Defining Glocalization
The term, which consolidates the words globalization and localization, first showed up in the late 1980s in articles by Japanese financial specialists in the Harvard Business Review. As indicated by the humanist Roland Robertson, who is credited with promoting the term, glocalization portrays the hardening impacts of neighborhood conditions on worldwide weights (Robertson 2013). At a 1997 meeting on “Globalization and Indigenous Culture,” Robertson said that glocalization “implies the synchronization the co-nearness, of both universalizing and particularizing inclinations.” Internationalization, a prior term for globalization, is as yet utilized in a few ventures when alluding to planning items for worldwide promoting (Drori, Höllerer and Walgenbach 2013). The idea originates from the Japanese word dochakuka, which implies worldwide localization. It had alluded to the adjustment of cultivating systems to neighborhood conditions. It turned into a popular expression when Japanese business received it in the 1980s. Since the 1990s, glocalization has been beneficially speculated by a few sociologists and other social researchers, and might be comprehended as a procedure that consolidates the worries of localism. Glocalization works best for organizations which have decentralized expert. The cost to the organizations increments as they can’t standardize items and activities, diverse societies have distinctive needs and needs which is featured in this test. A case of an organization prevailing with regards to making new items for their developing business sector is McDonald’s new rice dinners in India and China (Drori, Höllerer and Walgenbach 2014). This demonstrates a case of a worldwide business that has confronted challenges because of localization of their items can be exhibited through the end of a Starbucks in the Forbidden City of China in 2007. Starbuck’s endeavor to confine into the way of life of China by pleasing their menu to nearby components, for example, serving “green tea frappuccinos” and expanding their stores was pervasive in many zones of China, yet when Starbucks spread to the Forbidden City, an issue encompassing social character emerged.
According to Levitt (1993), it is a worldwide phenomenon that is seen that a particular product gains success across a number of countries, therefore it can be stated from this particular phenomenon that the consumer base all over the world is becoming homogenized. The consumers all over the world are bearing similar characteristic traits. This global localization of consumer behavior, and not just consumer behavior but also general approach of the population towards various subjects such as democracy can also be stated as glocalisation. The big companies are tailoring there products in a way that the people demands all over the world can be met.
Globalization is a generally late term. It showed up in English-dialect utilization just in the 1960s, but without the substantial undertones that it started to convey in the 1990s. Other comparative articulations, notwithstanding, as of now advanced the center importance surprisingly on earth living in a solitary social space, strikingly Marshall McLuhan’s thought of a ‘Global Village’ (McLuhan 2014). Entering social logical talk in the mid 1980s, globalization itself therefore turned out to be such an across the board term, to the point that it has progressed toward becoming something near a general name for the present time in which we as a whole live, for better or then again more awful. And actually, the assessment of globalization sways uneasily between idealistic guarantee and tragic danger. Parallel to this conflicted state of mind has been an extremely predictable inclination to understand globalization in wording of logical parallels, particularly the spatial refinement between the worldwide and the neighborhood, or that amongst general and specific The worldwide in globalization alludes both to a geographic point of confinement, the earth as a physical place, and to an enveloping scope of impact, to be specific that all contemporary social the truth is as far as anyone knows adapted or even dictated by it. This inevitable and comprehensive quality complexities with the idea of modernization, seemingly the prime term that globalization has supplanted both in well-known and logical talk. While modernization barred different ‘others’ that were considered either pre-present day/ conventional or just while in transit to modernization, globalization incorporates all of us, even our ‘others’. Modernization temporalized its universalism: in the long run all would/could move toward becoming present day. Globalization specializes it: the nearby needs to grapple with the worldwide. The other side of this common connection is that the concept of global can’t be global with the exception of as plural forms of the neighborhood or local. Henceforth globalization is in every case additionally glocalization as well (Robertson 2013), the worldwide communicated in the nearby as the particularization of the worldwide phenomenon of globalization and glocalisation. This contrast amongst modernization and globalization enables us to understand the unique demeanors toward religion that win under the aegis of each term. The exchange of this fundamental postulation in this part continues as takes after. In the discussion, the possibility of the pluralization of religion by disengaging and then representing four essential anchors of variety along which this pluralization seems to continue. On this premise, two further segments at that point center on the sociological perception of religion. The principal follows the reasons why sociological understanding has moved far from a modernization accentuation which normally supported the local or national society as the default unit of investigation for the researchers dealing with globalization and glocalisation. Bawman (2013) also takes a look at how the subdiscipline has since the 1980s been expressly or certainly expanding the essential unit of examination to incorporate the whole globe, while at the same time moving far from the supposition of secularization as the overwhelming pattern and toward minor departure from pluralization. These more literature review arranged segments are then trailed by a brief introduction of my own recommendation for instructions to speculate religion in worldwide/glocal society (Bauman 2013). At long last, a closing area considers conceivable future bearings for the humanism of religion in light of the general examination.
Contextualizing Glocalization in Relation to Globalization
In the course of recent decades, the idea of ‘glocalization’ came to stand for more than what the term truly includes. Not exclusively does it allude to the commonly constitutive character of the worldwide and the nearby; rather, it leads the test to the various polarities that have ruled past talks of globalization, and focuses to the dualities of comparability and variety and also universalism and particularism (Joseph and Ramani 2012). In this short discussion, one can make an endeavor to indicate the measurements of intricacy and multidimensionality natural in the thought of glocalization of association and administration. It can be proposed three arrangements of investigative conceptualizations (Roudometof 2016). In the first place, it is distinguished three levels of glocalization: vertical, level, and transient. Second, we extricate three center topics of glocalization: the ‘what’, ‘who’, and ‘how’. Last, we name a few sequenced parts of glocalization: reflection, development of equivalency, and appropriation and adjustment. Bound together, these conceptualizations are the reason for portrayal and investigation of glocalization. We contend that the critical rule of such a diagnostic way to deal with the multidimensionality of glocalization is the convergence, or conjuncture, among these three arrangements of conceptualizations.
