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Q&A with Carol Webster of Cassell International
Carol Webster founded Cassel
International in 2003 to provide strategic planning
and marketing services for businesses that wish to enter or
expand their presence in the global marketplace.
Carol has over 25 years of experience in the U.S. and Europe
in international marketing management, in such diverse fields
as engineering, automotive, apparel machinery, specialty
food and industrial textiles. Her expertise lies in the
areas of strategic business planning, business analysis,
marketing management for consumer and industrial products,
establishment and management of worldwide agent/distributor/sales
networks, and corporate communications. Carol has excellent
professional and personal contacts the world over, and her
reputation for efficiency and performance is unmatched. She has spoken at conferences worldwide, including the
U.S., Czech Republic, Germany, Brazil, Australia and the
People’s Republic of China, and is currently teaching
marketing and international business classes at the University
of Phoenix in Nashville. In addition to speaking English, Ms. Webster is fluent
in German and conversant in both French and Spanish. She
has traveled extensively for both business and pleasure
(at last count more than 70 countries), and is well versed
in cross-cultural communications. To learn more about the Cassel International's global business
services,
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here. You have an extensive background in international marketing
management, both here in the U.S. and Europe. What are the
key features of a strategically successful international
marketing approach for companies today?
In a word, the key to a successful international marketing
approach is differentiation. To be able to supply
the appropriate product or service overseas which meets
your customer’s need requires you to understand differences
in culture, economy, competitive landscape, technical standards,
government regulations and distribution systems and adapt
your product, service and perhaps even selling or marketing
approach accordingly. For example, if you are selling a
refrigerator in a different country, you may need to consider
consumer space requirements in a typical living space, shopping
frequency and number of family members (as an indicator
of possible size requirements), color preferences, what
kinds of food purchases are typically stored in the refrigerator
and what shelving/bin styles are necessary to accommodate
them and other factors. How does this approach differ for companies marketing
to consumers (B2C) than businesses (B2B)?
The basic approach is not different. However, there tend
to be more issues to consider in B2C than B2B, simply because
of deep-rooted traditions and preferences, especially when
it comes to consumables in the area of food and beverage,
and products which carry some scent. Coffee may not achieve
acceptance in a predominantly tea-oriented society; frozen
foods may be an affront to societies who place high importance
on fresh foods and their preparation, and a fabric softener
sheet with “soothing lavender scent” which is
well received here in the U.S. may be totally inappropriate
in some countries! How do international marketing challenges typically
differ for smaller or start up companies than for larger
or well-established companies?
Small or start-up companies often do very well in international
marketing! In fact, according to figures released by the
U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses (categorized
as those companies with 500 employees or less) not only
represent 99.7% of all employer firms, employ 53% of the
workforce and account for 51% of private sector output,
they also represent 95.7% of all exporters in the U.S. and
contribute almost 30% of the value of exported goods. However,
the biggest challenge for smaller companies is simply not
having the staff, time or expertise to devote to developing
a well thought out international marketing strategy or plan.
Larger companies usually have much better access to the
necessary resources they need to be successful, and are
probably not relying heavily during their starting international
business phase on the revenue from that sector. Which industries or business sectors have developed
the most comprehensive international marketing strategies
and why do you think that is?
It’s interesting to look at the Top 100 Brands published
yearly by Interbrand Corporation, and see what changes have
occurred and which brands are considered to have a truly
“global reach” today vs. several years ago.
One of the qualifiers for consideration to be named to this
list is that the company must obtain at least one-third
of its earnings outside its home country (which does eliminate
some fairly large companies/brands such as Wal-Mart). For
example, Interbrand’s 2007 rankings show the Top 10
global brands as Coca-Cola, Microsoft, IBM, GE, Nokia, Toyota,
Intel, McDonald’s, Disney and Mercedes. In the last
three years, there has not been much change on this Top
10 List, with the exception of Marlboro not surprisingly
dropping out and Mercedes moving in. Certainly computer,
telecommunications and consumer products companies have
dominated as global brands; financial services and pharmaceutical
companies are moving up in the ranks, as a! re Internet
services, personal care and luxury goods producers. Which industries or business sectors could still benefit
the most from developing a more global approach to marketing?
