International and Domestic Market Research

¶ … International and Domestic Market Research

Contrast the major differences between international and domestic market research. How will this information impact the way that you will do the research for your final marketing plan?

The most significant differences between international and domestic research center on measuring the nuances and differences between cultures, and how those differences influence how unmet needs are perceived throughout the nations of interest. The definition of multi-cultural market research strategies must first build on a foundation of defining how unmet needs are perceived an acted on vs. how they are reported in research projects (Alexander, Rhodes, Myers, 2007). This is a critical point that needs to also be carried forward to research of how unmet needs are met through a variety of competing, and often substitute products. Only by mapping the specific differences in cultural values and their respective communicating of unmet needs can international vs. domestic market research be effective. An example of this is how Americans would communicate the unmet needs of a new automobile vs. how members of the Indian middle class would for example in that evolving nation. Americans would be focused on fuel mileage and a stylish exterior, while Indians would be focused on more utilitarian aspects of the vehicle.