Global marketing strategies: global branding, standardisation, customisation, global pricing and competitive positioning (HSC Business Studies)

What this dot point is asking

The syllabus lists "global marketing: global branding, standardisation, customisation, global pricing, competitive positioning". A "students learn to" point asks you to "explain how globalisation has affected marketing management". This page answers both.

Why businesses market globally

• Larger markets: Australia's population is small; global markets offer more customers and growth once the home market is mature.
• Economies of scale: spreading research, product development and brand costs over worldwide sales.
• Diversification: selling in many countries reduces dependence on one economy.
• Competitive necessity: global competitors are already in the home market, and digital channels let even small businesses sell overseas.

How globalisation has changed marketing management. The internet and e-commerce let businesses reach overseas customers directly; social media spreads brand messages (and criticism) across borders instantly; customers compare prices internationally; global competitors enter local markets; and marketers must manage regulations, languages and cultures in many countries at once.

Ways of entering global markets

The way a business enters a market shapes how much control it has over its marketing mix.

Wesfarmers' purchase of Homebase (below) was foreign direct investment: maximum control, but also maximum exposure when the strategy failed.

Global branding

A global brand uses the same name, logo, visual identity and core values in every market. Benefits: instant recognition by customers who travel or shop online across borders; economies in design and advertising; and a consistent reputation that supports premium pricing. Risks: a name, colour or symbol may have unwanted meanings in some cultures, and a scandal in one country damages the brand everywhere.

Example: Aesop. Aesop, founded in Melbourne, built a consistent premium brand identity in skincare. L'Oreal announced the acquisition in April 2023 at an enterprise value of about US$2.5 billion and completed it in August 2023, adding Aesop to its luxury division. The price reflects the value of a strong, consistent global brand.

Example: Cochlear. Cochlear, headquartered at Macquarie University in Sydney, sells its implants in more than 180 countries under one brand. For a medical device, a global brand is built on clinical evidence and trust among surgeons and audiologists rather than mass advertising.

Standardisation versus customisation

What gets customised? Across the mix: product (ingredients, sizes, features, safety standards, electrical plugs), packaging and labelling (language, legal information), promotion (language, imagery, media, cultural and religious sensitivities, advertising laws), price (local incomes and competition) and place (local retailers, agents and online platforms).

Glocalisation ("think global, act local") combines a standardised global brand and core product with local adaptations. A familiar illustration is fast-food chains that keep a global brand and core menu but add local items and remove products that conflict with local religious or dietary practices.

Example: Atlassian (highly standardised). Atlassian's software products are the same for customers everywhere and are sold largely online. In FY2025 it reported revenue of $5.2 billion (US dollars). Software needs little product adaptation, so a standardised model lets a single product and brand serve a worldwide market; customisation is mainly language support and options for where customer data is stored.

Case study: Wesfarmers, Homebase and Bunnings UK

In early 2016 Wesfarmers, owner of Bunnings, bought the UK home improvement chain Homebase for £340 million and began converting stores to the Bunnings format, opening 24 Bunnings pilot stores. In May 2018 Wesfarmers agreed to sell the business to a company associated with Hilco Capital for a nominal amount, expecting a loss on sale of £200 million to £230 million, and the Bunnings pilot stores reverted to Homebase. Wesfarmers attributed the failure to "poor execution post-acquisition being compounded by a deterioration in the macro environment and retail sector in the UK".

Lessons for global marketing: a model that works at home does not automatically transfer; situational analysis and market research in the new market are essential; and changing a local brand and range that customers know carries real risk. It is a strong case of the costs of insufficient adaptation and weak implementation.

Global pricing

Setting prices across countries is harder than at home.

Influences on global prices:

• Costs: freight, insurance, tariffs and duties, local taxes, and the cost of adapting products.
• Exchange rates: when the Australian dollar rises, Australian exports cost more in foreign currency; when it falls, they become cheaper. Businesses decide whether to change prices or absorb the movement, and may hedge (see global financial management).
• Local demand and incomes: willingness and ability to pay vary.
• Competition: local and global rivals' prices.
• Regulation: price controls, anti-dumping rules and consumer laws.

Global pricing approaches:

• Standard worldwide pricing: one price (often in US dollars) adjusted only for currency; simple, but ignores local conditions.
• Market-differentiated pricing: prices set market by market according to demand and competition; maximises revenue but creates price gaps.
• Cost-based (dual) pricing: domestic and export prices based on different cost calculations, for example export prices based on marginal cost.

Grey markets (parallel imports). Large price differences between countries encourage people to buy genuine goods where they are cheap and resell them where they are dear, outside authorised channels. Australian consumers' complaints about higher local prices for software, music and technology led to a federal parliamentary inquiry, At what cost? IT pricing and the Australia tax (2013).

Transfer pricing. Multinationals charge related companies in other countries for goods, services and intellectual property. Tax authorities, including the ATO, require these prices to be set on an arm's length basis, because setting them artificially can shift profits to low-tax countries.

Competitive positioning

Competitive positioning is creating a distinct place for a brand in customers' minds relative to competitors in each market. Globally, the core position is usually kept consistent (for example "premium quality" or "low price"), but the competitors differ from country to country, so the business must understand local rivals and adjust its message and mix to stand out.

Positioning strategies include competing on price (cost leadership), quality and innovation, service, image and prestige, or a specialised niche.

Example: Cochlear. Cochlear positions itself on innovation and clinical outcomes against its main global rivals, MED-EL (Austria) and Advanced Bionics (part of Sonova). Its Nucleus Nexa System, approved by the US FDA in July 2025, is marketed as the world's first smart cochlear implant system with firmware that can be upgraded after implantation, reinforcing a position based on technology leadership.

How this dot point appears in the HSC

• Section I: identify standardisation, customisation or a global pricing influence from a scenario.
• Section II: distinguish standardisation and customisation, or explain global branding or pricing (3 to 6 marks).
• Section III: recommend a global marketing strategy for an Australian business entering a new country, a very common report scenario.
• Section IV: evaluate how globalisation has affected marketing management, using a researched business.