Business is as much a
socio-cultural phenomenon as it is an economic activity. Per capita income in
two countries may be the same, yet the consumption patterns in these countries may
differ. Socio cultural forces have considerable impact on products people consume;
designs, colour and symbols they like; dresses they wear and emphasis the place
of religion, work, entertainment, family and other social relations. Socio-cultural
environment influences all aspects of human behavior and is pervasive in all
facets of business operations.
Culture can be defined as a
"sum total of man's knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, laws, customs
and any other capabilities and habits
acquired by man as a member of
society." It is a distinctive way
of life of group of people, their complete design of living. Culture thus
refers to a man's entire social heritage - a distinctive life style of a
society and its total value system which is intricately related to be
consumption pattern of the people and management philosophies and practices.
Furthermore, within each culture
there are many subcultures that can have business significance. For instance, in
a country like United States distinct subcultures prevail in the South, North-Eastern
or Midwestern parts. Subcultures are found in all national cultures and failure
to recognize them may create impressions of sameness which in reality may not
exist. A single national and political boundary does not necessarily mean a
single cultural entity. Canada, for instance, is divided between its French and
English heritages, although politically the country is one. Because of such
distinctive cultural division, a successful marketing strategy among the French
Canadians might not effectively work among the English Canadians or vice-versa.
Similarly a single personnel policy may not work with workers employed in two
different plants if they belong to different sub cultural groups and differ in
their work habits and underlying motivations.
Elements of Culture
Some of the important elements to
understand a country's culture are: language, aesthetics, education, religions
and superstitions, attitudes and values, material culture, social groups and organizations,
and business customs and practices.
Language: Language is an important element of culture and it
is through language that most of the communications take place. An
international marketer should have a thorough under- standing of the language
of the market - particularly the semantic differentials and idiomatic nuances
which are essential characteristics of all languages of the world. Dictionary translation
could be quite different from the idiomatic interpretation of a language. When literal
translations are made of brand names or advertising messages from one language
to another by people who know the language but not the culture, serious
mistakes may occur. When General Motors of the United States literally
translated its marketing phrase ‘Body by Fisher’ into Flemish language, it
meant ‘Corpse by Fisher'. Similarly, the
phrase "Come alive with Pepsi" faced problems when it was translated
into German advertisements as "Come out of grave" or in Chinese as
"Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave". When the American
car called ‘Nova’ was introduced in Puerto Rico, sales were poor until the
company realized that the word Nova was pronounced as ‘Nova’ - which literally
meant in Spanish "does not go".
Sales were better when the name was changed to 'Carbie'.
Aesthetics: Aesthetics
pertain to a culture's sense of beauty and good taste, and is expressed in arts,
drama, music, folklore, dance and the like. Aesthetics are of special interest
to the international business executives for these govern the norms of beauty
in a society and are helpful in correctly interpreting meanings of various
methods of artistic expressions, colours, shapes, forms and symbols in a
particular culture. Colours, for instance, mean different things to different
people. The colour of mourning is black in the United States, but it is white
in the Far East. Green is restful colour to Americans, but it is disliked by
people in Malaysia where it connotes illness and death. Symbols also need to be
interpreted correctly, Seven, for instance, signifies good luck in the
United States but just opposite in Singapore, Ghana and Kenya. Use of number four should be avoided in
Japan because it is pronounced as ‘shi’ which in Japanese means death.
Sensitivity to the aesthetics of a society and their symbolic expressions can
greatly help in avoiding socially embarrassing situations and correctly
designing the products and messages.
Education: Education is
generally understood as formal schooling. But it is better to adopt a broader
perspective and define education as any process, formal or informal, through which
one learns skills, ideas and attitudes. Education is important as it affects not
only the education levels but also the development of mental faculties and
various skills, In general, educated people have been found to be more
sophisticated, discriminating and receptive to new products and ideas.
Availability of educated manpower like skilled labour, technicians and
professional is also dependent on the country’s education level. Media to be
used by a company for promoting its products as services are also dependent on
education level prevailing in the country. The conventional forms of printed
communications, for instance, do not work in countries where literacy rates are
low.
