Determining New Markets Using Analytic Hierarchy Process: Case Study in Güral Porcelain

Abstract

The aim of this study is to solve the problem of determining the most appropriate new market upon which Gural Porcelain, a Turkish ceramic company exporting to various countries, will invest within the scope of market development strategy. In accordance with the purpose of the study, analytic hierarchy process (AHP), which enables to choose the most appropriate one among the alternatives by using both numeric and nonnumeric criteria, was used. The study was carried out together with Gural Porcelain Export Department Executive. Total eight main criteria were determined in the study: operating assets, communication infrastructure of the target market, economic growth rate, proximity to other markets, competitive advantage in the target market, demand, functioning of the legal system and trade agreements with the target market-exemption. After paired comparison of the main criteria, their relative importance values were determined. According to these significance values, it was seen that the criterion of “demand in the target market” was the most crucial criterion in choosing the new market to invest on for Gural Porcelain. Relative importance values of the alternatives were computed and the most suitable new market for Gural Porcelain to invest was determined to Northern Iraq. This was presented to the Gural Porcelain Export Department Executive. In this study, the most appropriate market for Gural Porcelain to invest was determined using AHP. Thus, decision makers seeking for new markets to raise their brand value in global porcelain sector were guided in determining the most suitable target market.