Escuela Internacional de Ciencias Económicas y Administrativas

Culture, Diversity and Negociation

Research Project:

Samsung in France

Alejandro Kessler, María Alejandra Sabogal and Laura Vanegas

Universidad de La Sabana

Chía, Colombia

October 18, 2019

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 Entry Strategy Plan

1. Introduction:

Samsung is a worldwide Company recognized for its developments in technology in cell phones

and electronics devices in general. The Korean company has been responsible for positioning itself

around the world as one of the strongest companies internationally.

This document aims to show an example of how the entry of a product from Korea into French

culture would take place, appropriating its own and characteristic elements of this country. Thus, it

is intended to show the income plan, the analysis of both cultures and the necessary descriptions of

the requirements of the product so that it looks and feels local, and that French population feels

enough interest in acquiring the last limited edition of the Samsung Galaxy Book Eiffel Tower. Le

last Tablet that provides Windows 10 support and mobile connectivity.

This project takes into account the cultural differences of both countries to allow their entry in the

best way. It is known that France is a leading country with an important world economy and well-

defined cultural dimensions, positioning itself as one of the top markets in Europe and the world.

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 2. Description of the two countries and their macro cultures

a. Description of the Culture of South Korea:

The Republic of Korea has a broad tradition and culture that has been forged since approximately

1000 BC and represents a unique development case not only in the region but also throughout the

world due to its rapid economic growth after the separation from Korea. Currently, the Republic of

Korea is known as the fifth largest export economy in the world and is home to many large

companies such as Samsung, LG, Kia Motors and others. Much of the export is guided to finished

products that involve technology more than those that involve the sale of raw materials.

An important fact to highlight is that the cultural factors of the country, such as community

involvement, have a considerable influence on normal activities, such as concerns about physical

appearance, which impact the professional and sentimental development of individuals.

*The Republic of Korea is the world's 15th largest economy and is considered one of the four Asian

tigers (named after the new generation of industrialized Asian countries, in these are South Korea,

Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan. of this country is an exceptional case of rapid economic

growth, this is mainly attributed to the growth of GDP as a result of the economic opening that

caused an increase in exports in the last 3 decades. the Per Capita Gross National Product has been

growing to the same extent and this is due to the aforementioned reasons that proved an accelerated

growth in the income of the country. For 2018 the GDP of South Korea is 1,619 trillion dollars.

(World Bank, 2018)

South Korea ranks 22 in the Human Development Index with a total index of 0.903, being above

the world average in the four factors that make up this index: as IHDI notably exceeds the average

world development, in terms of the other factors found very close to the world average value.

(United Nations, 2019)

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 b. Description of Culture of France:

Currently one of the leading and most developed countries in Europe, it is considered of great

influence and contribution as a member of the United Nations Security Council, the OECD, the G8

and the European Union among other world political organizations of great impact. Its Government,

product of the introduction of a presidential and parliamentary system of government established in

1958, has been recognized for its political stability, in comparison with purely parliamentary past

governments; In this way, the president represents an important political role, taking action on the

most relevant decisions of the nation, directing meetings with his cabinet of ministers and being a

key representative of all that foreign matter and civil defense, while, in what corresponds to The

daily situations related to the proper functioning of each government area of the nation, is the prime

minister who has primary responsibility. (Dimireva, 2017)

Currently positioned as the seventh economic power in the world with a Gross Domestic Product of

$$ 2,588 trillion euros according to 2018 data, which showed the recovery of the economic crisis

that affected much of the European continent and late to France, with economic growth based on a

GDP of positive difference in 1.6% with respect to the previous year, which, despite factors such as,

a strong degree of foreign direct investment, an important and solid consumption and a favorable

macroenvironment and microenvironment, is below the estimated growth of the country's economy.

