International Market Entry Strategies

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Table of Contents

Abstract
Introduction
Research question
Literature Review
Methodology
IBM Case study
Discussion
Conclusions
Research Limitations
References

Abstract

Marketing strategies devised by multinational companies in a bid to invest in other countries beyond their national borders is referred to as international marketing. Quite often, this form of marketing borrows a lot from investment principles used in the domestic market.

In a stricter sense though, international marketing encompasses all the entrepreneurial activities that have been tailored down by an individual business organisation as part of planning, promoting, setting price margins as well as coordinating both the inflow and outflow of products and services being offered to the targeted foreign market.

Hence, the complexity that is usually prevalent in international marketing is as a result of cross-border trading that invited myriad of barriers and challenges. Expanding from local to international marketing may take any of the three entry strategies namely direct investment, exporting or joint ventures.

A critical analysis of these entry strategies has been elaborated in addition to correlating these marketing principles in the global business operations of International Business Machines (IBM) case study.

While these entry strategies are varied, it is found that firms wishing to seek foreign marketing of their products often have to make difficult decisions regarding the best strategies to adopt in order to minimize risks and optimize returns.

Introduction

Marketing practices at the firm level in the domestic market is usually expanded and extended in order to accommodate the surging demands of foreign marketing.

For instance, a firm contemplating an entry into international marketing ought to first of all, identify the market and how the very market will be reached out, select the mode of engagement that will be most profitable, in addition to comprehending the right marketing mix (Roberts, 2005). When such preliminaries are executed well, it will form a viable ground for effective competition in international markets.

This paper explores entry strategies that can be adopted by firms gaining access to international marketing. These strategies have also been discussed as modes of engagement in cross-border marketing by business organizations wishing to expand their operations and thus profitability.

Besides, the case study of International Business Machines (IBM) has also been incorporated in the report in order to draw parallels on how international marketing has been executed in this multinational corporation.

Research question

This paper seeks to answer the following research question:

What are the entry strategies for business organizations seeking to engage in international marketing?

Literature Review

Direct Investment

Direct investment, sometimes known as Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a popular investment option adopted by firms in the contemporary business environment. This form of investment stream occurs when a firm decides to assume partial ownership of either a company stock or physical assets in an international market.

Besides, this business manoeuvre enables a firm undertaking FDI to gain a significant measure of controlling its management systems and structures. Although portfolio management and FDI are close and interrelated terms, they are quite distinct in the sense that the former does not permit any tangible degree of securing the control of a firm.

On an international scale, the inflow in FDI is often considered to start from ten percent of ownership of stocks or assets of a foreign company. In order to accomplish FDI projects, special arrangements such as mergers and acquisitions have to be effected. Alternatively, international franchising can also be used as a channel of attaining the FDI goals.

Contrary to the common perception, direct investment by firms may not only flourish in economies that are in transition, but also in those economies that are emerging, better known as the emerging markets.

For this reason, the percentage growth of firms wishing to invest in other countries has steadily grown due to such factors like highly skilled and low cost labour resources, wider marketing base compared to the domestic economy, readily available natural resources, stable political environment as well as geographical advantage.

Empirical based research has conclusively established that the desire to seek resources is one of the driving motives why a firm would seek international marketing.

A firm may be prompted to secure its investment abroad since the domestic ground is either too costly or lacks the relevant factors of production. It is vital to note that skilled and unskilled labour or advances in technology may markedly escalate the cost of production at the domestic level therefore leading to low returns.

On the other hand, advances in technology or managerial capabilities may not be accounted for when seeking to invest abroad since such resources can be accessed readily at home albeit at a higher cost.

Hence, assets that are non market in nature are of utmost importance when entering an international market since it is impossible to transfer them through transactions. For instance, a firm may not be in a position to import high skilled and affordable labour whenever it wishes owing to economic and political barriers at hand

On the other side, international marketing that aims at seeking skilled labour may also demonstrate unique characteristics and patterns related to spill over in production. In other words, resource seeking international marketing, in terms of human labour or other natural factors of production such as land have equal implications and meaning to the firm in question.