In general, I believe the services sector continues to
lag behind companies producing and selling products in any
industry. So many service companies are geared toward fulfilling
a need in their immediate regions, and oftentimes it’s
difficult to see how it would be possible to increase their
geographic customer base. That could begin to change as
people see how some services are easily performed from other
areas; a case in point is of course the call service centers
springing up elsewhere which are providing product and technical
support for large companies from remote locations. Just
recently, a Nashville, Tennessee-based disease management
company (Healthways, Inc.) signed its first international
contract to provide coaching, education and guidance over
the telephone and by Internet to a German health provider.
I also think franchising will continue to grow as a way
for service businesses to expand geographically. Which economic and technology trends do you think will
have the greatest impact on international marketing in the
next five years?
Certainly from an economic standpoint global trade will
increase further as trade and investment barriers continue
to disappear; as a result, I would expect to see countries
which might be classified as less developed today continue
to benefit from increased trading opportunities. In concert
with that trend, I would expect the U.S. to continue to
move toward becoming “just another country”
rather than a world business leader as more and more multinational
firms originate elsewhere and the capital markets worldwide
move to reflect that change. 10 years ago, over half of
companies classified as multinationals (MNCs) originated
in the U.S. or Japan; today that number is smaller, and
more MNCs are originating in Asia-Pacific and Latin America,
where economic growth has been strong. According to Gerald
Davis of the University of Michigan, by 2005 all but two
of the world’s 25 largest corporations were listed
on the New York Stock Exchange (the exceptions bein! g Germany’s
Volkswagen and France’s Carrefour) and there were
more foreign firms listed on the NYSE than there were German
firms on the German stock exchange. From a technology standpoint, we will continue to see an
increase in e-commerce globally. The world is definitely
moving away from a “U.S.-centric, English-speaking
web.” The International Data Corporation states that
the number of American Internet users dropped from half
in 1998 to less than one third in 2004. The use of the Internet
will certainly allow companies easier access to competitive
intelligence as well as other information they need to move
their company or products into a new geographic area. Although
weblogs (“blogs”) have traditionally (can you
say “traditionally” about a phenomenon that
is only a few years old???!!) been personally published,
as companies continue to gain sophistication in the international
marketplace, there will be most likely be increased use
of blogs by corporate entities. Because of the continuing threats and risk of terrorism
worldwide, I would expect to see new technology related
to tracking and inspecting international freight, particularly
containerized ocean freight.
What criteria help you and a prospective client determine
if their company can benefit from international business
planning consultancy?
Typically, we work with prospective clients to truly understand
their motives and reasons for wanting to expand internationally.
We spend a lot of time in an initial “discovery meeting”
asking a series of introductory questions which might include: What are your primary reasons for “going global”?
(for example: too much competition in home territory, starting
to get inquiries for product from overseas, losing market
share in home market, product at end of life cycle in home
market, etc.) What kind of international business or marketing expertise,
if any, do you have on staff? In your long-term strategic planning, have you established
a goal for the level of international business you wish
to achieve (can be %, $)? Why do you think (and this is before we would get involved
in any market research) your product or service would be
a success elsewhere? What indicators do you have already? Based on those initial answers, we would determine if we
see an initial possibility for moving forward and develop
a market research plan to determine product/service sales
feasibility. And of course based on our findings, we would
recommend either a “go” or “no-go”
strategy as a result. What do you find surprises companies the most about
strategic international marketing?
One of the biggest surprises for my clients has been the
complexity of international business in general!
Although the principles of marketing in general don’t
vary much, there are the differences I’ve mentioned
previously. And in addition to those differences, the issues
of payment terms, establishing the creditworthiness and/or
credibility of potential clients, customers and distribution
partners, pricing, logistics and transportation and many
other issues come into play and have to be considered. Given your global business expertise, which industries
are leading the way in international trade growth between
the U.S. and the following markets: China? Brazil? Russia?
