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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
14-1. Briefly review how the main tools of sales promotion (e.g., sampling and couponing) can
be used in global markets. What issues and problems can arise in different country markets?
Sampling is likely to result in actual trial of the product in global markets. For example,
in China, shoppers are reluctant to buy untried, imported products at higher prices, so
14-2. What potential environmental challenges must be taken into account by a company that
uses personal selling as a promotional tool outside the home country?
Environmental issues and challenges surface in implementing a personal selling strategy:
Political risks. Unstable or corrupt governments can change the rules for the sales
team.
14-3. How does management's orientation (e.g., ethnocentric, polycentric, or regiocentric)
correlate with decisions about sales force nationality? What other factors affect sales force
composition?
A company with an ethnocentric orientation prefers expatriates and adopts a standardized
approach. Polycentric companies selling in developed countries use expatriates for hi-
14-4. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, Procter & Gamble (P&G) has a “golden store”
program in Mexico and other emerging markets. P&G’s representatives visit participating stores
to tidy display areas and arrange promotional material in prominent places. At first, P&G used its
own manufacturer’s sales force; now it relies on independent agents who buy inventory (paying
in advance) and then resell the items to shopkeepers. Is this approach in line with the chapter
discussion?
Using host country sales people have key advantages and several disadvantages. The
advantages are: economical, superior market knowledge, language skills, superior
14-5. What role does direct marketing have in a global company's promotion mix? Name three
companies that have successfully used direct mail or other forms of direct-response advertising.
Direct marketing is designed to generate an order, a request for further information,
and/or a visit to a store or other place of business. Direct mail is the primary marketing
14-6. Why are infomercials, sponsorship, and product placement growing in importance for
global marketers?
Infomercials and home shopping television are important marketing communications
channels for global marketers. Advertisers use infomercials and home shopping television
An Olympic sponsorship can help a company reach a global audience (e.g., Sony recently
became an official U.S. sponsor of the National Basketball Association for $10 million
CASES
Case 14-1: Milan Expo 2015
Overview: For marketers of some of the world’s biggest corporate and national brands, all roads
led to Milan, Italy, in 2015. The reason? Expo Milano, the latest in a series of massive Universal
Exhibitions that date back to the mid-nineteenth century. London’s Great Exhibition of the Works
of Industry of All Nations in 1851 was the first; others include the Exhibition Universelle in Paris
(1889), the World’s Columbian Exhibition in Chicago (1893), the New York World’s Fair (1939
and 1964), and Shanghai Expo (2010).
The theme of Expo Milano, which ran from May 1, 2015, to October 31, 2015, was “Feed the
World: Energy for Life” (Exhibit 14-1). Organizers promised “six months of multi-sensory
experiences in the universe of food” spread over 250 acres.
Sixty-three countries had their own eco-friendly pavilions; smaller nations were represented in
nine specific clusters.
Not surprisingly, an event with the size and scale of Milan Expo drew its share of criticism. The
day before Expo opened, thousands of protesters took to the streets in Milan (Exhibit 14-13). The
protesters’ ire was aimed at a corruption scandal that involved the event’s manager and several
politicians who were accused of accepting bribes in exchange for contracts.
Other activists focused on the issue of sponsorships. The Slow Food Movement was founded in
Northern Italy. Slow Food officials objected to McDonald’s sponsorship presence at the event.
Despite its anti-corporate stance, Slow Food was also an exhibitor at the Expo. Slow Food
officials hoped that, by participating in the Expo, the organization could spread the word about
the importance of safeguarding biodiversity through local, small-scale, sustainable agriculture.
Discussion Questions
14-7. Do you agree with Slow Food’s objections about McDonald’s sponsorship and
participation in Milan Expo 2015?
14-8. Do you think Milan Expo will be a “game changer” that has an impact on problems such as
global hunger and sustainable food supplies?
indeed be a “game changer” or not.
14-9. Do you think the corporate and national pavilions at Milan Expo 2015 represent money
well spent in terms of return on investment?
Case 14-2: Red Bull
Overview: It’s a safe bet that most people reading this textbook are familiar with Red Bull. The
$6.4 billion company that virtually created the market for energy drinks revels in its association
with cultural events such as concerts and extreme sports including snowboarding and surfing.
The company uses a variety of communication channels in addition to advertising and public
relations to promote the brand. Red Bull’s Facebook page has 38 million “likes,” and 1 million
people follow its Twitter feed.
The brand’s slogan, “Red Bull Gives You Wings,” made Red Bull the perfect corporate partner
for one of the biggest public relations coups in recent years. In fall 2012, Red Bull sponsored
Felix Baumgartner’s death-defying skydive from the edge of space (see Exhibit 14-4).
Red Bull utilizes a communication tool known as marketer-produced media. The Red Bulletin is
a monthly magazine produced by Red Bull Media House. Red Bull distributes more than 3
million copies of each issue through newsstand sales, subscriptions, and as a free iPad app.
The magazine is available in Austria, Germany, Great Britain, Kuwait, New Zealand, Poland,
and South Africa. In 2011, The Red Bulletin was launched in the United States; 1.2 million free
copies were distributed in major newspapers. The first U.S. issue featured San Francisco Giants
pitcher Tim Lincecum, one of hundreds of athletes who are sponsored by Red Bull. As publisher
Raymond Roker putit, “We are entering a new age of media in terms of what consumers
of content want and expect.”
Since 1998, Red Bull has been involved in another high-profile initiative. The Red Bull Music
Academy is a series of concerts, workshops, art installations, and other cultural events that rotate
from year to year among different international cities. Red Bull Music Academy also sponsors
stages at international music festivals such as Montreaux Jazz; RBMA Radio is a Web resource
where listeners can access new music, live concerts, interviews, and other content. Despite the
name, Red Bull plays down its participation in the Academy; according to the Web site, “The
Red Bull Music Academy is not a sponsored event, but a long-term music initiative, committed
to fostering creative exchange amongst those who have made and continue to make a difference
in the world of sound.” Needless to say, the Red Bull logo is visible everywhere, and coolers
filled with the drink are placed in strategic locations.
Nirmalya Kumar, a marketing professor at the London Business School, has written a case study
on Red Bull titled “The Anti-Brand Brand.” Kumar gives Red Bull high marks for its
nontraditional marketing communication strategy. As Kumar explains, “Part of being a great
brand is conveying what you stand for in an authentic manner so consumers find it believable.
The music academy and the [Baumgartner] air show have given Red Bull a lot of that.”
Discussion Questions:
14-10. What is the critical-thinking issue raised by the case?
Red Bull discovered a market segment with needs that weren’t being met by any existing
product. Red Bull’s IMC incorporates both traditional and non-traditional marketing.
14-11. Summarize the different types of marketing communications that Red Bull uses. Are these
“traditional” or “nontraditional”?
14-12. What communication goal does each of Red Bull’s marketing communication tools
accomplish? Are you familiar with any additional brand touch points that aren’t mentioned in the
case?
Red Bull has reached a myriad of communication goals. From event sponsorship, to their
14-13. What is the risk of sponsoring a special event such as Felix Baumgartner’s historic
skydive?
If Felix Baumgartner’s skydive had ended tragically, it would have been a bad marketing
event for Red Bull.
14-14. Red Bull and other energy drinks have generated negative publicity regarding possible
health hazards. Discuss.
14-15. What makes Red Bull, in Professor Kumar’s words, an “anti-brand brand”?
As Kumar explains, “Part of being a great brand is conveying what you stand for in an
authentic manner so consumers find it believable. The music academy and the air show
