Marketing Domestically vs Marketing Internationally

aMarketing refers to a set of activities of a company that involves the buying and selling of products and distribution of services. It includes advertising, selling and delivering products to people.

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Domestic marketing refers to the commercialization of goods and services within the borders of a country. It limits the buying and selling of goods and services to a particular country. Trading cannot go outside the country. International marketing, on the other hand, refers to the application of marketing principles in a multinational market, i.e. across borders. Products and services are distributed to countries outside the parent manufacturing country.

Differences in Marketing Strategies and Processes

Marketing strategies and processes are set according to your goals for both domestic and international marketing. These procedures differ according to the level of marketing, i.e. domestically or internationally.

Market segmentation. Defined as the process of identifying and subdividing a large market into smaller, identifiable segments having similar needs or demand characteristics. In a domestic market, segmentation covers a small area of geographical boundaries of a country. Marketing internationally involves a large area of market therefore segmentation is diverse due to extremely varying demands, cultural affiliations, needs and behavioral characteristics.

Challenge; it 's hard to access all the needs and wants in a targeted market segment due to the diversity of demands and cultural differences.

Nature of customers. One of the strategies of marketing involves investigation of the nature of clients. This includes the wants, customer tastes, and preferences. In a domestic market, the nature of customers is almost same as individual products are commonly used among people of the same caliber. There exists a variation in customer tastes and preferences in international markets. This can be attributed to cultural differences, beliefs, and overall needs.

Challenge: customers needs are always changing especially due to changing cultures. Cultures are prone to change depending on preferences, tastes and likes, customs, religion and even beliefs. It 's hard to keep up with the changing trends in technology, fashion, behavior or demographic.

Currency. Price is a fundamental element in the marketing process. The currency used in internal marketing is the same. International marketing uses a variation of currency depending on the country of a transaction; with wide exchange rate fluctuations.

Challenge: International marketing requires a change in currency which could prove a difficult barrier in marketing.

Government interference. There is little government interference in domestic marketing. In international marketing, government intervention is comparatively high.

Challenge: due to high government intervention in international markets, documentation is diverse and complicated due to meeting several border regulations.

Research. One of the fundamentals of marketing strategy and the process is adequate research of the market. Studies in the domestic market are required but not to a very high level. In an international market, deep research of the market is necessary due to little knowledge of the foreign markets, its policies, and regulations.

Challenge: inadequate research carried out on marketing strategies could cost the average marketer a lot of money and time.

Risk factor. This is low in the domestic market and can be easily identified and accesses. A risk factor is very high in international markets.

Challenge: environments may be so unstable in the global marketing that makes it tough to identify and access. This leads to losing of profits and poor choices made.

Communication and language. These two play a pivotal role in the marketing process. In domestic markets communication is immediate and direct. Business is also conducted in one simple language depending on the country of the transaction. In international markets, communication is difficult and requires a multilingual form of communication.

Challenge: communication may prove difficult due to the existence of a vast number of intermediaries. In international markets also, the issue of multilingualism will require a trader to be conversant in several languages.

Competition. There exists little or no competition in domestic markets. International markets exhibit high competition due to the availability of many traders and marketers on a different basis.

Challenge: it is not easy to establish competitors behavior as they are less predictable. The level of competition in international marketing is also more complex and dynamic and therefore less adjustable.

References

Cavusgil, S. T., & Zou, S. (1994). Marketing strategy-performance relationship: an investigation of the empirical link in export market ventures. The Journal of Marketing, 1-21.

Czinkota, M. R., & Ronkainen, I. A. (2013). International marketing. Cengage Learning.

McDougall, P. P. (1989). International versus domestic entrepreneurship: new venture strategic behavior and industry structure. Journal of Business Venturing, 4(6), 387-400.

Wind, Y., Douglas, S. P., & Perlmutter, H. V. (1973). Guidelines for developing international marketing strategies. The Journal of Marketing, 14-23.