As a marketingconsultant, you will need to understand the potential for cultural differenceswhen communications are generated and transmitted that could have a significantimpact upon your client. For example, an understanding of cultural color andsymbolism could be extremely important when conducting business with othercountries and cultures. In some instances, such color associations have been apart of a culture for hundreds of years, and failure to be aware of them couldhave a negative impact when communicating to these cultures. Consequently, youwill need to work with your clients to develop a communication strategy thatwill enable them to frame communications that will address cultural differencesin a variety of situations. This is designed to help you understand and providean opportunity to discuss the types of strategies that can be adopted andaddress the various audiences you will encounter.
Examples of Culturally Sensitive Corporate Communications:
a. Colorscan have important meanings in some cultures that may not exist in others. Byway of example, in many Western countries, white is associated with thefollowing: brides and weddings, hospitals and doctors, peace and the whitedove, and purity or cleanliness. However, in a number of Eastern countries,white is associated with death, mourning, funerals, and sadness. Review the Cultural Color: CulturalMeanings of Color and Color Symbolism for further information. ( https://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology”¦).
b. Insome cultures, it is considered preferable for communication to be indirect toavoid the potential of “losing face,” while in others, people prefer verydirect and to-the-point communication to avoid wasting valuable time.
c. Inmany Western cultures, women are considered equal in the workforce, while inothers, women have a lower status than men when it comes to business, and thepotential ramifications (both at home and overseas) would need to be consideredif the communication were to come from a female executive.
d. Finally,what may be considered a simple and safe gesture in one culture may beconsidered rude and offensive in another.
1a. Advertising for international companies involves being aware of culturaldifferences. Use your selected company to identify advertising that is used inmore than one country for similar, or the same, product or service.
1b. Examine thecomponents of the advertisement, and then explain how and why it is likely tohave been changed to reflect the local conditions.
2a. Imagine that you are working in the human resources department of yourselected company at its home location in the United States. You have beentasked with sending out a communication to employees both in the United Statesand in at least one other country. To communicate effectively, you decide thatdifferent versions of the same type of communication are needed, containing thesame essential information or message. Provide an explanation for why thedifferences are needed.
2b. illustrate thedifferences by drafting appropriate communications for each audience.