(Santander Trade, 2019)

• France is currently the largest agricultural port of the entire European Union, contributing ¼

of the total production of the region, however, it is a limited category, since compared to the

other sectors of the economy it contributes only 1.5% to the National GDP and does not

employ more than 3% of the French population, which can be associated with high levels of

urbanization (Santander Trade, 2019)

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 • Despite having a manufacturing industry with high levels of diversification, there is an

increase in outsourcing of industrial productive activities. It contributes more than 17% of

national GDP and employs about 1/5 of the economically active population. The industrial

sectors of telecommunications, automotive, aerospace and finally arms industry stand out

(Santander Trade, 2019)

• Finally, the tertiary or services sector is really the one with the highest contribution of

French GDP, representing more than 70% of this economic indicator. Its main activity is

associated with tourism, given that the country continues to be the preferred destination for a

good number of tourists (Santander Trade, 2019)

Work Culture

The French style of work respects privacy and ensure a good work-life balance. It is totally

forbidden to have a space of politics, religious or ethnics debates within working hours. (ElAlaoui,

2007)

Although taking a lot of breaks and working from 9AM to 5PM (for most jobs) can be considered

as ineffective, but French are very focused in their work and really effective in their time and work

management. (ElAlaoui, 2007)

Finally, taking holidays (to disconnect from work context) is very important and can be like even

sacred in French culture. Holidays (5 weeks a year as average) and weekends are slots where people

can breath and refresh ideas to restart working more efficiently. (ElAlaoui, 2007)

3. Description of the action plan

a. Choose a brand from the country of origin with a brief description of the brand

Name of Corporation: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Product: Samsung Galaxy Book

Country of Origin: South Korea Contact Country: France

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SEC is a global electronics firm comprised of the headquarters in Korea and 270 subsidiaries

(collectively, “Samsung Electronics” or the “Company”) across the world including nine (9)

regional headquarters for the CE and IM Divisions, five (5) regional headquarters for the DS

Division, and Harman’s subsidiaries (Samsung Electronics, 2017)

Samsung Electronics inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and

technologies that give people the power to discover new experiences. With a constant focus on

innovation and discovery, we keep redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices,

tablets, digital appliances, network systems, and memory, system LSI, foundry and LED solutions.

(Samsung Newsroom, 2019)

Samsung Electronics is committed to improving the global community and delivering

groundbreaking innovations that enhance people’s everyday lives.

Mission: To inspire the world with innovative technologies, products and designs that enrich

people’s lives and contribute to a socially responsible, sustainable future. (Samsung Newsroom,

2019)

The 2000s witnessed the birth of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphone series, which quickly not only

became the company’s most-praised product but also frequently topped annual lists of the best-

selling smartphones in the world. Since 2006, the company has been the top-selling global

manufacturer of televisions. Beginning in 2010, the Galaxy series expanded to tablet computers

with the introduction of the Galaxy Tab. (Bondarenko, n.d.)

For over 40 years, Samsung Electronics has continued to expand its global reach and open new

possibilities for people everywhere by introducing innovative technology. (Samsung Newsroom,

2019)

The Company values diversity of ethnicity, gender, religion, region of origin, and nationality and is

actively searching for directors that can add new perspectives to the Board. Independent directors

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must possess strong leadership skills, an exemplary career history, and extensive knowledge in

relevant fields, such as IT, auditing, finance, accounting, economics, and law, while satisfying the

requirements of pertinent laws (e.g., the Commercial Act) to objectively supervise management.

(Samsung, 2019)

b. Choose a product or service that you are going to promote and market in the host

country

The product Samsung it’s about to launch in France is the new limited-edition Eiffel Galaxy Book S

- 12", 128GB, Red-Brown color in allusion and honor to the 130 years anniversary of the Eiffel

tower.

Source: (Olivares, 2019)

Figure 2 - Open Samsung Galaxy Book

Figure 1 - Samsung Galaxy Book.

The Eiffel Galaxy Book 3 will come with an included Pen, Keyboard and the special edition book

La Tour de Monsieur Eiffel written by the famous French architect Bertrand Lemoine.

“The specialist in the history of architecture, construction, and cities in the 19th and 20th centuries,

Bertrand Lemoine has curated numerous exhibitions and has widely published on the subjects of

architecture and the history of iron and metal structures, including several books on the subject of

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 Gustave Eiffel. Lemoine is director of the journal Architecture Acier Construction and has been

editor in chief of AMC- Le Moniteur Architecture and L'Acier pour Construire.” (Lemoine, 1989)

The included accessories have a matching Red-Brown

color and in the pen, there is an engraved patter similar as

the Eiffel Tower construction. (Engadged, 2018)

This limited edition of the Galaxy Book wants to

commemorate the most impressive landmark of Paris.

