The relevance of international advertising to international branding

Abstract

In order to investigate the efficacy of international or global branding, one key source of data relates to the international advertising practices of multinational companies and the rationale behind their policies. For instance, it is likely that many of the costs and benefits will be similar, if not identical. Analysis of the international advertising policies of the multinationals indicates firstly that there has been too much focus on the issue of total standardisation, where each executional element is standardised in each market. In other words a policy of international branding need not be an either/or choice, rather it can be a flexible policy that can be adapted to circumstances. Related to the above point, it would appear that too much emphasis has also been placed on the issue of market and consumer convergence, namely that if it can be established that convergence has taken place, then international branding is a viable policy and vice versa. Rather even if significant differences can be identified there might still be significant benefits to be obtained from a policy of international branding. A final consideration is that the efficacy of international branding should not be evaluated solely in economic terms, asking such questions as does it result in increased sales or profit? Rather its benefits need to be viewed in a wider context, and international organisational and process issues are likely to exert considerable influence on how the benefits of an international brand are determined.