3 - selection of foreign markets Flashcards
Different layers of culture
- national culture
- business/industry culture
- company culture
- individual behaviour
National culture.
This gives the overall framework of cultural concepts and legislation for business activities.
Business/industry culture.
Every business is conducted within a certain competitive framework and within a specific industry. Industry culture is very much related to a branch of industry, and this culture of business behaviour and ethics is similar across borders.
Company culture (organizational culture).
Functional culture is expressed through the shared values, beliefs, meanings and behaviours of the members of a function within an organization (e.g. marketing, finance, shipping, purchasing, top management and blue-collar workers).
Individual behaviour.
The individual is affected by the other cultural levels. In the interaction environment, the individual becomes the core person who ‘interacts’ with the other actors in industrial marketing settings. Culture is learned; it is not innate. The learning process creates individuals due to different environments in learning and different individual characteristics.
Elements of culture
- LANGUAGE
- MANNERS & CUSTOMS
- TECHNOLOGY & MATERIAL CULTURE
- SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS
- EDUCATION
- VALUES & ATTITUDES
- AESTHETICS
- RELIGION
Aesthetics refers to
attitudes towards beauty and good taste in the art, music, folklore and drama of a culture. The aesthetics of a particular culture can be important in the interpretation of symbolic meanings of various artistic expressions.
Social institutions –
business, political, family or class related – influence the behaviour of people and the ways in which people relate to each other. In some countries, for example, the family is the most important social group, and family relationships sometimes influence the work environment and employment practices.
An important part of the socialization process of consumers worldwide is
reference groups. These groups provide the values and attitudes that become influential in shaping behaviour.
Education includes
the process of transmitting skills, ideas and attitudes, as well as training in particular disciplines. One function of education is the transmission of the existing culture and traditions to the new generation. However, education can also be used for cultural change.
Our attitudes and values
help to determine what we think is right or appropriate, what is important and what is desirable
According to Hofstede, the way people in different countries perceive and interpret their world varies along four dimensions:
- power distance, 2. uncertainty avoidance, 3. individualism and 4. masculinity.
Power distance
the degree of inequality between people in physical and educational terms. In high power distance societies, power is concentrated among a few people at the top who make all the decisions.
Uncertainty avoidance is
the degree to which people in a country prefer formal rules and fixed patterns of life, such as career structures and laws, as means of enhancing security.
Individualism denotes the
degree to which people in a country learn to act as individuals rather than as members of groups. In individualistic societies, people are self-centred and feel little need for dependency on others.