The bigger picture is to obtain relatively cheap resources that can lower production costs while maximizing returns. Although seeking resources as the basis of international marketing may sound quite familiar with international outsourcing or better still international trade, the two elements are indeed part and parcel of investment portfolio under direct investment.

In a related development though, economists have used the term outsourcing with sparingly diverging meanings. In some instances, it has been used to infer to international partnerships while others have applied it to mean circumstances whereby companies resort to international markets to obtain intermediate inputs

Another common rationale why firms will undertake direct investment is to seek markets for their products. An international market may be more appealing to a firm than the domestic one. For instance, the host country may be supplied with the needed goods and services through direct investment.

In particular, these may be company products that are either not available at the target market or a superior substitutes to the existing products. Besides, the international market can also attract consumers from the adjacent countries, thereby widening the marketing portfolio further

Nonetheless, this form of direct investment is underpinned by one main challenge in the sense that the marketing points being targeted in the foreign country may not be compatible with the location where the investment is to be undertaken.

In any case, both direct and indirect can be used to carry out direct investment. In the first scenario, the host country is used as the ground for exploiting the available market. However, when the host country is used as a platform to seek other markets, it is referred to as indirect market seeking FDI.

This characteristic way of exploiting the host country be seeking other adjacent marketing opportunities can also be classified as export-platform Foreign Direct Investment.

Rationale for direct investment

When seeking international markets as part of direct investment and vice versa, there are two important considerations that entrepreneurial firms have to bear in mind.

Firstly, the prevailing economic and political factor that may affect the process of exporting goods and services from the host country especially in the case of indirect marketing is important. Secondly, the level of appropriateness in the production process is also paramount.

The host country can benefit a lot for a firm engaging in international marketing. For instance, the introduction of new products and services into the new market is deemed beneficial since it will narrow down the gap as far as consumer needs are concerned. In addition, the local production is bound to go through the process of modernization.

Better methods of production will be realized in the host country. This can be explained from the fact the prevalence of competition among various firms producing similar products will be heightened. Hence, each firm will endeavour to produce the best in a bid to capture and maintain market leadership.

Nonetheless, fierce competition can also jeopardize a favourable marketing environment when local competitors crowd up for a single market (Clarke, 2005). This will especially be inevitable if a larger share of the market is dominated by the foreign affiliates. In addition, the balance of payment for the host country may be unfavourable especially in the event the situation persists for long.

This will be occasioned when funds are repatriated bearing in mind that international marketing that aims at expanding marketing portfolio does not deal with income generation from exports. Therefore, the impact of growth brought about by Direct Investment that aims at seeking efficiency is quite strong.

A business enterprise may also participate in international marketing through direct investment in order to accrue the benefits that arise from non-transferrable assets that cannot be transacted in an ordinary way.

The characterization of such non-transferrable assets is such that they can be exploited within the target country. As a result, the firm can only benefit from this type of asset by directly investing in the host country. That is the only way through which the asset can be accessed.

This rationale for direct investment can be put in place through the process of agglomeration. In such a case, proximity to other companies is a crucial consideration to make before setting up the project. Thus, the localization of the direct investment will largely depends on this factor.

Realistically speaking, a firm should preferably be located f where there is a cluster of other companies so that it can be in a better position to create better linkages with key payers in production. For example, consumers and suppliers in addition to the availability of the market endowed with adequate labour as well as spill over in technology are some of the open end benefits that can be accrued.

In the case of technology, it cannot be transferred across the border without losing some value especially if it was constructed using local unique skills and competences. As a consequence, a firm has to relocate some of its operations overseas in order to reap the optimum benefit of the asset.

As mentioned earlier, direct investment is basically capital flow on an international scale. This does not limit the level of control since foreign affiliates can still be coordinated by the mother company. With such, it implies that matters related to foreign exchange can significantly impact any direct investment arrangement in place, bearing in mind the unstable nature of currency exchange rates across the globe.

Perhaps, it would be pragmatic to first of all define the term. Exchange rate is the relative value of the domestic currency compared to the price of the foreign currency. At times, exchange rates can impact direct investment in international marketing in totality, as well as the allocation of this type of investment in multiple countries.

