1. Chapter Twenty-ThreeInternational Marketing Research

2. 23-2Chapter Outline1) Overview2) Marketing Research goes International3) A Framework for International Marketing Research i.The Environment ii. Marketing Environment iii.Government Environment iv. Legal Environment v.Economic Environment vi. Structural Environment vii.Informational & Technological Environment viii. Socio-Cultural Environment 3. 23-3Chapter Outline4) Survey Methods i. Telephone Interviewing and CATI ii.In-Home Personal Interviews iii. Mall Intercept & CAPI iv.Mail Interviews v. Mail Panels vi.Electronic Surveys5) Measurement & Scaling6) Questionnaire Translation7) Ethics in Marketing Research 4. 23-4Chapter Outline8)Internet & Computer Applications9)Focus on Burke10) Summary11) Key Terms and Concepts 5. 23-5Framework for Intl Marketing ResearchFig. 23.1 G ng nt En ove ti ekenmvi rn r oro m Ma irvnm en Enen tStep 1t Problem DefinitionEnviron lturalE n vi rment Step 2 Developing an Legal entapproach uonmStep 3Socio-cResearch design formulationStep 4 Field work/data collection iron ic nt meStep 5 EnvonomI n EnData preparation and analysis fo v rm iroStep 6EcReport Preparation at nm and Presentationion e . /T n tal tur ent ec ruc m Stviron h.En 6. Survey Methods 23-6Telephone Interviewing and CATI In the United States and Canada, telephone interviewingis the dominant mode of questionnaire administration.The same situation exists in some of the Europeancountries such as Sweden and the Netherlands. In many of the other European countries, such as GreatBritain, Finland and Portugal, telephone interviewing is notthe most popular method. In Hong Kong, 96% of households can be contacted bytelephone. Yet, given the culture, this is not the mostimportant mode of data collection. In developing countries, only a few households havetelephones. Telephone directories tend to be incompleteand outdated. In many cultures, face-to-face relationshipsare predominant. These factors severely limit the use oftelephone interviewing. Telephone interviews are most useful with relativelyupscale consumers who are accustomed to businesstransactions by phone or consumers who can be reachedby phone and can express themselves easily. 7. Survey Methods23-7In-Home Personal Interviews Due to high cost, the use of in-home personalinterviews has declined in the United States andCanada, but this is the dominant mode of collectingsurvey data in many parts of Europe (e.g.,Switzerland and Portugal) and the developing world. The majority of the surveys are done door-to-door,while some quick sociopolitical polls are carried out inthe street using accidental routes. 8. Survey Methods23-8Mall Intercept and CAPI Mall intercepts constitute about 15 % of theinterviews in Canada and 20% in the United States. While mall intercepts are being conducted in someEuropean countries, such as Sweden, they are notpopular in Europe or developing countries. In contrast, central location/street interviewsconstitute the dominant method of collecting surveydata in France and the Netherlands. However, some interesting developments withrespect to computer-assisted personal interviewing(CAPI) are taking place in Europe. 9. Survey Methods23-9Mail Interviews Because of low cost, mail interviews continue to be usedin most developed countries where literacy is high and thepostal system is well developed. Mail interviews constitute 6.2% of the interviews inCanada and 7% in the United States. In countries wherethe educational level of the population is extremely high(Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and theNetherlands), mail interviews are common. In Africa, Asia, and South America, however, the use ofmail surveys and mail panels is low because of illiteracyand the large proportion of population living in rural areas. Mail surveys are, typically, more effective in industrialinternational marketing research, although it is difficult toidentify the appropriate respondent within each firm and topersonalize the address. 10. Survey Methods 23-10Mail and Scanner Panels Mail panels are extensively used in the UK, France,West Germany, and the Netherlands. Mail and diarypanels are also available in Finland, Sweden, Italy,Spain, and other European countries. Use of panels may increase with the advent of newtechnology. For example, in Germany, two agencies(A. C. Nielsen and GfK-Nurnberg) have installed fullyelectronic scanner test markets, based on theBehavior Scan model from the United States.Nielsen will use on-the-air television; GfK, cable. 11. Survey Methods 23-11Electronic Surveys In the U.S. and Canada, the use of e-mail and the Internetin surveys is growing not only with business andinstitutional respondents but also with households. The popularity of both e-mail and Internet surveys is alsogrowing overseas. Both these types of surveys areincreasingly being used in Western Europe where theaccess to the Internet is freely available. However, in some parts of Eastern Europe and in otherdeveloping countries, e-mail access is restricted andInternet availability is even poorer. Hence, these methodsare not suitable for surveying the general population inthese countries. Multinational firms are using both e-mail and the Internetto survey their employees worldwide. An important consideration in selecting the methods ofadministering questionnaires is to ensure equivalence andcomparability across countries. 12. Scaling and Measurement Equivalence23-12 in International Marketing Research Fig. 23.2Types of Equivalence Construct OperationalScalar LinguisticEquivalenceEquivalenceEquivalence EquivalenceConceptualFunctional CategoryItemEquivalenceEquivalenceEquivalence Equivalence 13. 23-13Measurement and Scaling It is critical to establish the equivalence of scales andmeasures used to obtain data from different countries. Construct equivalence deals with the question ofwhether the marketing constructs have the same meaningand significance in different countries. Construct equivalence is comprised of conceptualequivalence, functional equivalence, and categoryequivalence. Conceptual equivalence deals with the interpretationof brands, products, consumer behavior, and marketingeffort, e.g., special sales. Functional equivalence examines whether a givenconcept or behavior serves the same role or function indifferent countries, e.g., bicycles. Category equivalence refers to the category in whichstimuli like products, brands, and behaviors are grouped,e.g., principal shopper. 14. 23-14Measurement and Scaling Operational equivalence concerns how theoreticalconstructs are operationalized to make measurements, e.g.,leisure. Item equivalence, which is closely connected to operationalequivalence, presupposes both construct and operationalequivalence. To establish item equivalence, the constructshould be measured by the same instrument in differentcountries. Scalar equivalence , also called metric equivalence, isestablished if the other types of equivalence have beenattained. This involves demonstrating that two individuals fromdifferent countries with the same value on some variable, suchas brand loyalty, will score at the same level on the same test,e.g., top-box or the top-two-boxes scores. Linguistic equivalence refers to both the spoken and thewritten language forms used in scales, questionnaires, andinterviewing. The scales and other verbal stimuli should betranslated so that they are readily understood by respondents in 15. Questionnaire Translation23-15Back Translation In back translation, the questionnaire is translatedfrom the base language by a bilingual speaker whosenative language is the language into which thequestionnaire is being translated. This version is then retranslated back into the originallanguage by a bilingual whose native language is theinitial or base language. Translation errors can then be identified. Several repeat translations and back translations maybe necessary to develop equivalent questionnaires,and this process can be cumbersome and time-consuming. 16. Questionnaire Translation23-16Parallel Translation In parallel translation , a committee of translators,each of whom is fluent in at least two of thelanguages in which the questionnaire will beadministered, discusses alternative versions of thequestionnaire and makes modifications untilconsensus is reached. In countries where several languages are spoken, thequestionnaire should be translated into the languageof each respondent subgroup. It is important that any nonverbal stimuli (pictures andadvertisements) also be translated using similarprocedures.