Different attitudes towards companys involvement in international

marketing process are called international marketing orientations. EPRG

framework was introduced by Wind, Douglas and Perlmutter. This
framework addresses the way strategic decisions are made and how the
relationship between headquarters and its subsidiaries is shaped.
Perlmutters EPRG framework consists of four stages in the international
operations evolution. These stages are discussed below.

Ethnocentric Orientation
The practices and policies of headquarters and of the operating company in
the home country become the default standard to which all subsidiaries
need to comply. Such companies do not adapt their products to the needs
and wants of other countries where they have operations. There are no
changes in product specification, price and promotion measures between
native market and overseas markets.
The general attitude of a company's senior management team is that
nationals from the company's native country are more capable to drive
international activities forward as compared to non-native employees
working at its subsidiaries. The exercises, activities and policies of the
functioning company in the native country becomes the default standard to
which all subsidiaries need to abide by.
The benefit of this mind set is that it overcomes the shortage of qualified
managers in the anchoring nations by migrating them from home countries.
This develops an affiliated corporate culture and aids transfer core
competences more easily. The major drawback of this mind set is that it
results in cultural short-sightedness and does not promote the best and
brightest in a firm.

Regiocentric Orientation
In this approach a company finds economic, cultural or political similarities
among regions in order to satisfy the similar needs of potential consumers.
For example, countries like Pakistan, India and Bangladesh are very similar.
They possess a strong regional identity.

Geocentric Orientation
Geocentric approach encourages global marketing. This does not equate
superiority with nationality. Irrespective of the nationality, the company
tries to seek the best men and the problems are solved globally within the
legal and political limits. Thus, ensuring efficient use of human resources by
building strong culture and informal management channels.
The main disadvantages are that national immigration policies may put
limits to its implementation and it ends up expensive compared to
polycentrism. Finally, it tries to balance both global integration and local
responsiveness.

Polycentric Orientation

In this approach, a company gives equal importance to every countrys

domestic market. Every participating country is treated solely and individual
strategies are carried out. This approach is especially suitable for countries
with certain financial, political and cultural constraints.
This perception mitigates the chance of cultural myopia and is often less
expensive to execute when compared to ethnocentricity. This is because it
does not need to send skilled managers out to maintain centralized policies.
The major disadvantage of this nature is it can restrict career mobility for
both local as well as foreign nationals, neglect headquarters of foreign
subsidiaries and it can also bring down the chances of achieving synergy.

The foreign marketing involvement of a manufacturing company

may widely vary from a state of no direct involvement to a state of
total involvement. Several types of involvement are generally
observed, even though they are not mutually exclusive nor
sequentially progressive.
Depending on the kind and degree of its involvement in foreign
marketing, a firm has to re-orient and re-organize its activities to
cope with different levels of operational responsibilities inherent in
such involvement. To throw some light on the issue, some
guidelines are available from what is called EPRG orientation. The
EPRG framework attempts, four broad types of orientation of a firm
towards foreign marketing. They are:
1. ETHNOCENTRIC ORIENTATION :
The ethnocentric orientation of a firm considers that the products,
marketing strategies and techniques applicable in the home market
are equally so in the overseas market as well. In such a firm, all
foreign marketing operations are planned and carried out from
home base, with little or no difference in product formulation and
specifications, pricing strategy, distribution and promotion measures

between home and overseas markets. The firm generally depends

on its foreign agents and export-import merchants for its export
sales.
2. REGIOCENTRIC ORIENTATION :
In regiocentric approach, the firm accepts a regional marketing
policy covering a group of countries which have comparable market
characteristics. The operational strategies are formulated on the
basis of the entire region rather than individual countries. The
production and distribution facilities are created to serve the whole
region with effective economy on operation, close control and coordination.
3. GEOCENTRIC ORIENTATION :
In geocentric orientation, the firms accept a world wide approach to
marketing and its operations become global. In global enterprise,
the management establishes manufacturing and processing facilities
around the world in order to serve the various regional and national
markets through a complicated but well co-ordinated system of
distribution network. There are similarities between geocentric and
regiocentric approaches in the international market except that the
geocentric approach calls for a much greater scale of operation.
4. POLYCENTRIC OPERATION :
When a firm adopts polycentric approach to overseas markets, it
attempts to organize its international marketing activities on a
country to country basis. Each country is treated as a separate
entity and individual strategies are worked out accordingly. Local
assembly or production facilities and marketing organisations are
created for serving market needs in each country. Polycentric
orientation could be most suitable for firms seriously committed to
international marketing and have its resources for investing abroad
for fuller and long-term penetration into chosen markets. Polycentric
approach works better among countries which have significant
economic, political and cultural differences and performance of
these tasks are free from the problems created primarily by the
environmental factors.
CONCLUSION :
The involvement decision is conditioned by a variety of internal and
external factors such as firms' export policy, resources and product
range, volume of export business, regulatory and procedural
conditions to be fulfilled both from exporting and importing angle.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that the scope of international

marketing for a firm will be determined by its decisions regarding
the means of entry into foreign markets as well as by the kind of
involvement the firm wishes to have in its international marketing
operations. It cannot be said that one kind of operation/orientation
is better than the other, as each has its own advantage and
disadvantage depending on the operating environmental factors.
However, a firm can adopt a policy of common or differential
approaches in respect of different marketing decision areas.
In practice, planning the ethnocentric approach is found to be most
common when overseas volume is insignificant, compared to the
total sales turnover, or if the firm does not want to go for higher
volume of overseas sales for some reason. Since little or no
investment is needed, ethnocentric oriented firms have the least
risk.
Main Points
An exporting company's international operation involves the
following strategies.
1. Ethno centric Operational strategy :
(with the help of overseas Agents)
Product formulation
Product specification
Pricing strategy
Distribution
Promotional measures
2. Regiono Centric Operational strategy : Catering to a group
of Countries having similarity in Marketing in market
characteristic
3. Geo Centric Operational strategy : Creating globally
through well Co-Ordinated Net work
4. Poly centric operational strategy : Creating to Country to
country basis
There are various modes of entry available to a firm to enter
international markets. A firm may have a production faciity in its

home country or locate it in a foreign country. It has to choose the

alternative most suited to its needs and requirements.