teachthe4ps.com - For instructors of marketing.

This recent Wall Street Journal article, “India Solar Rules Burn U.S.” (February 8, 2011, non-subscribers click here) describes how India has banned the sale of foreign-made solar panels, unless the seller sets up a local manufacturing plant with a joint venture.  India has great potential for solar, but this change in the external market environment puts a crimp on U.S. solar firms.  This is a good example to use when discussing the legal aspects of the external market environment or international distribution.

Oh Fortune magazine, why do you tease me so?  I saw this article in my print edition of Fortune a couple weeks ago — but they always wait a bit before making it available online.  Well, the wait is over and it is worth it — they even added a nice short video you could show in class.  In-depth pieces on P&G often provide great classroom examples because P&G brand managers are known for conducting consumer research before developing new products.  This article “Can P&G make money in places where people earn $2 a day?” (Fortune, January 6, 2011) and the short 2:45 video below describe P&G’s research efforts to learn more about the needs of rural Chinese consumers.

This offers some good examples of new product development, international marketing, and market research.

This is a really interesting marketing challenge for global cosmetics leader L’Oréal.  This article and 3:52 video tell a very interesting international marketing story.  Brazilian consumers have traditionally buy cosmetics (and many other products) from door-to-door salespeople.  L’Oréal does not use this channel of distribution in Brazil — instead relying on retail shops.  The market is actually quite large — Brazilian women spend a lot on cosmetics.  But L’Oréal hopes to change consumer behavior, which is never an easy task.  Most marketers are better off adapting a marketing mix to customers rather than trying to change customer behavior.  Use these links to access the article, “To L’Oréal, Brazil’s Women Need New Style of Shopping” (Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2011 – non-subscribers may have to click here).

BredaPhoto International Photo Festival is an annual event in the Netherlands.  The company developed a clever campaign that clearly identified a target market – and personally invited them to the 2010 festival.  I really like the targeted communication, that the promotion is for a non-profit organization, and that it worked.  Plus, the short (1:51) video format makes it a great in-class use of media. This is a great example of low-cost, highly targeted media — that grabs attention.

Want to embed the video below right into your PowerPoints?  Click here.  Note, also posted at Learn the 4 Ps.

We have posted on the emergence of Africa before, but this story “A Continent of New Consumers Beckons” (Wall Street Journal, January 13, 2011 – non-subscribers may have to click here) provides more examples and some data you might enjoy sharing in class.  The article is part of a series at the WSJ called Africa Rising and includes articles on doing business in Nigeria, Kenya, and Ethiopia (Ethiopia article – link for non-subscribers).  For example:

• McKinsey & Co. predicts consumer spending will grow to $1.4 trillion by 2020.
• The number of middle class consumers (defined as those who are able to spend on more than just the necessities) in Africa now exceeds those in India.

The article includes some great photos that show a side of Africa many students don’t expect — a side that looks a lot like the U.S.  Also click on the Interactive Graphics tab to get an interactive time line and refresher on African history.

While in the U.S. McDonald’s adds healthier products — in Japan the strategy appears to be going in the other direction.  In its new “Big America” campaign the top restaurant chain in Japan (by number of stores) is adding four new burgers with anywhere from 556 to 713 calories each.  The Idaho burger (see picture) features a quarter pound of beef, bacon, lettuce and a hash brown.   The article,  “Beefing Up McDonald’s” (Wall Street Journal, January 12, 2011 – non-subscribers click here) also describes McDonald’s success with a promotional strategy where products are only available for a limited time.

The article has good examples to use for product line, international adaptation, and sales promotion.

This year our planet’s population will reach 7 billion people.  This really is a stunning number and this video helps students understand it.   Thanks to my colleague Shuoyong Zhang for suggesting this post.

If you use Basic Marketing, the National Geographic video below would be a great way to start class when you cover chapter 5 on “Demographic Dimensions of Global Consumer Markets.”  In Essentials of Marketing (our shorter book) we cover global population growth in less detail in chapter 4 in a section on cultural and social trends.   The short (2:54) video might also be used to stimulate a discussion on the implications of population growth for marketing strategy planning.  The National Geographic site has more multimedia to help you understand 7 billion — see this clever (1:53) animation “7 Billion:  World Party” and a terrific photo gallery (you know how terrific National Geographic’s photographers are).

This article, ”Selling Health Food to China” (Wall Street Journal, December 13, 2010 – non-subscribers click here) will give you a versatile set of examples.  The examples can be used when you teach the external market environment or about adapting products for international markets.  The Chinese are becoming increasingly concerned with their health.  Major consumer products companies, including Nestlé, Coca-Cola and Pepsico, are adding many traditional Chinese ingredients to gain credibility for their healthy foods.

When we teach students about exchange rates, it helps to have some good examples of how the changes impact consumer buying power.  This article, “Japanese Splurge on Imports, Foreign Deals” (Wall Street Journal, November 28, 2010 - non-subscribers may have to link here).  In Japan, the yen has become very strong of late.  Consequently, many imported goods now cost 20-30% less than even just a few months ago.   This article offers examples useful in teaching exchange rates related to price and exporting.  It might also be a good example to use when discussing the economic dimension of the external market environment.

Another example of a company spotting opportunity in Africa (see recent post “The Africa Opportunity“).  This time it is KFC and its parent Yum Brands that are looking to expand in this growing market.  This article, “KFC Savors Potential in Africa” (Wall Street Journal, December 7, 2010 – non-subscribers may have to find article here)  includes some demographic and competitive information that might be useful in class discussions or examples when covering international, demographics, or channels of distribution/retail.