Figure 3 - Stylish pen and red brown Samsung This product is meant to relate and represent a part of this

national French heritage, the main symbol of Paris and France. As Gustave Eiffel achieved its

construction in 1889, the idea of Samsung is to celebrate its 130 anniversaries by launching a

product on behalf of it. For example, the color of this Eiffel Galaxy Book is intended to recall the

Eiffel Tower current color: Red Brown.

Most of the following characteristics where designed and devised thinking of this structure:

• “Ultralight to go anywhere: Eiffel Galaxy Book S brings lightweight and durable together

in a purposeful design to keep you mobile. Just 11.8mm of thickness and a weight under 1kg

lets you bring your device wherever you go while the solid clamshell form provides stability

to let you type for hours without fatigue.” (Samsung, 2018)

• “Slimmed down and powered up: Stay connected and unhindered to focus on the task at

hand. The Snapdragon 8cx platform delivers a superior Always On, Always Connected1 PC

computing experience with extreme performance for amazing graphics, powerful

productivity, and incredible battery life2.” (Samsung, 2018)

• “Power to make your day last longer: Take your Galaxy Book S out the door and don't

look back. The 42Wh battery lasts for up to 23 hours3 of video playback on a single charge.

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 Spend long hours binge watching, drafting reports or writing lecture notes without giving

the charger a second thought.” (Samsung, 2018)

• “One touch and it's ready to use: When you're awake, your Eiffel Galaxy Book S is

awake with instant-on that lets you put an end to the daily ritual of shutting down and

starting up. The moment you touch the power button, fingerprint sensor, keyboard or

mousepad the device is ready to use, just like your smartphone.” (Samsung, 2018)

Figure 4 - Specification Samsung Galaxy Book Source: (Samsung, 2018)

What we want to promote with this special edition is that it would in addition to all these technical

specifications, it would come with a 2-year warranty directly from Samsung. The idea is that the

book can be taken into any of the new Samsung Experiences Stores and there, it would be given any

support needed in the coming 2 years after the purchase. This makes the Eiffel Galaxy Book S

Limited Edition one of its kind.

The Eiffel Galaxy Book S Limited Edition comes with more than 67 variety of screensavers with

pictures taken by famous French photographers.

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Another service that we will provide for free once you purchase

this Eiffel Galaxy Book S Limited Edition is to engrave your

product. If you like, this tablet can come engraved with a special

Eiffel Tower silhouette, or any unique and personal message you

want.

In addition to this, after the partnership developed with Hermés, it would be a special offer in this

French brand tablet cases. It would be at 1000Euros once you buy the Samsung Eiffel Galaxy Book
Figure 5 - Hermes Tablet Case
limited Edition. The following image represents the case included

the different colors it came so you can choose from your favorite:

And last but not least, we can send your purchase inside a special gift edition box for only 20 euros,

to be deliver as a present to any person that you want to surprise. Boxes come in different sizes to

fit any of the screen sizes tablets.

c. Use Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory related to business, Edward T. Hall,

Cultural Dimensions, Trompenaars and Hampden, Turner cultural dimensions and

other relevant theories to describe the two cultures business profiles

SOUTH KOREA

High Context Culture

South Korea — and most Asian cultures — is most definitely a high context culture.

Communication is frequently indirect, and requires a deep understanding of the cultural context in

order to be able to properly interpret what others are saying and doing. This is especially true of

situations that could involve anger, confrontation, or disagreement. (Lombard, 2016)

High-context cultures include Eastern cultures such as Korea, where people have widespread

networks with family, friends, and organizations (Merkin, 2004). Asian cultures have a strong

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orientation towards high-context information and that Asian languages reflect its high-context

culture with an abundance of implicitness. Past research indicates that Koreans create ambiguous

messages to obscure their meaning (Lim, T-S. & Choi, 1996)

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions:

Figure 6 - Hofsted Insights South Korea

INDIVIDUALISM

South Korea, with a score of 18 is considered a collectivistic society. This is manifest in a close

long-term commitment to the member ‘group’, be that a family, extended family, or extended

relationships. Loyalty in a collectivist culture is paramount, and over-rides most other societal rules

and regulations. The society fosters strong relationships where everyone takes responsibility for

fellow members of their group. (Hofstede Insights, 2019b)

