Globalisation

For business, the world is becoming a smaller place. Countries, and even continents, no longer operate in isolation. This is a result of three major trends. First, the fast-growing economies of developing countries have opened up geographical boundaries. Second, the leaps and bounds of technology and the internet, mean that a message is global, whether this is desired or not. Last is the trend to drive down costs; operating on a global basis offers economies of standardisation.

Traditional markets like Western Europe and North America continue to grow in single digits. But it is emerging countries like Brazil, Russia, India and China, with 43% of the world’s population, which are fuelling the real global growth in percentage terms, even though the developed markets still hold the lion’s share. Hot on the heels of these four are countries like Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia and Mexico. These are amongst the fastest growing economies, attracting rising investment in to the regions and with rapidly increasing consumer awareness of brands and technology. The surge in demand for both market research and marketing services is coming from local businesses and established brands from more developed regions. As a result, a presence in these areas offers opportunities with both new and existing clients.

Technology can also play a part. The internet is not curtailed by geographical boundaries, increasing the need for strategic alignment across borders in a campaign or research study. Take-up of platforms is following a much more rapid path than western markets, with mobile ‘leapfrogging’ the PC as the device of choice, meaning that in some cases these new markets are developing digital content and expertise more quickly than established regions. In addition, more of the bigger clients are buying centrally. For example, four-fifths of the top 100 advertisers in 2007 had a consolidated or roster arrangement, up from two-thirds in 2003.

Bigger projects in more than one country bring difficulties, not least managing the pricing and management pressures of a consolidated budget, but also understanding and interpreting cultural bias across nationalities. The biggest challenge of all in global operations, however, is to retain the right blend of specialism versus generalism: to protect experts at the same time as encouraging and enabling them to work as part of a much bigger entity. This is an extremely delicate balance to achieve and requires ongoing commitment from staff at all levels. But once achieved, it delivers a culture which is beneficial for employees and clients alike.

Ultimately, however, the opportunities of this trend are clear. Agencies can provide a full range of services to one client across a number of territories, making the process of planning, managing and executing a campaign or research brief across continents much simpler and easier, and boosting revenue in the process.

World's largest countries by population, millions