The language of luxurySeptember 18, 2008Virtually every population in the world has at least one thing in common: multinational companies are vying for their attention. From General Mills in India to Godiva Chocolate in Paraguay, advertising is one of the most significant expenditures companies make the world over. University of Minnesota researcher Rohini Ahluwalia asks... "to get the most bang for their buck, how should these corporations talk to consumers - in English, their native language, or both?" Several countries in Southeast Asia, Europe and North America, among others, have bilingual populations that are fairly fluent in a "foreign" language (typically English or French) as well as at least one local or native language. In new research, Ahluwalia, an associate professor of marketing at the Carlson School of Management and Aradhna Krishna of the University of Michigan look at the complexity and benefits of advertising to these populations. "The issue of bilingual consumers is increasingly crucial for multinational corporations," said Ahluwalia. "To someone in Spain, an advertisement for a luxury item from a foreign firm could have a more positive impact if delivered in English or "Spanglish" than if it were delivered in only Spanish. Conversely, if the advertised product was a necessity, the native language may be more persuasive." Advertising language will affect slogan evaluation for foreign corporations, but not for local companies, Ahluwalia shows. To demonstrate the effect, the researchers conducted a study in India where much of the population is fluent in English and Hindi, with both languages viewed favorably. They found that while the Hindi language is associated with "belongingness" (close, friendly, familiar), English is associated with "sophistication" (global, hip, upper class). For a necessary item like laundry detergent, advertisers are better off using the native language for its relatibility. But for luxury items, which can range from chocolate to a brand new car, a mixed-language approach will be more effective. "People expect mixed language from local companies. But from multinationals, it is unexpected, so a customer's attention is grabbed by the second language in the ad. It makes the ad's language stand out," explained Ahluwalia. "The consumer's focus on the language makes them think about the associations of the language used that is, what does it seem to convey? Sophistication, modernity or closeness? This effect could be very favorable for a foreign company selling a discretionary or luxury product." The implications for multinational firms are immense. "From a foreign firm, English-only ads may not be as effective, and ads in the local language may backfire, invoking skepticism in the consumer. The safest bet is to use mixed-language ads when working with bilingual markets," states Ahluwalia. From French and English advertisements in Canada to Spanglish ads across Latin America, firms will be able to target global bilingual markets by showing off their language savvy and insights into local culture. University of Minnesota |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Multinational Current Events and Multinational News Articles Genome-wide study of autism published in Nature In one of the first studies of its kind, an international team of researchers has uncovered a single-letter change in the genetic code that is associated with autism. Algae and pollen grains provide evidence of remarkably warm period in Antarctica's history For Sophie Warny, LSU assistant professor of geology and geophysics and curator at the LSU Museum of Natural Science, years of patience in analyzing Antarctic samples with low fossil recovery finally led to a scientific breakthrough. Global public health the focus of scientific conference Counterfeit and adulterated food and drugs and advances in measurement science used to detect them emerged as key themes of the Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) hosted by the U.S. Pharmacopeial (USP) Convention. Study of adjuvant endocrine treatment for breast cancer reveals cost of noncompliance The largest study in the world of treatments for post menopausal, hormone positive breast cancer has shown that patients who continue to take exemestane or tamoxifen do significantly better than patients who start to take one or other drug (or tamoxifen followed exemestane) but then stop. Instanyl sets new standard in management of breakthrough cancer pain New data presented today further demonstrate the efficacy of Instanyl in management of breakthrough cancer pain. The data which were presented at the 6th congress of the European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain (EFIC) are from a multinational, crossover trial comparing Instanyl with oral transmucosal fentanyl citrate (OTFC) for the treatment of breakthrough pain in patients with cancer. Lead-Based Consumer Paint Remains a Global Public Health Threat Although lead content in paint has been restricted in the United States since 1978, University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers say in major countries from three continents there is still widespread failure to acknowledge its danger and companies continue to sell consumer paints that contain dangerous levels of lead. Brazil proves developing countries can use generic medicines to fight HIV/AIDS epidemic Brazil's nearly two-decade effort to treat people living with HIV and AIDS shows that developing countries can successfully combat the epidemic. Toronto researcher's discovery points to a new treatment avenue for acute myeloid leukemia Dr. John Dick, Senior Scientist at the Ontario Cancer Institute, the research arm of Princess Margaret Hospital, co-led a multinational team that has developed the first leukemia therapy that targets a protein, CD123, on the surface of cancer stem cells that drive acute myeloid leukemia (AML), which is an aggressive disease with a poor outcome. New publication shows index insurance has potential to help manage climate risks and reduce poverty Climate has always presented a challenge to farmers, herders, fishermen and others whose livelihoods are closely linked to their environment, particularly those in poor areas of the world. Scientists sequence genome of the N2-fixing, soil-living bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii A collaboration of researchers, which includes scientists at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) and Virginia Tech, have completed the genome sequence of Azotobacter vinelandii, uncovering important genetic information that will contribute to a more complete understanding of the biology of this versatile, soil-living bacterium. More Multinational Current Events and Multinational News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||