Week 5 Discussion Forum 1

One challenge is the lack of reach to the intended recipient of the message (Green & Keegan
2019). This may happen when the advertiser has limited knowledge about the best media for the
targeted audience. For example, Levi’s clothing line created ads to market a new line of jeans for
women, and they used skinny models who did not represent the average size of American
women at the time.
(Green & Keegan 2019) note that though the intended audience may be reached, the message
may not be understood. Nivea created an ad targeting the middle east market that was not
understood by the market. The ad caused a stir online, forcing the skincare brand to pull it down
and apologize.
Green & Keegan 2019) hold that while the intended message may reach and be understood by
the recipients, it may not convince them to take the desired action. For example, the Islamic
culture requires that Muslims consume halal products, and therefore, halal products that are not
labeled may not convince halal food customers to purchase.
According to (Green & Keegan 2019), the effectiveness of the message may be hindered by
noise from other competitors. For example, Coca-Cola launched a new product dubbed “new
coke” when Pepsi was in a marketing offensive for its Cola flavored drink.
Toyota encountered quality issues that led them to recall some of the makes and spend billions of
dollars in repairs (Fan et al.,2013). Toyota embarked on a public relations (PR) exercise to mend
its reputation. As Toyota found out, global sales promotion strategies change facts about an
organization, and however, controlling facts is much easier than controlling opinions (Fan et

al.,2013). Additionally, the flow of information about sales strategies matters because rapid
diffusion of relevant information influences public opinion (Fan et al.,2013).
Personal selling is the interaction between an organization’s representative, such as a sales agent,
and a prospective client (Green & Keegan 2019). Direct marketing is the communication
between an organization and a customer designed to generate a response (Green & Keegan
2019). Personal selling aims to make a sale, while direct marketing aims to create a positive
response: a store visit or a request for additional information.

Green, M. C., & Keegan, J. W (2019). Global Marketing (10th edition) [E-book]. Pearson.
Fan, D., Geddes, D., & Flory, F. (2013). The Toyota Recall Crisis: Media Impact on Toyota’s
Corporate Brand Reputation. Corporate Reputation Review, 16(2), 99–117.
https://doi.org/10.1057/crr.2013.6