Religions and Superstitions:
Religions are a major determinant of moral and ethical values and
influence people’s attitudes, habits and outlook on life which are reflected in
their work habits and consumption patterns. Dr.
Ernest Dichter observed: "In puritanical cultures, it is customary
to think cleanliness as being next to godliness. But in Catholic and Latin American
countries, to fool too much with one's body to overindulge in bathing or
toiletries, has the opposite meaning. It is that type of behavior which is considered
immoral and improper". There are numerous religions and faiths in the
world, with prominent ones being: Animism, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism,
Islam and Shinto. Each one has its own morals and codes of conduct. A working
knowledge of the religions prevalent in the target markets helps in understanding
people's work habits, underlying motivations and consumption behaviors. Equally
important are the superstitions of the people in a society. People’s beliefs in astrology, hand reading,
ghosts, lucky days and places are integral part of certain cultures. In some countries,
single storey houses are preferred because it is considered bad to have
another's foot on one’s head. Location of a building and its architecture in
many Asian countries is governed by the principles of ‘vastushastra’ rather
than purely geographical and economic considerations.
Attitudes and Values: Besides religions and superstitions, one must
be cognizant of attitudes, values and beliefs prevalent in a society. These
attitudes and values may relate to consumption level, material possessions,
risk taking and change. ‘What is important and desirable' differs from society
to society and is largely governed by the attitudes and value existing in a
society. Americans in general are more receptive to change and risk taking, but
people in many societies are averse to change and risk taking. They prefer
doing what is traditional and safe. New products are not accepted unless these
have the approval of local chiefs or religious leaders.
Material Culture: According
to Ball and McCulloch, material culture refers to all manmade objects and its
study is concerned with how man makes things and who makes what and why. While
the question 'how it relates to technology, other questions ‘that’, ‘what’ and ‘why’
are part of economics.
Technology includes the ways and means applied in making of
material goods. It is technical know-how in possession of the people of a
society. Choice of technology has its repercussions to the size of investment,
scale of operations as well as type and amber of workers to be employed. Technology
transfer has been a highly controversial issue in the past. Because of supply
of obsolete or inappropriate technology, many developing countries have laid down
stringent rules and regulations concerning technology imports and payments.
Since transfer of new technology is often riddled with workers’ resistance to
change and public criticisms, multinational corporations are advised to have
suitable action plans to counter such opposition. Economic aspects of material
culture, i.e., who, what and why, have already been discussed before. It is suffice to say here that these elements
influence the level of demand as well as types and quality of goods in demand,
and consumption pattern in a society. Business implications of material culture
of a society are obviously many. The goods and services that are acceptable in
one market may not be acceptable in another market because of differences in
material cultures of two societies. For example, sophisticated electronic appliances
widely in demand in the technologically and economically advanced Western countries
may not find a market in the less developed countries of Asia, Africa or Latin America.
Social Groups and Organizations: A study of social groups and organizations
is important as it determines how people relate to one another and organize
their activities. The size and cohesiveness of the family, role of men and
women in society, and positions of different social classes differ from country
to country. Social groups and organizations mould the pattern of living and
interpersonal relationships of people in a society. They influence the behavioral
norms, codes of social conduct, value systems, etc., that may be of relevance
to the international business managers in their decision making.
Business Customs and Practices:
A familiarity with business customs and practices prevalent in
different countries is a must to avoid business blunders. An international
business manager must have necessary knowledge about how business is conducted
and what importance business people in a foreign country attach to work, time,
formality, change and achievement. American managers, for instance, are by
nature highly work oriented and attach upmost importance to speed and punctuality
in business dealings. They are, moreover, highly achievement oriented and fond
of new things. But people in other parts of the world do not share these values
and beliefs. Japanese, for instance, are also workaholics but they are very slow
in decision making Latin Americans too do not believe in haste and spend considerable
time in socializing and developing friendships before coming to business transactions.
A
person dealing with people from
different cultures should be well aware
of differences in the number and nature of stages involved
in business negotiations anal
formalities to be observed
in concluding business contracts. While in
countries like the United States
it is necessary to have final agreement
in writing, this practice is
not much appreciated in
many West Asian countries where
oral agreement alone is considered
more than sufficient.