LONG TERM ORIENTATION

At 100, South Korea scores as one of the most pragmatic, long-term oriented societies. Notion of

the one and only almighty God is not familiar to South Koreans. People live their lives guided by

virtues and practical good examples. In corporate South Korea, you see long term orientation in the,

higher own capital rate, priority to steady growth of market share rather than to a quarterly profit,

and so on. They all serve the durability of the companies. The idea behind it is that the companies

are not here to make money every quarter for the shareholders, but to serve the stake holders and

society at large for many generations to come. (Hofstede Insights, 2019b)

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FRANCE:

High context culture

France like any other culture can only be said to be high or low in context in relation to another. For

example, compared to Germany, it is high context. Compared to the Chinese, it is low context.

(Lockhart, 2017)

High-context cultures often display the following tendencies, according to C.B. Halverson’s book

Cultural Context Inventory. (Lockhart, 2017)

• Territoriality: Space is communal. People stand close to each other and share the same

space.

• Temporality: Everything has its own time, and time is not easily scheduled. Change is slow,

and time is a process that belongs to others and nature.

• Learning: Multiple sources of information are used. Thinking proceeds from general to

specific. Learning occurs by observing others as they model or demonstrate and then

practicing. Groups are preferred, and accuracy is valued.

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions:

MASCULINITY

With a score of 43, France has a somewhat Feminine culture. At face value this may be indicated by

its famous welfare system (securité sociale), the 35-hour working week, five weeks of holidays per
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year and its focus on the quality of life. French culture in terms of the model has, however, another

unique characteristic. The upper-class scores Feminine while the working-class scores Masculine.

This characteristic has not been found in any other country. This difference may be reflected by the

following:

Top managers earn on average less than one would expect given the high score on Power Distance.

Married couples of high societies could go public with a lover without negative consequences, at

least certainly in the past. The scandal in the US about Clinton and Lewinsky has never been

understood in France. In addition, “crime passionel”, i.e. crimes of passion, have always been

sentenced very leniently in comparison to other murder trials. (Hofstede Insights, 2019a)

UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE

At 86, French culture scores high on Uncertainty Avoidance. This is clearly evident in the

following:

The French don’t like surprises. Structure and planning are required. Before meetings and

negotiations, they like to receive all necessary information. As a consequence, the French are good

in developing complex technologies and systems in a stable environment, such as in the case of

nuclear power plants, rapid trains and the aviation industry. There is also a need for emotional

safety valves as a high score on Uncertainty Avoidance and the combination of high-Power

Distance and high Individualism strengthen each other, so to speak. The French, for example, are

very talkative and “engueuler”, giving someone the sharp edge of one’s tongue happens often.

There is a strong need for laws, rules and regulations to structure life. This, however, doesn’t mean

that most Frenchmen will try to follow all these rules, the same as in other Latin countries. Given

the high score on Power Distance, which means that power holders have privileges, power holders

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don’t necessarily feel obliged to follow all those rules which are meant to control the people in the

street. At the same time, commoners try to relate to power holders so that they can also claim the

exception to the rule. (Hofstede Insights, 2019a)

d. Choose the FDI entry strategy (except exporting) related to the macro level of the

host country

Samsung's entry strategy into the French market will be in two ways:

1. Through the acquisition of a distribution center in the city of Lyon under the investment entry

mode of a brownfield investment.

The entry through a brownfield investment will involve, that Samsung will invests in an existing

facility to start its operations. In other words, a brownfield investment is the lease or purchase of a

pre-existing facility in a foreign country. (Corporate Finance Institute, 2019)

Likewise, Samsung will receive the tax benefits obtained by a foreign company when it is installed

in French territory, such as:

§ Specific tax rules for international businesses

• For companies engaged in cross-border business, a simple tax system is a must

in order to avoid unnecessary risks. French tax law responds to mils need. For

example, multinational groups can enter into an agreement with the tax

administration allowing them to determine the taxable income of their

headquarters and logistics centers on a cost-plus basis. They consequently

obtain a high level of visibility concerning future tax burden

§ Tax ruling on logistics centers

• Logistics centers are allowed to determine their taxable income on a cost-bus

basis, with an average agreed mark-up of 5%. This system is available to the

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 entities of multinational groups which supply warehousing, packaging/packing,

labeling or shipping services to all or selected companies of the group and also

perform the administrative tasks associated with these services. The services

may be supplied not only to group companies in France but also lo foreign

subsidiaries

§ Tax free option for bonded warehouses and temporary import/exports

• Companies can store goods in their own bonded warehouses or in bonded

warehouses operated by the administration, without paying any taxes or duties.

