1. 12 Products and Services for Consumers Chapter Modular: Afjal Hossain
Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing
PSTU
McGraw-Hill/Irwin International Marketing, 13/e

2. Introduction
The opportunities for international marketers of consumer goods and services today have never been greater
New consumers are springing up in many emerging markets, which promise to be huge markets in the future
In the more mature markets consumers’ tastes become more sophisticated and complex due to increases in purchasing power
The difference between tangible products and services
The difference between business-to-consumer and business-to-business markets

3. Quality Quality can be defined on two dimensions:
Intense global competition is placing new emphasis on manufacturing quality products
Quality, as a competitive tool, is the deciding factor in world markets
Quality can be defined on two dimensions:
market-perceived quality and
performance quality
Quality is associated with customer satisfaction
Quality is also measured in many industries by objective third parties such as JD Power and Associates
Customer satisfaction indexes developed are now being used to measure satisfaction across a wide variety of consumer products and services

4. Physical or Mandatory Requirements and Adaptation
Products may have to change in a number of ways to meet the physical or mandatory requirements of a new market, ranging from simple package changes to total redesign of the physical core product
Product homologation is used to describe the changes mandated by local product and service standards
Legal, economic, political, technological, and climatic requirements of the local marketplace often dictate product adaptation
Changes may also have to be made to accommodate climatic differences

5. Green Marketing and Product Development
At the forefront of the “green movement,” with strong public opinion and specific legislation favoring environmentally friendly marketing and products
Green marketing is a term used to identify concern with the environmental consequences of a variety of marketing activities
The designation that a product is “environmentally friendly” is voluntary, and environmental success depends on the consumer selecting the eco-friendly product
In some countries each level of the distribution chain is responsible for returning all packaging, packing, and other waste materials up the chain

6. Products and Culture
A product is more than a physical item: It is a bundle of satisfactions (or utilities) that the buyer receives
Facets of products include its form, taste, color, odor, and texture; how it functions in use; the package; the label; the warranty; manufacturer’s and retailer’s servicing; the confidence or prestige enjoyed by the brand; the manufacturer’s reputation;
The adoption of some products by consumers can be affected as much by how the product concept conforms with norms, values, and behavior patterns
Thus, many facets of products are influenced by culture, which markets must pay attention to

7. Analyzing Product Components
for Adaptation
A product is multidimensional, and the sum of all its features determines the bundle of satisfactions (utilities) received by the consumer
The many dimensions of products can be divided into three distinct components:
(1) core component, (2) packaging component, and (3) support services component
These components include all a product’s tangible and intangible elements and provide the bundle of utilities the market receives from use of the product

8. The many dimensions of a product can be divided into three distinct components as illustrated in the model below:

9. Marketing Consumer Services Globally
Advice regarding adapting products for international consumer markets also applies to adapting services or intangible products
However, many consumer services are distinguished by four unique characteristics:
intangibility,
inseparability,
heterogeneity, and
perishability
There are several services opportunities in global markets from travel and tourism, TV, movies, to financial services

10. Barriers to Entering Global Markets for Consumer Services
Most services are inseparable and require production and consumption to occur almost simultaneously; thus, exporting is not a viable entry method for them
Globally, consumer services marketers face the following four barriers:
protectionism,
controls on transborder data flows,
protection of intellectual property, and
cultural requirements for adaptation

11. Brands in International Markets
A global brand is defined as the worldwide use of a name, term, sign, symbol (visual and/or auditory), design, or combination thereof intended to identify goods or services of one seller and to differentiate them from those of competitors
A successful brand is the most valuable resource of a company
Brand image is at the very core of business identity and strategy
Global brands such as Kodak, Sony, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Toyota, and Marlboro play an important role in that process
Perceived brand “globalness” leads to increases in sales

12. Brands in International Markets

13. Country-of-Origin Effect and Global Brands
Brands are used as external cues to taste, design, performance, quality, value, and prestige
Many factors affect brand image, but one factor of great concern is the country-of-origin effect on the market’s perception of the product
Country-of-origin effect (COE) can be defined as any influence that the country of manufacture, assembly, or design has on a consumer’s positive or negative perception of a product
When the customer becomes aware of the country of origin, there is the possibility that the place of manufacture will affect product or brand image
The country, the type of product, and the image of the company and its brands all influence whether the country of origin will engender a positive or negative reaction