on the company (or companies). If a Brazilian customer does not feel that the company takes a personal approach to him or her, he, or she will not use its services. The sales manager of any American company should consider this fact. The only advice is that the companies, providing digital market services, should use such technology as Skype or probably video conferencing because it creates some illusion of a more personal approach. According to statistical data, companies, using such a method, have successfully improved the quality of their sale calls.
Moreover, it simulates the atmosphere of tĂŞte-a-tĂŞte conversation, which is of paramount importance for Latin American customers.