Goods can be imported or exported on a temporary basis. without paying taxes

or duties, in order to perform tests or where the goods are intended to be used

only for a short period. The exemption may be either partial or total

(international Business Publications, 2019)

2. A contractual Entry Modes through new 5 stores in the city of Paris, the way these

stores will be acquired will be by lease, and will be operated directly by Samsung, they

will be adapted to live a Samsung experience.

The branch stores of Samsung Experience Store will be a dependent entity registered by

the foreign company Samsung electronics in France.

The opening of a branch in France must be registered at the local Register of Commerce

and Companies.

The representatives of Samsung Electronics interested in setting up branches in France

need to consider that this business form will be limited to undertake the activities of the

foreign company only. For this purpose, the parent company will be required to apply for

the same business license in France. (Company Formation France, 2019)

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 e. Analysis of the COO Effect

I. How does the culture from origin country affect your product or service in

host country?

II. What type of strategy can you use to make your brand more recognizable?

Samsung as a brand appeared to be the preferred mobile phone brand globally as seen in the figure.

33.67% of the market share are theirs. Particularly, Samsung is now seen to be the most prominent

mobile phone brands worldwide and the reason was because Samsung has a range of different

model of mobile phones which is available on the market and it targets both low- and high-income

earners. This is a very important strategy the company has. With a big range of different kind of

cellphones, they can cover a higher percentage of the cell phone buyers’ market.

Figure 7 - Mobile vender market Share Europe

44.67% of the population always considered COO when buying a mobile phone. This is an

important percentage that should be taken into consideration for the brand. For this 44.67% there is

a tendency to believe that mobile phones that are manufactured from developed countries are of

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superior quality than in developing countries. This helped in determining the level of technology

sophistication of the mobile phones and perceived it to be a vital element to ponder when

purchasing a mobile phone.

But COO is not the first element that they considered when buying a new brand of mobile phone

specially when referring to Samsung. For the example, the following table shows the results of a

particular study, where the people where asked about where did they thought the list of brands came

from:

Figure 8 - Origin Country Classification Source: (Naranjo, 2015)

We can see that in 89.5% of cases, people could not succeed in choosing correctly Samsung's

country of origin. The idea here is that the empirical idea of how good Samsung products are is

diluted when brands already occupy an important place in the mind of the consumer. (Naranjo,

2015)

Seeing it from another perspective, “while South Korea may have a weak overall country brand in

terms of tourism, politics and business – ranked 49th overall by Futurebrand – it has achieved top

10 status as country from which to buy manufactured goods because of Korean brands

like Samsung, Hyundai, LG and Kia.” (Naranjo, 2015)

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The following table shows the result of asking 150 people what they think of level of quality of

products in general coming from South Korea and some other countries:

The scores went from 1 to 5, and the mean of this sample was 4.13. This is a very high result and

what it can prove is that whether the Samsung brand is already well stablished in the market, the

country where it came from has a good image specially in the technology industry.

a. Once you have chosen an FDI strategy, choose a city of entry in the host country to

promote your product or service.

Samsung currently has distribution centers around the world, but in Europe there is only one

regional office in Germany, for this reason, Samsung makes the decision to install its

distribution center for the main cities in Europe in Lyon.

