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The term "global brand" has become widely used by the media and by consumers. Business week publishes annually its widely known ranking of the "Best Global Brands" (with Coca-Cola as number 1 in the past years) and consumers on summer vacations purchase brands such as Heineken or Marlboro they are familiar with from their home country. Although media and consumers call these brands "global" and centralized marketing departments manage these brands globally – are these "global brands" really global? Are they really perceived everywhere in the same way by the customers? Can we talk about truly global brand equity? And if there were brand image differences between countries, which factors causes them? The authors conducted an empirical research during May and June 2009 with similarly aged University students (bachelor students at business school) in Germany (n=426) and Mexico (n=296). The goal was to identify if brand awareness rates differ between Germans and Mexicans, if the brand image of Apple iPod is perceived in the same way in Germany and in Mexico and what influencing factors might have an impact on any brand image discrepancy between the countries. Results prove that brand recall rates differ between the two countries (with higher rates in Mexico) as well as brand image attributes vary significantly (28 out of 34 brand image attributes are significantly different between Germany and Mexico), with Mexico showing higher levels of favorable brand image attributes. Key influencing factors on the different brand image perceptions are perceived quality, satisfaction and the influence of reference groups (such as friends and family). The results suggest that so-called "global brands" are not perceived the same way in Germany and Mexico. As a consequence, brand management using standardized marketing instruments for its presumable "global brands" might be better off with a more differentiated approach that takes account a specific local brand image.
In 2000, the European Council set its sights on becoming the world’s top knowledge-based economy. To that end, they aimed to achieve a goal of spending 3% of GDP on research and development by 2010. Their Lisbon Strategy recommended a number of efforts on the European Union and national levels, including encouragement of public-private collaboration. Examination at the regional level indicates the need for R&D and innovation policy to help stimulate growth. Current theory turns attention to the effect of system failure in the regions.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research developed a typology for the regions of the European Union. Using performance results, this paper identifies US states that correlate to the typology. Comparative analysis of these states based on key industries and actors, major programs and instruments, successes, failures, impact of federal programs, and best practices then informs discussion of the implications on policymaking.
If regional variances represent the most important factor influencing the development of an appropriate policy mix, local specializations, along with regionalized institutional factors, must be considered when codifying the main objectives for policymakers, such as stimulating the efficiency of the system, encouraging dynamic connection among the actors, and reducing the risk of lock-in. This, in turn, affects selection of the instruments that may or may not benefit the region and the indicators with which the impact of public action may be measured. Considering this, particularly challenging for the EU is the need to balance decentralization of action in the regions and coordination at the Union level.