However a recent Knowledge@Wharton article, “Cents and Sensibility: Why Marketing to Multicultural Consumers Requires a Subtle Touch,” argues that CPG companies need to be cognizant of the subtleties of the culture / nationality that they are trying to lure.
But new research co-developed by Wharton shows how ethnic-oriented marketing can backfire and even turn multicultural consumers against a product or service, as three marketing professors explain in a paper titled, "Bicultural Identity and the Dark Side of Targeting."
As per Prof Reed:
The challenge to marketers is to calibrate the ad [in such a way] that the dominant identity is reinforced with more subtlety. The idea is to pick one identity and develop symbolism that is not center stage so it doesn’t get on people’s radar and trigger an offensive reactionThere are many examples in the article which exemplify what the article purports.
I think that the companies have to be aware of the cultural and ethnic and demographic changes in their entire offering before they venture into being a global player as against a local players. Very few players are able to do that effortlessly. All 4 Ps (Product, Price, Place and Promotion) need to be customized in order to become Global.