Lyon is France’s second most important industrial and financial sector. After Paris, it is the

most popular city for foreign investors. Among the major companies based in Lyon are

Sanofi and Lafarge. (Prologis, 2019)

France’s city of Lyon has a population of 1.3 million, and the greater metropolitan area has a

population of 2.2 million, making it the country’s second-largest city. The region is

Europe’s fifth-largest economy in terms of total GDP. (Prologis, 2019)

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Lyon is France’s second-largest logistics hub, thanks to its high population density, robust

consumerism and, most significantly, central location in Europe. Passengers can travel from Lyon

to 115 destinations via Lyon-Saint Exupéry International Airport, which handled 8.5 million

passengers in 2015. High-speed rail transports passengers to Marseilles and Paris in less than two

hours. Warehouses and distribution centers are an important component of the region’s logistics

infrastructure. (Prologis, 2019)

Figure 9 - Information of the Distribution

Figure 10 - Location of DC Center

Samsung experience stores will be strategically located in Paris, the first store that will open will be

the main one that will be located on Malesherbes Boulevard, where users can live a unique

experience, advised by technology experts from South Korea.

i. Edward T. Hall Cultural Dimensions

South Korea is a collectivist society offence leads to shame and loss of face, employer/employee

relationships are perceived in moral terms (like a family link), hiring and promotion decisions take

account of the employee’s in-group, management is the management of groups.

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Furthermore, Asians have been known to prefer indirect and ambiguous communication in contrast

to the direct and clear communication preferred in low-context cultures (Cocroft, B., & Ting-

Toomey, 1994). In addition, indirect communication is likely to appeal to Korean citizens because

they tend to value Confucianism which emphasizes harmony and egalitarianism. Not taking a stand

and obscuring one position on an issue that helps others save face and is, therefore, a preferred

communication strategy for Koreans. (Park, 1993)

France has a High Context cuture, in the way a message is communicated may be determined by

relationship, rank, status and position of the individuals. The way someone speaks, dresses and

behaves also communicates who that person is.

Lyon also is a High Context city, with different componets like the relationships that are built

slowly and depend on trust. Productivity depends on relationships and the group process. An

individual’s identity is rooted in groups (family, culture, work). Social structure and authority are

centralized. (Lockhart, 2017)

And in terms of interaction the French people has nonverbal elements such as voice tone, gestures,

facial expression and eye movement are significant. Verbal messages are indirect, and

communication is seen as an art form or way of engaging someone. Disagreement is personalized,

and a person is sensitive to conflict expressed in someone else’s nonverbal communication.

(Lockhart, 2017)

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Lyon is recognized for their emotionally expression, sitting quietly and not participating may show

lack of interest or commitment. Sharing opinions, and demonstrating a passionate, well-presented

position earn respect. (IOR, n.d.)

On the other hand, Paris, is known for the formal way to communicate with the other one, like using

the title is the norm until a relationship has developed. New acquaintances address each other with

“vous” until it is agreed that they will switch to the familiar “tu.” This is relaxing with the younger

generations; however it is still prominent in traditional business or government settings. (IOR, n.d.)

Non-verbal communication

GESTURES: Always shake hands when meeting someone and when leaving. A woman usually

offers her hand first. Grip is not strong. Thumbs up means “okay.” A circle with the thumb and

forefinger means “zero.” To call for a check at a restaurant, make a writing gesture. Men may stand

or move to stand when a visitor or superior enters the room. Eye contact is important. (IOR, n.d.)

TOUCHING: Touching and hugging is not common in the workplace, however friends and even

close colleagues may greet each other with “air kisses” on each cheek. Men and women may hold

hands or show affection in public. Touching or “backslapping” during conversation is not typical

behavior. (IOR, n.d.)

SPACE: The French generally value their personal space. Eye contact and physical contact between

strangers is not common. People will usually apologize if they bump into or accidentally touch

another. (IOR, n.d.)

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 ii. Thomas Kilimanjaro conflict management instrument

According to the Kilimanjaro conflict management instruments, France is primarily competitive

dominated by style is characterized by exertion of control, low tolerance for alternative views, a

competitive orientation, and a rather uncooperative behavior to meet own needs in a conflict

The individuals with a high-power distance orientation will prefer a dominating style as they expect

more inequality and feel uncomfortable to act within a collaborative context. The power distance

increase individuals ’preferences for an avoiding style as well as a dominating style and decreases

the preferences for an integrating, an obliging, as well as a compromising conflict handling style.

(Gunkel, Schlaegel, & Taras, 2016)

Business Practices

PROBLEM SOLVING Day-to-day problems and challenges are a

main topic of discussion and constant

criticism may make it seem like there are

many problems. Agreeing on solutions may

take a long time as all members of the team

express their opinions on and explore well-

reasoned solutions. (IOR, n.d.)

