SEMESTER SPRING 2013
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING (MKT630)
ASSIGNMENT NO. 01
OPENING DATE: 10TH MAY, 2013
DUE DATE: 15TH MAY, 2013
MARKS: 20
TOPIC: “INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS”
Learning objective:
Students will be able to know the importance of International Marketing Information gathering in understanding the cultural environment.
Learning outcomes:
Student will be able to learn that how religious and cultural aspects are important for successful foreign entry.
It will enable the student to realize how gathering International Marketing Information is helpful in successful foreign entry.
THE CASE:
McDonald’s is world famous brand in fast food, being one of the best known and largest global food services retailer, having more than 30,000 restaurants operating in 125 countries. The idea of Mc Donald’s was introduced by two California based brothers Mac (Maurice) and Dick (Richard) McDonald. They evolved their father’s business of hot dog cottage and renamed it as McDonald’s Famous Barbeque. Started modestly with simply selling beefcentered dishes like Hamburger and cheeseburger, it has now grown enormously offering a long list menu ranging from beef, pork, chicken, fish and vegetable based fast food items all over the world catering to varying needs of the countries it is serving. Mc Donald is expanding its business and leadership position through great tasting food, superior service, everyday value and convenience world over.
India attracted the attention of Mc Donald’s as a potential market being one of the biggest markets in the World. McDonald set up operations in India in 1996 opening its first outlet in India’s capital New Delhi through a joint venture partnership with two Indian companies. Prior to its entry into India, the company spent around six years to set up the food supply chain, overcoming
other cultural and religious issues and bending to local dietary customs before even opening its first restaurant.
Two years later, in 1998, McDonald’s started its first restaurant in Lahore by opening its door to the people of Pakistan. This launch was met with unprecedented enthusiasm from the citizens of Lahore, who are known for their liveliness, vigor and penchant for quality food. McDonald’s R & D helped it to adopt and bend to the local food customs of Pakistan. There are now 27 restaurants in 8 major cities of Pakistan providing its customers the same great taste, outstanding value and superior service.
Understanding foreign national environment, it is important to learn about foreign culture first. For successfully entering and surviving into different countries and regions, it is imperative to comprehend deeply the religious and cultural differences and responding by adjusting your product and service offerings accordingly. Thus, McDonald’s is also conquering and crossing all the
boundaries of cultural differences, and bringing all the nations together in a realistic global world.
REQUIREMENT:
Based on cultural and religious views of India and Pakistan, what steps and considerations would have been made by McDonald’s while entering into these markets. List down 10 cultural and religious considerations made by McDonald in India and Pakistan. (Marks 20)
Answer:-
Following steps and considerations would have been made by McDonald’s while entering into these markets. List down 10 cultural and religious considerations made by McDonald in India and Pakistan
– Pricing based upon Per Capita Income
– Halal Items
– Islamic Values & Hindu Values
– Marketing & Advertisement as per Culture
– Privacy / Family Areas
– Non Alcoholic Drinks
– Fasting Months Timing (Ramadan / Nawratri Month)
– Food Range as per Cultural Demands – More Spicy
– Menu Extensions with local / Traditional
– Vegetarian Products for India
– Local & Traditional music
SOLUTION GUIDELINES:
• Students are required to mention overall 10 cultural and religious considerations for India and 10 for Pakistan in bulleted form.
• Student, being aware of the environment and culture of these countries, will not have much problem to solve the requirement of the case. In case of any difficulty you are advised to visit the websites of McDonald’s Pakistan and McDonald’s India.
IMPORTANT:
24 hours extra / grace period after the due date is usually available to overcome uploading difficulties. This extra time should only be used to meet the emergencies and above mentioned due dates should always be treated as final to avoid any inconvenience.
OTHER IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS:
DEADLINE:
• Make sure to upload the solution file before the due date on VULMS.
• Any submission made via email after the due date will not be accepted.
FORMATTING GUIDELINES:
• Use the font style “Times New Roman” or “Arial” and font size “12”.
• It is advised to compose your document in MS-Word format.
• You may also compose your assignment in Open Office format.
• Use black and blue font colors only.
REFERENCING GUIDELINES:
• Use APA style for referencing and citation. For guidance search “APA reference style” in Google and read various websites containing
information for better understanding or visit http://linguistics.byu.edu/faculty/henrichsenl/apa/APA01.html RULES FOR MARKING
Please note that your assignment will not be graded or graded as Zero (0), if:
• It is submitted after the due date.
• The file you uploaded does not open or is corrupt.
• It is in any format other than MS-Word or Open Office; e.g. Excel, PowerPoint, PDF etc.
• It is cheated or copied from other students, internet, books, journals etc.
Note related to load shedding: Please be proactive
Dear students!
As you know that Pre Mid-Term semester activities have started and load shedding problem is also prevailing in our country.
Keeping in view the fact, you all are advised to post your activities as early as possible without waiting for the due date. For your
convenience; activity schedule has already been uploaded on VULMS for the current semester, therefore no excuse will be
entertained after due date of assignments, quizzes or GDBs.