One of the impacts of globalization has been the merging between industrial-developed nations and traditional-centered countries. While this merger is based around business, the lines of communication in terms of brand identity, advertising, and corporate policies introduces the need for a cross-cultural alignment. Businesses trying to establish themselves in countries where social values and power allegiance differ from the company's ideological center of operations need to find a common ground by reinventing their image to suit the country. Such is the case with Coca-Cola, a U.S. based company that went international as early as the first two decades of the twentieth century (Coca-Cola Company-Heritage 2006). In 1993, when the company was set on dominating the soft drink market in India, their public image had to appeal to Indian consumers. An analysis of the Coca-Cola brand identity, compared to modern Indian culture will reveal what changes were made and why.
[...] The main slogan of Coca-Cola India is “little drops of joy.” The mission statement on the American website reads, refresh the world in body, mind and spirit, to inspire moments of optimism through our brands and our actions and to create value and make a difference everywhere we engage (Coca-Cola Mission Statement 2009). However, the India corporate website is more focused on environment. As found on the Coca-Cola India website: Our commitment to protecting and preserving the environment extends throughout our organization. [...]
[...] Retrieved on 21 March from http://ibef.org/artdisplay.aspx?cat_id=447&art_id=6807 Jones, Eleanor & Ritzmann, Florian. (2009). "Coca-Cola at Home. Virginia.edu. Retrieved on 19 March from http://xroads.virginia.edu/~class/coke/coke.html Kaye, Jennifer. (2004). "Coca-Cola India." Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. Retrieved on 21 March from http://mba.tuck.dartmouth.edu/pdf/2004-1-0085.pdf KnowIndia. (2009). "Culture and Lifestyle." KnowIndia.org. Retrieved on 22 March from http://www.knowindia.net/ KnowIndia. (2009). "National Song." KnowIndia.org. Retrieved on 22 March from http://www.knowindia.net/ Lal, Vinay. (2008). "Landscapes." UCLA. Retrieved on 20 March from http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/Landscapes/mainlscape.html Mann, Clarence J. & Gotz, Klaus edited by. [...]
[...] All business decisions in India are made by the leader, leaving no authority to those further down the chain of command. “When uncertainty avoidance is strong, a culture tends to perceive unknown situations as threatening so that people tend to avoid them (Paterson 2003).” India's ranking in Uncertainty Avoidance is considerably low compared to the world average. This indicates that the country does not fear unstructured ideas or unregulated situations. It also indicates a society in which people of differing opinions can easily express themselves. [...]
[...] However, as India progresses in industrial growth, the ranks will become closer in range with America. The final step refers to country-specific restraints, which has been illustrated through the discussion of ethics and Expectational gaps. The gaps represent the dominant ideologies within the culture, which differ from country to country, even region to region. What is offensive and distasteful to Indians is expected from Americans. ‘Playing dirty' is against many Indian principles. While Americans may try to spin the situation or find loopholes, such as in the unregulated standards of pesticide contamination, it is sheer arrogance which allows such corporations the ability to escape responsibility, especially when the company has built its brand on ensuring public safety. [...]
[...] The Coca-Cola India website even states as its promise: The Coca-Cola Company believes our business has always been based on the trust consumers everywhere place in us-trust that is earned by what we do as a corporate citizen and by our ability to live our values as a commercial enterprise (Coca-Cola India Our Promise 2009). The environment has been less important in industrialized nations, where natural landscapes are mutilated in the name of modernization and waste management remained unregulated and uncared about until recently. [...]
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