McDonald’s is probably the first company most people think about when we talk about international companies. The world leader of the fast-food restaurants is literally located in every (democratic) country on Earth. The Economist has even created the Big Mac Index to compare Purchasing Power Parity worldwide. Locally, here in the U.S., or back home in France, McDonald’s customers would definitely say that the food is standardized, but it is actually standardized within every country, but different worldwide.
The work of my classmates (see Sources) has reinforced my idea that McDonald’s really takes care while entering a new country and actually adapts its products and its communication strategy to the culture the company targets. The best example I can think of is India. As I said, the Big Mac is the best-selling burger worldwide and has its own economic index, hence McDonald’s sells it everywhere with success, but Indian cultural and religious believes made the company reconsider its menus over there.
As cows are sacred in India, McDonald’s could not sell its Big Mac, which is a beef burger. But the standardized company did not give up and has adapted its products and marketing strategy, by offering a whole new product line of chicken burgers and adapting its communication towards a culture where religion influences food habits.
But the product itself is not the only element companies have to change to enter a new market. The product can even stay exactly the same worldwide, but the name of the product can mean something different depending on the country it is sold. The best example coming through my mind is the Chevy Nova’s flop in Latin America because “no va” means “won’t go” in Spanish. Those kinds of changes are really game changers and can shape the success or failure or a product only through its name.
Though some changes are just aesthetic and are used to enter a market as smoothly as possible. From my own experience, I’ve been surprised to find my favorite yogurt brand in the United States under the name Dannon, when I know that it is a French company called Danone that produces those yogurts. I first though that it was a fake brand trying to attract customers through Danone’s recognition for its quality, and then I realized that Americans would pronounce the “-e” at the end of Danone which might cause troubles for the company during the export and selling process.
I realized that cultural adaptation is the key to success to enter foreign market and that this adaptation can take different forms through the product itself, the communication or even the name of the company.
Don't build links, build relationships! 