Bridging Brands and Borders

Bridging brands and borders: Trends and tactics to connect global brands with Asian consumers This article briefly states the idea of brand internationalization. Whether brands should localize themselves based on the tastes of the market or they should keep their identity intact. The author, Craig Briggs states that certain risk is involved when a global company tries and changes too much as per the local tastes.

The articles also stresses on instances from the past on Global companies like Starbucks having a successful stint with the globalization, by modifying certain aspects of the product offered to match the consumer demands, but keeping the ethos of the company intact. Then the article moves in to focus on the aspects of customization and how they appear in four key areas, Functional Customization, Delivery Customization, Format Customization, and Perpetual Customization Facts the author uses for supporting the theory of customization: . Functional Customization: Frito lay changed the flavor of the chips to better cater to the taste preferences of the Chinese customer. Developing newer tastes the company has been successful brand, keeping the DNA of the brand intact. b. Delivery Customization: The author appropriately uses the facts about McDonalds and IKEA while stating the area of delivery customization. McDonalds has implemented home delivery options in India and China to make the consumer confortable in using the product from the home.

IKEA ran the stores in Japan concentrating on the way Japanese homes are and also started a conveyance service between the major metro stations. This gave the consumer the opportunity to connect to the store more. c. Format Customization: The author appropriately supports the theory with instances about Coca Cola producing the smaller bottles to compete with the local competitor. d. Perpetual Customization: Godiva creating a luxury brand in China is a way in which the author provides information how customization is done in this area. This article provides strategies and tactics of brand adaptation for a global company.

As mentioned in the book, branding is key to the success of the company. From the book, we could see how companies customize their products such as McDonalds customizing the burgers for the Indian market. Brand adaptation is crucial for a company otherwise the globalization process can slow down. This article strengthens the concept in the book about how decisions on globalization of the products can affect the brand image of the organization. The investments a company makes in customization of the company will increase the brand equity of the company.

I could relate this article to the chapter in the book Branding and Product Decisions on Global Marketing as I see customization as a strategy to brand creation for a company going global. The author gives examples of the brand customization based on just four areas in countries like China and Japan. The author never mentions anything about whether these areas of customization can be applicable to Asia markets as a whole. I would have liked to know through the article about instances where these customizations have worked in the Middle East and the southeastern parts of Asia.

Other than this I find the article provides a clear picture about the customization process and how it had worked in Asian Markets. The new concepts I learnt from the article is customization areas when the company is planning on creating a global brand or starting an operation in a new location, it has to look into the areas of customizations to match the demands of the location. The explanation of key areas of customization is the article is precise. My interpretation of the key areas of the customization is: Functional Customization: When a company changes the product to cater to the consumer’s tastes and preferences.

E. g. can be McDonalds changed to include veggie burgers to match the taste of Indian consumers. Functional Customization allows the company to tweak the product, keeping the basis of the product intact. This goes well with the company’s modus operandi. Delivery Customization: Markets in Asia are used to home delivery concept. Global company’s implementing changes in their business model to implement delivery mechanism to satisfy the consumer needs is a exact example of delivery customization.

Delivery customization is all about creating convenience through its key value proposition. Format Customization: This is an area of customization where the company creates a smaller version of the product to compete with the local competition. Companies, which enter a local market sometimes, are faced with local competitors who have a strong foothold in the market. To tackle this competition companies like Coca Cola came up with the smaller bottle that costs less and still keeps the brand of the company intact.

Perpetual Customization: Perpetual Customization is when a company creates a sub brand for the luxury brand to cater to the niche consumer segment. This is an interesting article on the various aspects of customization and really puts into perspective the areas, which a company can look into while entering a market in ASIA. References: http://web. ebscohost. com/mobsmart/citations/citation? vid=4&hid=14&sid=bac33097-2f2f-40f7-b099-9c30003d24c0%40sessionmgr14&bdata=JkF1dGhUeXBlPSZzaXRlPW1vYnNtYXJ0LWxpdmU%3d#db=bth&AN=82945873