RESPONSE

Standardization and Adaptation



Standardization and Adaptation

Introduction

Globalization has changed the way organizations conduct business. Political situations in the country determine the extent to which foreign firms are allowed to conduct their business. Political decisions determine the extent of linearization with reference to deregulation policies, labour, services, capital, technology, tariffs etc. during the last 15 years, the volume of international trade has increased significantly thus helping developing countries to take advantage of this situation and reap the benefits by attracting foreign investments. In this scenario, developing countries have benefited the most, which is helping the middle-income group to expand. Globalization has given opportunities to firms to grow the business and expand in all directions.

Although there are many advantages of globalization, it is causing issues in some nations especially developed nations. The import of cheap goods from developing countries has resulted in businesses in developed countries switching to outsourcing. Apart from this, globalization also poses problems for firms, as they have to meet certain standards and criteria in order to conduct business in a foreign country. When it comes to expanding a business in a foreign market, the firm needs to decide whether to standardize the market or adopt a marketing mix approach (Jain, pp. 247-249).

Discussion

Total S.A. is a French multinational oil and gas company that has the reputation of being one of the world's six supermajor oil companies. Its presence in the United Kingdom has set standards for local companies. They are focused on continuous expansion and are making continuous efforts in order to capture the major share of the market. In order to do this the challenge they face is to design their offerings in a way that will help them gain market share.

Adapting their products to capture the British market has led to the fact that several advanced products have ...