Eastern Europe? Mexico? Are there other regions where specific
U.S. industries should be planning for entry or growth in
order to be competitive?
China is in a position to be a huge consumer now of natural
and other resources to fuel its rapidly growing expansion
in manufacturing and industry. According to the U.S. China
Business Council, China is the U.S.’s fourth largest
export market; exports to China increased 157% over the
period of 2000 – 2005. Tennessee exports alone to
China grew 802% over the same period (in 2005, Tennessee
was the No. 6 exporting state to China with a total of US$1.4
billion); although cotton makes up about half of that figure,
other strong areas continue to be chemicals, electronics
and machinery. We can expect to see further growth in exports
of machinery, chemicals, transportation equipment and even
computers and electronic products to China. All of Eastern Europe has a need for updating its infrastructure,
as well as its manufacturing base in a variety of industries.
Demand for production machinery and construction is particularly
heavy throughout the region. Because Brazil’s rampant inflation has stabilized
to a great degree, it is much easier to look at bringing
products into that area. The U.S. remains Brazil’s
number one trading partner, and there are tremendous opportunities
in several areas, including automotive and aircraft parts,
oil field drilling and related equipment, cotton, and chemicals
and fertilizers. Although Mexico is highly dependent on its exports to the
U.S. (more than a quarter of its GDP) there are a number
of opportunities due to its open economy and of course NAFTA.
Strong areas for imports from the U.S. continue to be motor
vehicle parts, chemicals and electronic equipment, some
of which is inter-company trade as U.S. companies have established
lower-cost manufacturing operations in Mexico. Thank you for talking with us today. Before we wrap
up this interview, would you share a story or two from your
own international travels?
Gosh, so many stories to choose from – I’ve
even thought about writing a book incorporating all of them!
Certainly over my travels I’ve experienced some
very interesting food offerings! My goal is to always try
everything at least once……and I’ve certainly
eaten a few things that qualify for only once. Once I got
over the appearance of the small bowl of white worms (actually
smoked baby eel) that I was served in Chile, the dish was
absolutely delicious! I can say the same for the live snake
that was brought to my table in Shanghai before dinner for
a brief introduction before being taken off to be cooked
and returned. But the barbecued beetle whose legs got stuck
in my teeth I could easily do without! I did a trade show in Nagoya, Japan a few years back,
and it involved the setup of some fairly complicated industrial
equipment. I had everything well in hand, my flight over
was perfect, but my luggage was three days late. Trying
to keep the weight of my carryon briefcase to a minimum,
I foolishly packed all the trade show papers and confirmations
in my suitcase….needless to say trying to reconstruct
all the orders for electricity, forklift drivers, and whatnot
was an absolute nightmare! And to top it all off, I took
a tour of the harbor the second day I was there (my day
to adjust for jetlag) and ended up accidentally throwing
my Japanese phrasebook overboard. In Iran, I once admired the lustrous, shiny, silky hair
of a beautiful Iranian woman named Lily….again with
my trusty phrasebook, I tried to ask her what she used to
make her dark auburn hair so lovely. She wrote the name
of the product down and even went to the store with me to
purchase it. When I got back to the States, I dutifully
washed my hair and plastered the product onto it, covered
it with a towel and sat down to wait for the results….lo
and behold, the towel turned bright red, and the henna concoction
she had purchased for me turned my hair a dark eggplant
shade! Not quite what I’d had in mind…..although
it was shiny! Although there are countless tales of lost luggage, wrong
turns, decidedly unusual hotels (including one in Italy
that had a shower so small you couldn’t lift your
arms to shampoo your head!), bizarre air travel incidents
and unfortunate misunderstandings due to language issues
and more, I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world!
The memorable experiences I’ve had and the wonderful
people I’ve met in more than 70 countries are an integral
part of me and my thought processes today, and have certainly
contributed to my understanding of the importance of patience,
cross-cultural understanding and humor when traveling and
working in the international business world.
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