Canon's international market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Canon's international market - Essay Example Research identifies, further, little to no influence in the country of origin effect for this brand. 1.0 Introduction Canon, founded in 1937, is a Japanese multinational brand that focuses on several different markets. The brand specialises in the production of photocopiers, digital and movie production cameras, printers and household camcorders. In 2012, Canon maintained nearly 21 percent market share among competition for sale of copiers and computer printers (Tonerfabrik 2013). It is through innovation, rather than standardisation, that Canon is able to capture such high market share in computer hardware and peripherals, consistently making improvements to product design and functionality in order to achieve target market interest. Canon operates in a very competitive international market, with major brand-recognised names such as Nikon, Hewlett-Packard, and Samsung maintaining the most prominent competitive forces. Furthermore, Canon provides products to Japanese, Chinese, Europe an and North American consumers, with each market maintaining different needs for functional camera and computer peripheral equipment. Additionally, the businesses’ medical equipment customer segments are drawn to Canon’s recent innovations in providing pioneering medical imaging products which is changing the scope of Canon’s production systems and emphasis on product output. In order to compete successfully in a dynamic and very saturated international market, Canon must identify opportunities to better serve diverse consumers and business customers and consistently innovate as part of multinational strategy. 2.0 Canon 4P marketing analysis This section describes Canon’s approach to the marketing mix that determines its market position among competing brands. 2.1 Product Canon cannot adopt a standardised marketing philosophy as the lifestyles and needs of consumers vary according to cultural characteristics, usage patterns for the products provided by C anon, and their level of price sensitivity. Japanese consumers, according to Geert Hofstede, a famous and respected cultural researcher, score very highly in uncertainty avoidance on Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions scale (Hofstede 2010; Fernandez et al. 1997). As such, consumers purchasing Canon’s computer hardware and cameras will want to be ensured of quality, a proven product superiority that will justify the majority of their decision-making when comparing other technology brands. In Japan, Canon produces products for consumer markets that are largely undifferentiated, meaning that competition continues to replicate existing innovations that make products, competitive, rather homogenous. It is necessary for Canon to position the business as a quality leader for this consumer market, consistently reinforcing that the company continues to produce superior output. Figure 1: Illustrative example of Canon product advertising in Japan Source: Laman, T. (2013). Tim Laman à ¢â‚¬â€œ Wildlife journalist. [online] Available at: http://timlaman.com/#/published-work/commercial/11Canon_Ad-Female_Ibis_2 (accessed 18 May 2013). As illustrated by Figure 1, Canon illustrates the image quality that will be attained by its camera products,