“Any fool can make soap. It takes a smart guy to sell it,” said Thomas J. Barratt, the world’s first brand manager. Barratt famously used the boy John Everett Millais to blow bubbles to sell Pierce's soap. The British Empire's exploitation of palm and coconut oil from African soil made soap cheaper and more accessible to people who didn't already wash their faces.
In 1810, soap production in England was 28,536 tons. However, in 1880 the East London factory could produce 203,000 tons of soap per week. Advertising was born out of rapid industrialization, European colonialism and mass production.
The legacy of 20th century marketing practices continues to resonate around the world. Culture was shaped by words, images and symbols passed down from London, Paris and New York. Marketing is invading our collective psyche. He can create ideals, change opinions and create demand. But it can also promote human rights, sustainable development and collective action. Just like a pen, it can be used to spread love or hate. Marketing is value neutral.
Until recently, most multinational corporations were based in the United States and Western Europe. The Western world dominates trade, with the exception of Japan. Economic dominance is supported by political influence and military power. Business and marketing are the activities of educated people, most of whom live in metropolitan areas. The audience is less homogeneous, but mostly consists of wealthy or middle-class families with disposable income. In 1913, the British Empire accounted for a quarter of world GDP, and by the 1960s the United States accounted for 40% of world GDP. Because consumer markets are concentrated in the West, business priorities, marketing communications and media spending are distributed as needed. Emerging markets are just an afterthought.
The global economy looks different today, but the economic outlook remains unchanged. Even in the 21st century, emerging markets - with the exception of luxury brands seeking new capital in China and the Middle East - are largely ignored and ignored. Global brands risk becoming unknown if they fail to understand and communicate with the global majority.
Western hegemony was challenged for the first time in 400 years. Unilateralism paved the way for a more fragmented world with anti-unilateralism. It involves many countries, cultures and voices. Africa has the youngest and fastest growing population in the world. By 2050, one in four people on the planet will be African. The average age in Africa is 19 years, in America 38 years, in Europe 44 years and in Japan 49 years.
The vast majority of Generation Z and above (41% of the world's population) live in developing countries. Nigeria, Pakistan, India and India have the largest ZZ populations. At the same time, by 2030, the BRICS countries will provide more than 50% of global GDP. Overall, economic power is shifting from east to south.
Business leaders are unable to see the world through Western eyes. Most developed countries are oversaturated and offer diminishing returns. In contrast, developing countries present attractive but untested business opportunities. New markets require new ideas, abandonment of old methods and expanded capabilities. Launching a global campaign with the wrong name can be considered lazy at best and insulting at worst. There is a long and growing list of ways to cut ties with the global majority.
Examples include a racist Dolce & Gabbana ad in which a Chinese woman tries to eat pizza with chopsticks. Carr's "Turn It Loose" campaign was interpreted as support for diarrhea in Spanish-speaking countries. And the English slogan of the Swedish vacuum cleaner company Electrolux is: “There is nothing worse than Electrolux.” Beyond product customization, companies must remember that 94% of the world's population does not speak English as a first language. This may be hard to believe for marketers working around the world. But as John Le Carré said, “The table is a dangerous place to watch the world.”
There are several examples of companies around the world that understand and celebrate local culture. McDonald's offers regional versions of its menu. Filipinos can enjoy maxspaghetti, Indians can enjoy maharaja poppy seeds (50% of the Indian menu is vegetarian), and Canadians can enjoy poutine with cream sauce. Hindustan Unilever has found an innovative way to penetrate rural India by training women to sell Unilever products in low-income rural communities. Project Shakti has enabled over 160,000 women to become micro-entrepreneurs. As a result, Unilever products are now available in 175,000 villages in India. Chinese tech giant Huawei is focusing on high-quality hardware at lower prices than its competitors to meet the needs of consumers in emerging markets looking for affordable smartphones. The company was set to compete with Apple and Samsung before being kicked out of Europe and banned by the US government over security concerns.
Globalization promises to create a universal consumer: homogeneous in taste, experience and identity. This makes life easier for multinational corporations and marketing departments. But what happened was just the opposite. Local preferences influence global tastes, and regional problems can escalate into global crises. Finding a balance between global goals and local needs requires hard work. To what extent should companies consider local culture? After all, more markets require larger marketing budgets. The answer depends on your department, internal resources, and market priorities. Of course, some departments require more cultural adaptation than others. Food and beverage may require more localization than electric vehicles. A good question to help you plan is: How culturally sensitive are my products and offerings?
Marketing must be a dance between global compatibility and cultural relevance. Global headquarters must define a shared vision and strategy with input from local teams and create a structure that can be tailored to local needs. In fact, global teams find local teams limited and difficult to work with. Local marketers feel that global teams do not have a foothold in their country or culture. A comparison can be made between creating a battle plan in Call of Duty and being on the front lines of a battle.
Of course, achieving synergies between markets requires a global vision. But the global team should act as the conductor of the orchestra, not its soloist. The whole must be greater than the sum of its parts. The company's vision is only possible when each country can share its unique ideas, insights and challenges. An interesting way to look at this relationship is to use the analogy of rice and spices. Rice (worldwide) should be the same in all countries. (local) spices may vary depending on cultural preferences. Some cultures prefer sweet rice, others prefer salty or spicy.
Pop music can symbolize soft power and strong cultural influence. British music has lost its monopoly on pop music. This year, 36 non-English-language records made Billboard's top 10. According to Spotify, more and more people are listening to music in their native language. K-Pop has taken the world by storm. She transcended music and became an undeniable cultural phenomenon. In 2019, BTS became the first group since The Beatles to achieve three No. 1 hits. 1 album. #1 on the Billboard 200 in less than a year. Music is often a gateway to cultural exchange.
A similar trend can be seen in reggaeton, where repeats of Bad Bunny, Peso Pluma and Carol G can now be found in English-speaking countries. Likewise, Afrobeats has grown 550% on Spotify since 2017, with 50% of streams coming from users aged 18-24. The future of music seems to be local and have a global fan base. Likewise, Western music has influenced other parts of the world. The taste of the global majority influences the Western world.
Accessing and experiencing different cultures, customs, and experiences doesn't even require travel. Young Westerners can learn about the joys of Kyrgyzstan, Mongolian heavy metal music and Japanese corporate life in 60 seconds on TikTok. The push for cultural representation is unprecedented. In the same way, propaganda of a single worldview is unforgivable. Additionally, any hint of cultural appropriation can cause long-term reputational damage.
Europe and America are no longer the center of gravity. Companies must develop cultural diversity through education, learning and understanding of different cultures. The old map cannot be used to navigate the new road. Brands need new methods, tools and partners to communicate with the global majority. This is not about the growing influence of the rest of the world, but about building a new world for the majority of global society. The next article on the future of marketing will be written in Pidgin Persian, Vietnamese or Nigerian.