For example, currency depreciation which may occasion the movement in exchange rate can influence direct investment in two major ways. To start with, it brings about wage reduction in a country alongside lowering the cost of production compared to those of its affiliates abroad. Hence, it is definite that when exchange rate depreciates, the overall return of foreign investors will improve.

However, there are quite a number of considerations worth noting when discussing exchange rate level and its effect on foreign investment (Craig & Douglas, 2001). It is against this backdrop that forms will opt to invest in both developed and developing countries that are experiencing continual fluctuations in currency exchange rates (Perry, 1990).

It is indeed a financial windfall for firms engaging in direct investment in countries where the exchange rate is grossly volatile since the major factors of production and other associated financial overheads will be reduced accordingly. This remains to be a very strong motive why forms will invest in overseas countries.

Nonetheless, it should be noted that when currency exchange rates appreciate, the reverse effect on foreign investment is inevitable. Therefore, firms should always brace themselves for harder economic times or reduced returns during such eventualities.

Effects

One of the most important questions in international economics literature remains to be the effect of direct investment on the economies of the host country. Firstly, there has been concern over the benefits that accompany investments on the host economy and whether such benefits can boost production at the local level.

Secondly, concerns have also been raised over the possible costs that the domestic firms undergo when foreign multinationals secure their place in the local market.

Although these are pertinent questions worth inquiring, the multinationals seeking opportunities in international marketing often do not consider these queries beforehand. In spite of this, local conditions often streamline their operations even as they seek to improve efficient abroad.

For instance, production efficiency is likely to be enjoyed by the nature of the economies in both developed and emerging markets which are often open to accommodate foreign investment. Moreover, the institutional framework in place is also yet another boosting factor that sees into it that efficiency is attained by international firms undertaking direct investments.

This framework may be in form of the existing legislations such as hustle-free registration process, minimal certification requirements as well as optimal support from the government of the day (Shukla, 2006).

Operational efficiency that is being sought by an firm marketing itself internationally can also be easily attained due to the prevalence of technology gap especially in Less Developed Countries (LCDs).

Firms investing in countries that do have substantial technology base at their disposal may not only enjoy competitive advantage, it will also have the opportunity to improve its production efficiency since the immediate market rivals will still be lagging behind. In a similar development, efficiency in production will be at its peak owing to the competence and skill level of the available human resource.

There are quite a number of literature and empirical studies that have vividly documented the efficiency benefits in international marketing, in addition to the degree of spillovers in target countries. International firms often have the opportunity of enjoying numerous trade benefits from direct investments (Paliwoda &Thomas, 1998).

For instance, trade protection measures as well as certain host country restrictions may not affect the operations o Multi-national Corporations (MNCs). Although adequate literature that attempts to link trade effects with direct investment motivation are not readily available, foreign companies have myriad of trade benefits compared to their domestic competitors.

One outstanding benefit is the chance to serve the oversee market (Samiee, 2004). This is attributed to the fact that products manufactured by these firms do not necessarily go through the normal channels of distribution in the process of marketing and hence are not sensitive to trade barriers prevalent in the host country.

Foreign forms are also bound to benefit greatly when they operate in host countries where the management of important institutions is sound enough. These institutions can be divided into two main categories.

Firstly, those those are sensitive to socio-political factors like infrastructure and governance and those that touch on technological platform (Wilkinson, McAlister & Widmier, 2007). There is sufficient evidence that well established institutions have led to improved inflows of direct investment and export volume.

Exporting

Export trade entails selling of goods and services to a foreign country. It is one mode through which enterprising firms can expand their production, distribution and sale volume.

The major difference between export trade and direct investment is that the latter case involves manufacturing in a foreign country while in the former case; production takes place in the domestic market. Indeed, export trade is the most common entry mode in global marketing.

Similar to direct investment in international marketing, firms engaging in exports also face myriad of barriers on a day-to-day basis. These trade barriers may be imposed either at the local or international market where the given products and services are destined.

For instance, governments may decide to restrict the inflow of certain foreign products in an attempt to create a protectionist policy towards shielding the local products from unfair competition. On the hand, trade policies that aim at accelerating exports of certain goods and services may be put in place by respective governments.

Another possible barrier to export trade is an international agreement that has been unanimously enacted by like-minded countries. such agreements may impede or boost the volume and nature of export from one geographical location to another.

