Social and Political Environments

Assignment Objectives

Describe some of the basic issues involved in developing and executing an international marketing strategy.

Predict situations that present potential ethical and legal issues and develop solutions for those issues.The Legal Minefield Overseas

China's growing middle class and spending power have made it a marketers' dream. But navigating the intricacies of Chinese society is guided by written and unwritten rules that global businesses need to learn. Brands often end up intertwined in politically charged news events. Censorship is capricious subject to interpretation but heavily enforced. (Don't end up like Lady Gaga who does not own the rights to her name in China.)

Remember that the discussion takes place over two weeks and your weekly posts must be made in the specified week to earn credit.

WEEK 3 MAIN DISCUSSION POST: 

Select a country in the Middle East and one in the African continent. Research and present at least two legal roadblocks in each country that could prove troublesome for international marketers who want to function in the respective countries

Your analysis must be substantiated by research from articles in the library's full-text databases or other graduate level resources. Use of consultant or other inappropriate sites is banned and may result in a zero for the assignment. Since you are engaging in research, be sure to cite the source(s) in APA format.

Interactive Reply 1:

Select one student's post regarding legal issues in the Middle East. Critically assess it for validity and accuracy. Be sure to back up your evaluation. Please do not critique a country post that is contained in your main post.

Marilyn Basden

Unit 2 DB MKT660 

Saudi Arabia and Rwanda Africa Roadblock to the International Market

Marketers that have an interest in doing business in Saudi Arabia will find that doing business there can be difficult and cumbersome.  Saudi Arabia has regulations that are cumbersome and unpredictably enforced.  Businesses that move a business to Saudi Arabia must hire workers who are skilled, however the country has strict social rules that are aimed at females.  The restrictions of women include they must wear the abava and full length black dress when in public and the are not allowed to drive any vehicles.  With the types of restrictions Saudi Arabia has in place manufacturing does not create many jobs and little work is provided to the population (Riyadh and Jeddah (2014).

International marketers that have an interest in doing business in Saudi Arabi can get information on the investment process, licensing, and support services from Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority’s (SAGIA) Investor Service Center (ISC).  The is ISC has 30 days to refuse or grant the license after receiving the application and documentation supporting the prospective investor.  However, there are disincentives to the investing tin the country such as the government making efforts of forcing investors to hire a substantia number of Saudis at higher wages and restricting visas of foreign workers.  Also, substantially low payment under some government contracts, conservatively cultural environment and enforced segregation of sexes or gender in both the business and social settings (U. S. Department of State (2015).   

International marketers that have an interest in doing business in Rwanda Africa is faced with the difficulty of getting or renewing work visas by the Government of Rwanda (GoR).  The visa approval has taken several months when the process has a standard turnaround time of 30 days after the application and documents have been submitted.  The reason for this is that the GoR’s prefer local citizens or members of the East African Community (EAC) hired for the available jobs opposed to those who are considered as third country nationals.  International marketers are also faced with inconsistent application tax incentives and import duties, which is a big challenge for investors doing business in Rwanda, although all investors should be treated the same (U. S. Department of State (2015).  

 Interactive Reply 2:

Select another student's post regarding legal issues on the African Continent. Critically assess it for validity and accuracy. Be sure to back up your evaluation. Please do not critique a country post that is contained in your main post.

The two interactive posts should be substantive in nature and showcase mastery of the concepts and your professional marketing and business communication skills. Apply your knowledge. Do not simply state that it is a good or bad idea, specify why and be detailed in your explanation.

In your own words, please post a main discussion post and comment on at least two other postings (interactive responses). You will be graded on the quality and interactivity of your postings. Use of unoriginal text and excessive quotes indicates a lack of comprehension and shows that you may not have mastered the concepts. A large percentage of unoriginal content may result in a zero being posted for the discussion grade. 

Yemen and Botswana Roadblocks in the international Market

One major roadblock in Yemen is their labor laws are inadequate   (State, 2014) . There are some estimates of unemployment being at 50%  (State, 2014). Agriculture is a job that is in high demand. It is said that 45% of the population lives under the national poverty line of $1.25 per day. There is the possibility that if you already have a little money, you can get into a pretty good job and then be in a collective bargaining position. With the collective bargaining in Yemen, it is allowed to proceed without any intervention from the Yemen Government (State, 2014) .

Marketers that may have an interest in doing business in Yemen have some leeway also. There are basically no restrictions on private outside investments. So, basically someone could go to Yemen from the United States and invest in a private company and not have to worry about the government saying that you cannot do it. This allows for marketers to get into Yemen and then market to an international market to get the products or services sold and bring more money into Yemen (State, 2014) . 

Botswana is known to have a lot of trade barriers that affect the international marketing professionals around the world that would like to do business in Botswana. One issue in Botswana that someone would face is starting an international business there. There are restrictions on licensing for businesses (abroad, 2016). These licenses are usually saved for local Botswanan businesses. This makes it difficult for a marketer to go in and invest into a local business to help market the company to an international market for gaining revenue increases. 

WEEK 4 MAIN DISCUSSION POST: 

Scouring the Global Media

Global media looks at U.S.-based companies differently than we do domestically. Multinational companies make mistakes all of the time. How does media in the rest of the world cover legally questionable activities of American companies abroad?

WEEK 4

The Internet houses links to numerous global English and non-English language foreign media sources. Find a story in a non-U.S. news source from the last decade about a U.S.-based company that had a legal issue in an overseas market. 

• Describe the situation in the news. 

Since you are engaging in research, be sure to cite the source(s) in APA format.