GLOBAL MARKETING RESEARCH V Kumar 1 Dr V
GLOBAL MARKETING RESEARCH V. Kumar 1 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
CHAPTER 20 Middle East and Africa 2 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Chapter Overview Conducting Market Research in the Middle East and North Africa What are the characteristics of research performed there? Information on the different countries What are the problems in conducting research in the region? 3 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in the Middle East and North Africa Primary Research characteristics include: q q q q Extra importance given to foreign companies Conducted through observation and sample surveys Cameras installed and consumer panels set up that must be sanctioned by authorities Focus groups are ineffective Difficulty conducting door-to-door interviews Difficult to Interview Women Resistance to answering questions over phone Slow response rate to mail surveys 4 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in the Middle East and North Africa Secondary Research characteristics include: Immense accuracy and dated information q Difficult to inculcate the culture of marketing research q Difficult to infiltrate the barriers of religion and social constructs to win respondents trust q Government Hesitation in releasing consumer information to marketers q 5 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Secondary Research sources include: q q q q Government Publications Commercial Databases Nongovernment Agencies Overseas Sources University’s and Research Institutions Newspapers and Magazines Miscellaneous Sources 6 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Culture and Religion Countries in the Middle East and North Africa join together to form what is known as MENA Although the countries can differ drastically, two prominent cultural components are shared by them: q The Arabic Language ( Subtle dialects exist due to class structure) q The Islamic Religion (91% of the region is Muslim) 7 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Important Facts on Middle East and North Africa Income Differences q Drastic differences in economic conditions q Highest standard of living in Saudi Arabia and Qatar q Average unemployment rate of 23% amongst youngsters in region q Shift in wealth causing middle class to grow 8 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Important Facts on Middle East and North Africa Expatriates in the Middle East q Large number of expatriates in region q Makes conducting marketing research difficult q Significant cost in getting representative sample from market 9 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Technological Infrastructure Telecommunication Internet Mail • Difficulty in establishing land lines • Developed countries better market for conducting research • Varied rate of Mobile Phone Usage ranging from 72% to 7% • Access in region expanding rapidly • Women and youth play significant role • Government places strict regulations on access in order to respect Islamic religion • Well advanced in comparison to other networks in the region • 25% of population have postal savings or giro accounts • Possibility of using Postal services as Internet cafés and telecenters • Reliability in regards to punctual delivery varies from country to country 10 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Gulf Cooperation Council GCC is a political and economic union of Arab countries along Persian Gulf. Considered wealthy in comparison to the rest of MENA, the countries consist of: q Bahrain United Arab Emirates q Kuwait Saudi Arabia q Oman Qatar 11 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Gulf Cooperation Council 12 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Saudi Arabia © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Country Characteristics Population • 26, 939, 583 (July 2013 est) Land Area • 2, 149, 690 sq. km Language • Arabic Literacy Rate • 86. 6 percent 14 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Country Characteristics Religion GDP – purchasing power parity GDP per capita – purchasing power parity • Muslim • $921. 7 billion (2012 est. ) • $31, 800 (2012 est. ) GDP - real growth rate • 6. 8 percent (2012 est. ) Inflation rate – consumer price index • 4. 0 percent (2012 est. ) 15 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Cultural Characteristics Notable characteristics include: q 75% of population are Natives q 25% of population of Bedouin origin q Islam is only recognized religion q 90 % Sunni Muslims 16 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Business Characteristics Notable Characteristics include: q God is placed at forefront of all decisions q Fostering relationships/friendships q Importance placed on Individual and Family reputation q Negotiation process plays critical role q Emphasis on nonverbal communication (gestures) q Saudi Arabia in lead regarding attempts to modernize q Increased presence of women in business world 17 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Technological Infrastructure in Saudi Arabia Telephone Mobile Internet Mail • Very Modernized with approx. 90% of households with fixed line • High income levels and large youth population increases demand usage. • Lags behind other parts of region, but has reached over 50% • Efficient postal infrastructure delivered via a GPS grid system 18 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in Sub. Saharan Africa The most reliable sources of information in this region are from databases already constructed by the multinational corporations and international organizations. The different aspects affecting Market Research capabilities include: q Economic q Culture and Language q Technological Infrastructure 19 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in Sub. Saharan African Economic Conditions have shown great promise for the future as shown below: 20 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in Sub. Saharan Africa: Economic Conditions Economic Progress and predicted Future Prosperity can be attributed to: q Emphasis placed on fostering political stability q Lower budget deficits and decreased foreign debt leading to lower inflation q Adoption of Market-Friendly policies helping boost African growth rates (EX: Privatization of state-owned enterprises, reduction in trade barriers) 21 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Conducting Market Research in Sub. Saharan Africa: Culture and Language - Notable Aspects q q Polarization makes it difficult to perform: § Actual Research § Analysis § Interpretation Important to approach each country differently § Personal Interviews and Focus Groups are viable options § Language spoken in countries can vary 22 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Technological Infrastructure in Sub. Saharan Africa Telephone Mobile Internet Mail • Costly and Unreliable • Ethnic Bias • Interpretation • Increasingly present but lags behind international standards • Heavily Linked with literacy rate in respective country • Lags behind due to poor infrastructure facilities, regulations, and cost of Internet connection 23 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
South Africa © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Country Characteristics Population • The task of marketers in an international setting is far more complex and multidimensional than that of domestic marketers. Land Area • Adoption of Pan European media approach by Unilever, Purchase of shares in British Rail by SNCH Language • 11 official languages including Afrikaans, English, isi. Ndebele, Sepedi, Sesotho, si. Swazi, Xitsonga, Setswana, Tshivenda, Isi. Xhosa, and Isi. Zulu Literacy Rate • 86. 4 percent 25 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Country Characteristics Religion • The task of marketers in an international setting is far more complex and multidimensional than that of domestic marketers. GDP – purchasing power parity • $592 billion (2012 est. ) GDP per capita – purchasing power parity • $11, 600 (2012 est. ) GDP - real growth rate • 2. 5 percent (2012 est. ) Inflation rate – consumer price index • 5. 7 percent (2012 est. ) 26 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Cultural Characteristics Notable characteristics include: q Diversity in ethnicities and languages q Rural and Urban Settlements display differences in standard of living and racial mix q High amount of respect for elders in society 27 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Business Characteristics Notable Characteristics include: q Tedious q Neither formal nor relaxed q Not discussed at home q People Addressed by First Name q English is common language q Handshakes and Backslaps are common greeting gestures 28 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
Market Research in South Africa Telephone • Fixed lines not a prominent means of contacting the consumer. Mobile • In high demand expected to increase with Black population joining higher income groups. Internet • Despite recent development, penetration is very low for developed country. Mail • South African Post Office (SAPO) is the national postal service. 29 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
End of Chapter 20 30 © Dr V. Kumar (www. drvkumar. com/gmr) Global Marketing Research
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