Hence, exporting cycle requires four key players namely the government, the manufacturing firm, the importing agent as well as the transporter of the produced goods and services. In addition to the aforementioned restrictions, export trade may also be affected by tariffs (Osland, Taylor & Zou, 2001). Some tax regimes may be imposed on specific products either leaving or entering a country.

The prevalence of peace and stability through enforcement of legislation is a driving force for Multinationals to export in some emerging and developed markets. Bad elements of governance such as bureaucracy and graft have repelled firms wishing to export their products in international markets.

Good governance remains to be a motivating factor in exporting. A case study of some developing countries reveals that political upheavals such as coup de tats coupled with restrictive trade policies have limited the volume of international trade (Aslam, 2006).

Joint ventures

Joint venture is yet another entry strategy to international marketing. Multinationals engaging in joint ventures often find it a cheaper and viable alternative of expanding marketing portfolio. For instance, sharing of risks is one of the main merits of joint ventures.

However, this entry strategy will also demand that partners share the accrued benefits on an agreed basis (Doole & Lowe, 2007). On the same note, joint ventures facilitates expedited and smooth entry into foreign market since resources are pulled together while the risk profile at the entry point is significantly minimized.

While a single entrant into international marketing may not have the requisite technological platform, joint ventures assures of technological sharing in addition to providing a common front through which the weighty government regulations can be adhered to.

Besides, a warm relationship between or among the partners may enhance connections as well as creating a wider base for distributing products and services from the joint venture (Vanhonacker, 1997).

Nonetheless, it may be quite cumbersome to meet the requirements of successful joint ventures since this type of business alliance is complex both in terms of structure, objectives and strategies of partners involved. One major requirement for a successful joint venture is that the competitive goals of the partners should be different while there ought to be convergence in their strategic goals.

Furthermore, it is expected that the industry leaders should be above par in terms of the size of partners in a joint venture. Similarly, their resources and the abilty to influence the target market should be minimally low.

Moreover, the individual proprietary skills of the partners in a joint venture should not be used as benchmarks in running the new business establishment. It should be a unique business experience altogether; partners should be students to each other (Usunier & Lee, 2005).

In crafting an agreement before engaging in joint ventures, top priority issues worth being considered often include the ratio of ownership, risk and profit sharing, duration of the contract, pricing mechanics, role of government as well as the production and marketing ability of the local firms.

Others include resourcefulness of the partnering firms and transfer of technology. In the course of operation, this type of alliance may experience conflicting pressures due to diverging interests.

Although licensing is not a direct entry strategy in international marketing, it is considered as one of the imperatives for firms extending their operations in of foreign markets (Yaprak, 2008).

A company will only be legally permitted to operate in a foreign geographical location after a license has been granted. this is a mandatory legal requirement. The process of licensing may grant a company the right to certain aspects of trading such as techniques to be used in production and trademarks.

For all the countries where IBM is operating, registration of the organisation of the multinational corporation in the foreign country is required. Depending on the location of the project, IBM will often secure the appropriate registration certifications from the respective government agencies.

Methodology

The method used to gather data for this paper was purely qualitative since no empirical research study was carried out. The information used was extracted from secondary sources which are also theoretical in nature.

This research methodology was found to be relevant because such theoretical data is more valid and easily obtainable than practical data. A research methodology that uses practical data may be extremely costly to undertake.

IBM Case study

The historical development of IBM can be traced back even before the actual development of computing system was fully on board. It all started as a Tabulating Machine Company. It was incepted by Hollerith Herman towards the close of 19^th century (1896) and its line of specialisation was in the development of machines known as the punched card data (IBM, 2010).

However, this was not the first time this technology was being applied. It had earlier been used in 1884. The population Census of 1890 necessitated the demand for tabulating machines and the technology grew by leaps and bounds thereafter. The 1896 punched cards gave the impetus for the generation of machines which would later be referred to as IBM.

However, in 1911, the business exchanged hands when Charles Flint bought it at slightly over two million dollars. This enabled the original founder of the company to develop Computing Tabulating Recording Corporation (CRT) which was later incorporated on 16^th June 1911.

