Developing Foreign Advertising in France Abbey Moore Nataliya

Developing Foreign Advertising in France Abbey Moore & Nataliya Zhuravleva

Introduction n n Penetrating a foreign market, you have to know the country’s beliefs, customs, and traditions is incredibly important. Advertising programs must be altered all the time in order to suit each country due to the rapidly changing cultures

Cultural & Social Forces Affecting Buyers Behavior n n n Cultural distinctions are one of the most noticeable differences across countries. Due to cultural distinctions, marketing a product internationally the advertising campaign must be altered to overcome the language barrier. Non-verbal communication may have different meanings in the United States and France, must also be taken into account when developing an international campaign.

Example - Chanel n The Chanel campaign for Chanel # 5 perfume attempted to use universal advertising, packaging, and naming, yet soon discovered that the original French advertisement was unsuccessful in the US due to differences in culture – the French concept of ‘prestige’ is not the same as in the US.

Example 2 – Kellogg’s n The slow growth for corn flakes was related to two aspects of French culinary habits. n n First, the French did not eat corn because 80% of the corn harvested in France was fed to pigs and chickens. Second, of the people who ate cereal for breakfast in France, 40% poured on warm milk, which damaged the crunchiness and taste of corn flakes. n n To overcome these cultural differences, Kellogg's printed instructions on the back of the cereal boxes to show people the intended way of eating the cereal, and introduced “Tony le Tigre” in its French media campaign. As a result of these campaign changes – the consumption of Corn Flakes in France increased.

Tactics to make International Advertising Campaigns Effective n When French firms launch international advertising campaigns in the food and beverage sector, they should adhere to the following guidelines:

Guidelines n n Positioning of the product should be more emotional than informative. emphasizes the "goodness" of the product Humor should be used with consideration Music should be a major factor in the commercial because of its ability to convey emotions and reinforce atmospheres.

Sex Appeal in Advertising n n French advertisers use sex appeal in advertising more than American advertisers. 24 % of the French advertisements used sex appeal compared to only 8. 6 % of the American advertisements.

Why do French use More Sex Appeal? n n The sexual material in French advertisements acts as an attention lure and product recall (especially for perfume advertisements) Therefore, when marketing in France, companies should take the use of sex appeal in advertising into consideration, as this strategy has been effective in the French market.

French Advertising Laws n n Tobacco and alcohol cannot be advertised Children are not allowed to endorse products French can only be used on television, radio and other work places Makes Advertising expensive foreign companies

Issues affecting Advertising in the Film Industry n Films cannot be advertised on TV Billboards can be used n For Example: n n n The American poster for Frankenstein was a greenish, sinister image that evoked a morgue. In France, advertisers chose violent colors and lightening bolts to combine the idea of electricity with destruction, and included a reference to the author of the novel, Mary Shelley, well-known to French audiences.

Conclusion n In order to achieve a successful advertising campaign and effectively reach a global target market, it is the responsibility the advertising company to: n analyze competition of other products/brands in the market, n assess cultural differences n examine economic trends and communications programs n research other cultures n train employees on how to deal with partners in foreign countries.

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