The debate of whether to standardise or to custom-tailor marketing strategies and tactics in international markets has continued to trouble academics and practitioners alike and has produced many and varied opinions. Supporters of global standardisation argue that a single marketing strategy and a standardised marketing mix (tactics) should be used in international markets to minimise total costs and promote a global corporate image. In contrast, advocates of international adaptation debate that marketing in overseas markets should be adapted to fit the unique dimensions of each local market. Opposing the two polarised positions, literature quoting practical evidence suggests that companies make contingency choices which relate to key determinants in each circumstance. This doctoral research focuses on the tactical level. It hypothesises that multinational companies' tactical behaviour is integrated as a result of several reasons `pulling' it towards the one or the other side of the continuum. Equally, it proposes that such behaviour and the importance of reasons `pulling' it, could be significantly different based on nine factors. Consequently, this research seeks to discover the unique way in which the reasons and factors interact with international marketing tactics in any given `country and company situation'. A review of the literature (chapters two and three) allowed the development of a framework (chapter three) that presents the main perspectives of the different schools of thought towards the processeso f adaptation,s tandardisationa nd integration of marketing tactics. Its formulation made possible two main stages in this research: it firstly allowed the researcher to formulate the secondary hypotheses, and secondly it permitted the design of a questionnaire to test these hypotheses and carry out the necessary empirical research and collection of primary data. Based on the Positivist philosophy, the research design (chapter four) involved a questionnaire survey on the 500 biggest UK multinational companies across five industrial sectors. The analysis (chapters five and six) was mainly quantitative and was undertaken with S. P. S. S. and Excel statistical packages. It utilised chi-square (x2) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) statistical tests. Research results identified that UK multinational companies do not solely utilise adaptation or standardisation across their marketing mix elements. When facing the dilemma of implementing marketing tactics, the researched UK multinational companies were found to integrate the processes of adaptation and standardisation. Both processes co-exist and multinational companies are striking to find a balance. This research identified that the level of integration is dependent upon a consideration of the relationship between the reasons and elements identified, and an understanding of how these are affected by a number of factors. Followed the results of the analysis, this thesis proposes a new modelling approach, the AdaptStand Process (chapter seven), which outlines different steps to be undertaken by multinational companies towards identifying the degree of integration across the marketing mix elements. Consequently, this thesis aims to enlarge the existing body of knowledge in the subject area and guide marketing directors acid managers in deciding on marketing tactics when competing in the international marketing arena.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:311206 |
| Date | January 2000 |
| Creators | Vrontis, Demetris |
| Publisher | Manchester Metropolitan University |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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