A merger of three companies took place whereby Flint as the key investor. His membership lasted until 1930. Elsewhere, the CTR management was taken over by Thomas J. Watson Sr. in 1914 and before the close of 1917; CTR established its presence in Canada with a brand name of International Business Machines Co. Limited which later transformed to IBM Inc. (IBM, 2010)

Discussion

In order to explain entry strategies in international marketing discussed in literature review, a case study of IBM Inc. has been integrated in this study. IBM has grown over the years to emerge as one of the notable market leaders in the manufacturing of software and hardware used in computing systems.

It has a global presence as a multinational corporation dealing with all consultations related to Information Technology and latest technology in computers.

IBM and Bharti Airtel are currently running a joint venture in some African countries, a business model that has recorded significant success in India between the two partners. the two multinational giants began this alliance way back in 2004. As expected, their joint venture was occasioned by the need of both partners to expand their marketing on an international marketing.

However, it should be noted that it was IBM that sought to partner with Bharti Airtel, a telecommunication company. The latter needed IBM to set up its Information Technology (IT) infrastructure. As a result, IBM entered the foreign market as a single IT provider for Bharti Airtel.

For a limited period of time, IBM had already provided the much needed IT development in Airtel on the larger Indian network. This was apparently a lucrative business opportunity for both partners as expected in nay joint venture.

To date, the subscriber base for Bharti Airtel has grown to over one hundred and forty mullion from a meagre six million subscribers way back in 2005. The IBM entry strategy in India via Airtel is now being extended to some African countries, notably the East African block (IBM, 2010).

The joint venture is indeed expected to yield a win-win situation for both payers. At this point, it is crucial to mention that IBM’s operation in Africa has lasted for slightly half a century. The African market has absorbed above 300 million dollars in terms of solid investment.

The current Bharti Airtel-IMB venture is expected to erect IT support for telecommunication covering nearly 20 African states. Undoubtedly, this will pave way for IBMs international marketing even in countries where its products and services are still non-existent.

One of the IBMs direct investments in foreign marketing is found in Canada. It recently acquired Clarity systems as part of its expansion in international marketing. The main function of Clarity systems is the production of software systems that can be used to monitor financial governance.

Hence, organizations that make use of software product from Clarity systems are in a position to control their financial systems in a more harmonized system.

The acquisition of clarity systems by the International Business Machines (IBM) is indeed a real step in expanding marketing systems for the multinational company. The business initiatives of this multinational corporation have thus been extended with the new acquisition since it can now improve its business activities with the extra outlet.

In any case, the company is expected to assist companies that have been struggling with the analysis of financial management. The software is an inclusive solution for financial governance.

The analysis as well as the financial performance of companies can now be executed using the software from IBM. It is a business solution that has enabled business professionals forecast possible risks that companies can face.

For instance, external stakeholders are in a position to obtain the much need report of their company with the use of the software from IBM (Fernie & Arnold, 2002). Improving risk management by business organizations is a very momentous requirement that any prospective organisation cannot avoid.

For IBM, acquiring Clarity Systems is a form of direct investment that will not only witness growth in production but also increase the volume of international marketing of its products. Besides, the analysis on the performance of the software has revealed that it has enabled business organizations to strengthen their financial management programs.

Besides, Clarity Systems software is being used by several companies across the globe, not just within Canada. Indeed, the acquisition is a perfect example of an organisation can engage in international marketing through acquisition; a form of direct investment (Prahalad & Hammond, 2002).

Technology and innovation has been the stronghold of IBMs growth potential. In order to expand its production and marketing capacity, IBM has engaged itself in direct investment in most countries in the world in spite of the fact that it has equally withdrawn operations in some countries due to reduced earnings. Brazil marks one of the latest entrants of IBM in international marketing.

The multinational company ventured into Brazil market way back in 2009 with the aim of producing computer software and hardware from locally available resources.

The city of Sao Paulo was the venue of IBM launch in Brazil whereby the corporation hosted a forum for entrepreneurs. In the forum, IBM invited major players in the field of IT including government agencies. So far, the company has directly invested heavily in the IT industry. It has facilitated the creation of various IT tools to aid in knowledge acquisition of information technology.