MOTIVATING PEOPLE Respect for individual contributions to the

team; opportunity to demonstrate strengths

and have expertise and recognized. Hard

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 work in exchange for life / work balance.

(IOR, n.d.)

NEGOTIATING, PERSUADING Cautious, stretch out process using language,

time, distance, not very susceptible to

advertising gimmicks. (IOR, n.d.)

SUPERIOR / SUBORDINATE Leaders may be autocratic, expecting loyalty

RELATIONSHIPS and respect. To earn that, subordinates expect

supervisors to have a high degree of technical

competence as well as charismatic leadership

skills. Employees may share opinions, but it

is difficult to question expertise of a

supervisor. (IOR, n.d.)

Source: (IOR, n.d.)

iii. Trompenaars and Hampden Turner cultural dimensions

Universalism Versus Particularism

The French people believe that each circumstance, and each relationship, dictates the rules

that they live by. Their response to a situation may change, based on what's happening in the

moment, and who's involved. (Mind Tools, n.d.)

Neutral vs. Affective

People want to find ways to express their emotions, even spontaneously, at work. In these

cultures, it's welcome and accepted to show emotion. This aspect is present in the

ethnocentrism of patriotism. (Mind Tools, n.d.)

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 Individualism versus communitarianism.

French people believe in personal freedom and achievement. They believe that you make your

own decisions, and that you must take care of yourself. (Mind Tools, n.d.)

b. Brand awareness: What marketing strategies will you use to promote your

brand or service?

The following branding activities will be considered for the marketing plan for the launch of the

Samsung Galaxy Book Eiffel Tower Limited Edition. It is important to keep in mind that Samsung

Galaxy Book is not a brand that is being born from zero; therefore, it is not necessary to generate a

positioning or recall of the brand in the market of great magnitude or scale, but it must be informed

about a variation of the product that is already known, therefore, the durations of the spots, as of the

materials to use must be short and specific. Thus, this plan seeks a multiple impact so that potential

buyers have a greater opportunity for consideration. By having short durations, the inventory to buy

will be more profitable allowing you to buy larger units.

As a mechanism of action in traditional media:

• TV: During the previous two weeks and the two weeks of the launch, television

commercials of 10 and 15 seconds will be used in the prime programs of the most watched

channels in the country. When having a high rotation, several references of commercials that

revolve around the different qualities of the phone should be used.

• Print: In the printed newspaper of the country, “XXX” the first page will be purchased on

launch day imitating a shocking news headline and then reveal the commemoration of the

130 years of the Eiffel Tower with the new product it brings Samsung for the French.

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 • OOH: Large format fences will be used in the most crowded points of the main cities

during the month of launch, as well as bus shelters and subway fences to generate

considerable reach in everyday environments.

On the other hand, the following actions will be considered in digital and offline media

mechanisms:

• Online:

o Buy masthead on YouTube on the day of launch and 5” bumpers ads that are not

omittable as they allow much more frequency at a low cost.

o On Facebook it will be impacted with video ads also using the video views format.

o Programmatic buying guideline in search of people whose recent search interests are

related to technology, geek world, and cell phones in France.

o Articles and notes sponsored by Samsung Galaxy Book Eiffel Tower Limited Edition

will be purchased at online news portals.

Finally, the great launch event in commemoration of the 130 years in the same Eiffel Tower where

a wide range of free press and media is sought. The most recognized influencers and media of the

city of Paris will be invited to live the revelation event where they will be able to meet different

photo booths, a red entrance mat and the “gift” that Samsung makes to France in the

commemoration of one of his most recognized works.

c. Conclusion

The French market is a difficult market that requires attention to detail, its local industries are based

on luxury brands and they care for the smallest things. Therefore, the same line must be maintained

to fit within this culture.

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The French people do not base their decision on the COO effect for technology issues. It is an

important aspect, but this factor does not represent the biggest component when deciding what to

buy.

Having two cultures, which have several differences, the incoming country must yield and leave

aside its traditions and ways of behaving to succeed in the business in question. The more flexible,

the better the entry mechanism will be.

Entering a market like Paris must be staggered, opening 5 stores at a time can generate very high

cost overruns if the public does not know the product very well, sometimes it is better to captivate

potential buyers before opening new sales points.

26
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