Cross-Culture Marketing - Difference between the Asian and Western Countries - Essay Example

Culture is the climate of every civilization (Lipman, 1998) and thus varies and has aroused needs for marketers and consumers which need to be addressed seriously. Culture is the name for what people are interested in, their thoughts, their models, the books they read and the speeches they hear, their table-talk, gossip, controversies, historical sense and scientific training, the values they appreciate, the quality of life they admire.

Different parts of the world have different ideas, likes, and historical backgrounds due to which their needs, ways of communication, and other cultural variables differ greatly. For these reasons, marketers have to think globally but act locally which is one of the greatest marketing paradoxes. (Mooij, 2009). A key reason for differences in cross-cultural marketing has arisen from the fact that the value systems in different parts of the world and the ways they communicate are different. While traditions and modernity are viewed as two conflicting points of view in the West, in Asian countries, the traditional is recycled and merged with the new.

(Mooij, 2009). Similarly, according to Geert Hofstede's cultural dimensions (Hofstede, Geert Hofstede), Western countries have a low power distance index whereas Asian countries are a high power distance index. This implies that unequal distribution of power and societal hierarchy is easily accepted in Eastern countries as compared to the west. Another cultural dimension that varies greatly between the East and the West is Masculinity. Again Geert Hofstede's study reveals that Western countries are more Masculine than Eastern countries (Hofstede, United States or American Geert Hofstede explained )meaning that a considerable difference exists between male and female values in Eastern countries whereas, in Western countries, both the men and women are highly assertive and competitive resulting in similar values.

These cultural differences form the basis of why marketers use different promotion and advertisement tactics while marketing their goods. Though the price and the product remain the same internationally a difference in the place and the culture results in a difference in promotion for the success of the product. Another bone of contention that exists between the different cultures of the world is their focus orientation.