For instance, developerWorks was set up by IBM with the aim of facilitating the process of teaching IT in different levels. Further, the Portuguese site offers free programs and learning modules to specific type of IT enthusiasts.

Host countries that have proved of shrewd governance have continued to attract foreign investors in large numbers. Indeed, the prevalence of peace and stability through thorough enforcement of legislation is a driving force Multinationals to invest in some developing and developed countries.

Bad elements of governance such as bureaucracy and graft have repelled firms wishing to secure investment in foreign countries (Vrontis & Vronti, 2004).

Good governance remains to be a motivating factor for FDI to flourish. Although regimes vary both in governance styles and ability to host FDI from foreign Multinational Corporations, it is common perception that politically stable governments are bound to attract more foreign investment compared to volatile political environments.

A case study of some developing countries reveals that political upheavals such as coup de tats have scared away investors a great deal. In spite of the aforementioned motives why companies will opt for FDI, it is vital to note that internalization of a business enterprise has its own share of challenges and positive attributes.

To begin with, FDI has the potential to increase domestic level of employment, that is, the host country benefits from employment creation (VanPottelsberghe & Lichtenberg, 2001).

In addition, in the event that the much needed infrastructure by the firm engaging in FDI is not adequate or unavailable altogether, the Multinational Corporation will invest in the infrastructure to the benefit of the host country. since FDI concentrates its effort in the flow of capital from the host country to the parent company through exports, the balance of payment for the host country is bound to be influenced positively.

This will go a long way in developing the technical efficiency of domestic supplies who will have gained the necessary knowledge, skills and competences from the operations of the Multinational Corporations (Cantwell & Narula, 2001).

In course of their operations, there will be transfer of technological know-how from the firm to the host country and consequently improve capital investment through the both the vertical and horizontal development. The demerits of FDI to the host country cannot be ignored (Sebenius, 2002). For instance, firms engaging in DFI often dominate the industrial sector thereby hampering the growth of domestic companies.

As technology flows from FDI to local firms, it leads to dependency syndrome by the local firms on imported technology. Worse still, ethnocentric staffing of Multinationals has also eroded the native culture since these firms are mainly managed by individuals from country while the subordinate positions are held by the local staff. Most MNCs have recorded impressive growth in their FDI activities.

However, there are pertinent investment factors that can be put in place in order to boost their returns. Some host countries are already reforming their trade policies by limiting the number of trade barriers and restrictions that have impeded foreign investment.

Better still, there are fewer limitations to currency repatriation in order to promoted FDI (Anderson & van Wincoop, 2004). Besides, nations are also formulating sound and friendly company policies and code of ethics that enhance international trade and capital flow.

Conclusions

The analysis of international marketing and modes of entry as well as the motives why firms opt to engage such market has been on-going for considerably long period of time. Nevertheless, there are some components of international marketing which economic literature has not adequately explored.

In spite of this, it is vital to reiterate that direct investment refers to capital inflow in form of trade investment from foreign countries. It is increasingly becoming an expansion strategy for firms wishing to diversify their product and service portfolio as well as returns.

Three main motives stand out as the motives why firms would roll out a given entry strategy abroad. Firstly, the desire to seek resources overseas is top in the list. Whereas technology and managerial issues may not be a real concern for firms engaging in FDI, the accessibility of cheap and skilled labour is of utmost importance and can only be availed by expanding business operations abroad where such resources are located.

Other important factors of production that may be of economic interest to Multinational Corporations expanding overseas include raw materials and favourable weather and climatic patterns.

Secondly, seeking markets has also been established as a sound reason why firms will invest in a foreign country. The domestic market is often saturated with both substitute and complimentary products from rival firms. By reaching out other developing and developed countries, the market portfolio is definitely doubled.

Finally, the need to obtain non-transferable assets like skilled and unskilled labour from the host country has also been a major driving factor to invest abroad.

Research Limitations

Although the data used in this research paper is relatively reliable, there are quite a number of limitations with the use of qualitative data. There is no empirical study that was carried on this research paper. All the information and data gathered were from secondary sources, preferably peer reviewed journals.

It is strongly recommended that future research on this topic should be more quantitative and empirically-based. This will create a more valid ground for arguing recent entry strategies in international marketing.

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