marketing within a global environment response 1
An issue to consider is whether what people in other countries want or need exactly matches the wants and needs of American consumers. This brings up the question – what is the difference between wants and needs?.
100-150 words
Your Original response:
According to the article, most countries have invested heavily in export promotion due to their immense contribution to economic growth. Price, the author lists the expansion of multinationals in other countries, the lowering of trade tariffs as well as the modernization of communications as factors that link businesses and consumers regardless of their location (Price, 2006). However, a study carried out by InfoAmericas revealed that a significant portion of the funds spent in promoting exports goes into waste rather than being cost-effective.
Price gives an example of the authorities in small economies with emerging markets who have to support the weak industries leaving the strong sectors to support themselves. For instance, ProChile, a Chilean export promotion institution, is one of the first agencies to implement this approach. Chile was isolated physically from other export markets, causing it to select only a few sectors in the country that could place their markets globally. As a result, Chile has become one of the top exporters in industries such as wine, lumber, and fish increasing employment opportunities (Price, 2006). Consequently, the country has been forced to shift its focus from copper, which used to be its main export. According to Price, other global agencies such as International Trade Canada have also refrained from supporting the OEM Autoparts sector, which is Canada’s largest exporter. However, research indicates that these approaches are based on politics rather than economics, which lowers the amount of profit gained from exports.
The article also states that most governments share trade promotion costs with their exporters, especially where the customization of the services is essential. Nevertheless, they invest a lot of resources and time into trade promotion programs that seek to provide advice, data as well as training programs. In Australia, for instance, the government allows the exporters to access export leads online besides providing free consultations during the initial stages (Price, 2006). In such a scenario, the Australian government invests a lot of funds into a sector with a relatively low return on income as compared to its local industries. The opening up of markets, the profiling of distributors as well as the setting up of sales meeting also requires significant capital investments on the exporter’s side.
Reference
Price, J. (2006). Much of the world’s export promotion spending is wasteful according to surveys; [Source: InfoAmericas]. Noticiasfinancieras; Miami. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
