Does Culture Research Play An Important Role When Developing A Product In An International Market?

The purpose of this paper is to determine the extent in which culture research plays a role in international marketing. There some facts that indicate that research is one of the most important steps to develop the right product in a objective market. This paper will show us some ways to do a research for a product development in an international market and how it can vary depending the country in which it is going to be sold. This paper take different aspects of culture research and put it together into one strategy that teach us with examples how a new product need to be sold in a new international market.

Developing a new product is not too hard when is inside the country or city where the seller lives; there is some techniques or strategies to use and finally find a way to have success with the product development. A person could now more of the market where he or her lives because they are used to the habits of the population so they can fell almost the same that the costumer will fell in front of a new product, in the case of a foreign seller is different because this seller doesn’t know how people live in this place; how they are, what they like or dislike. This could cause many heavy errors when developing a product in a international market. Work in your own environment could be easy the problem starts when companies try to sell a product into a new market, especially in other countries with different habits and culture. Is necessary to do a very intense research to find what this new market place has and how the product could work better in this place. The selling points, prices and products change and it depends in how good is the research made to know if the change is done for good or bad.

The strategies to develop a product into an international market are many and it depends in the company, which one they want to use. One of the most important strategies to know if the culture is going to adapt to the new product or service coming to the market is analyzing the Hofstede's cultural dimensions. These six dimensions show the different ways that the culture affects your product and how it would work in a new country. The six dimensions are:

• Power Distance.

• Individualism versus collectivism.

• Masculinity versus femininity.

• Uncertainty avoidance.

• Long-term versus short-term orientation.

• Indulgence versus restraint.

Each of these dimensions help the company make a good decision in the moment that they are trying to change some aspects of the product or service, so it could be more accepted by the new costumers. Normally are just used five of these six dimensions but iin some cases there are companies that use all of them. In our country, Ecuador, there is just used four of the Hofstede dimensions: power distance, individualism versus collectivism, masculinity versus feminity and uncertainty avoidance.

Right now the huge company “Juan Eljuri” is taking to Ecuador the fast food franchise “Wendy’s”. Wendy’s is a very famous fast food restaurant in North America and now they have to be making all the analysis to make the business work in our country that has a different socioeconomic status and language.

Taking the Hofstede dimensions the society can get an idea how Wendy’s could work in Ecuador and what changes they have to make to success in the Ecuadorian market. Ecuador just applies for four dimensions that is why this analysis will use them.

In the first dimension, power distance, indicate that in Ecuador people are used to know that the social and economic inequality is normal in the life. This fact gives Wendy’s a clear path in the case of prices or socioeconomic target. They could sell the product to rich people or poor people and they would not have social problems because people in Ecuador do not feel affected by the socioeconomic target of a company.

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