The Lego Company deals with children toys and products through which creativity can grow by supplementing the imaginative power of the students (Lego.com 2018). The Lego toys are blocks or bricks which are interlocking and which can be used to make various shapes and designs ranging from buildings, cars, animals among others. The Lego Group is a company based in Denmark that is most famously known for the toys mentioned above. However the group has also set up various amusement parks throughout the globe which are known as Legolands and also the company has various retail stores around the world.
The company has been establishing amusement parks and retail stores on various parts of the world which has helped in the popularizing of the product across the globe. The Legos are one of the most common toys found in various parts of the world. Therefore it can be stated that the product has gained popularity across regions and actually has gone through the process of both globalization and localization and hence the concept of glocalisation can be appropriately used in this regards. The Legoland parks have large Lego models of famous structures and cities and also Lego themed rides.
In terms of retail stores the company in total has more than 134 retail stores in various parts of the world including United States, United Kingdom, India, Germany, Canada, France, Spain, Austria, Italy, Denmark, Belgium, China, Sweden and Lithunia (LEGO Group 2013). Therefore it can be stated that the company has global presence all over the world. The company has based itself in various regions of the world and therefore the product has been popular across the globe. The Lego bricks are now produced by various companies locally and is used at local levels.
The company has taken up various promotional activities to increase the awareness of the brand, campaigns are done through television, internet and magazines. The company has released Lego Minifigures series for Summer Olympics 2012 and the Mascots like Tom and Vinicus for the Summer Paralympics 2016, and the Olympics 2016 in the summer (Antorini, Muñiz Jr and Askildsen 2012). For the social networks the company has launched the My Lego Network and the participants get rewards such as badges, ranks and blueprints. As the company caters to the age group of 3 to 15, the money is mainly provided by the parents. Therefore the price has been kept as per the budget of the parents of this age. The company has repeatedly focused on the quality of the materials that are used for manufacturing the products, the children mainly use the product hence due consideration has been made to keep the quality as per standards as the children may be susceptible to any danger from the products.
Relation of Glocalization to Global and Local Business Strategies
The company has adopted the concept of glocalisation by globalizing its products and also by localizing its marketing strategies and the promotional methods according to the culture. The company has been successful in making the product to be a part of a large number of house in the whole world, all the children who have the privilege of playing with toys have their own sets of Lego (Andersen and Ross 2016). The company has given birth to a Lego culture where various smaller local companies have started producing similar products. This can be a perfect example of glocalisation where a company has started a particular culture and the company has also marketed the various products based on the local culture of the area. As already stated in the first section it is stated by Levitt (1993) that the international customer base is showing trends of homogeneity across sectors and brands.
Mattel is one of the big companies that deals with various famous lines of toys like Barbie and Hot Wheels (Mattel.com 2018). What is similar in the two companies of Lego and Mattel is both the companies have the same vision of helping the children grow with creative thinking with the help of their toys. The toys are expected to increase their creative growth and thinking capability. The toys like Hot Wheels and Barbie are good for the children to decorate and use their creative ideas. The brand of Barbie is one of the most famous toy brands around the world. This particular toy has become a part of every girl child’s life. Barbie dolls are used all over the world in each and every countries. The Barbie dolls have the unique characteristic of adopting the culture of the country where it exists. For example the Barbie dolls in China will have unique Chinese physical features with dresses and appearance which is essentially Chinese. The Barbie dolls in India are seen to be wearing Indian dresses such as Sarees and Salwar Suits with Indian Jewellery and accessories such as ear rings and nose rings. This is one of the most important examples of Glocalisation that can be cited in recent times. The toys show unique traits of the local culture and they have been made keeping in mind the local cultural details of these places.
Hot Wheels is also a very famous brand of car toys and the very famous car models are being replicated in smaller miniature sizes, and as the Barbie dolls are famous among girls, these hot wheels cars are famous among boy children throughout the globe. The cars which are chosen are miniature toys or real car models. Therefore this concept of toys have also their own globalization factor and also the toys have their own local features as the famous and popular cars of a particular region are imitated.
Among the two companies it can be said that Lego is a more global brand as the toys are uniform across the globe and they have very less cultural factors (Andersen, Kragh and Lettl 2013). On the other hand the toys of the Mattel Company is having more local characteristics as these toys are designed according to the local cultural variation. Among the two companies therefore it can be said that the concept of Glocalisation is more appropriately implemented by the company Mettel because it has used the global phenomenon of the Barbie toys to be mixed with the local cultural factors such as dressing, skin color, accessories and body language and features of the toys.
Advantages and Drawbacks of Local/Adapted, Global/Standardized and Glocal Strategies in Global Marketing
Lego is a Danish company, and Mattel is an American company, both the companies have been extensively dealing with children products, especially toys. The multinational companies are also at competition to increase their presence all over the globe. The bigger companies cannot ignore the phenomenon of globalization in present times. However it is imperative for the global companies to include local elements so that the consumers of a particular region may get especially interested in their products. As it is already stated that the global companies have been endeavoring to include local elements in their products, on the other hand the consumers all over the globe are showing the phenomenon of selecting similar type of products. This is the reason why some products are successful all over the globe. Coming back to the words of Marshal McLuhan, the world is turning to a global village where the whole world is connected by the various communication means. It takes a second and an internet connection to talk to anyone in this whole earth. This is the reason that standardization has been seen in the taste of the customers. The companies like Mattel and Lego has utilized the globalization phenomenon and has used appropriate marketing techniques to spread across the Globe.
Dot Plot Table
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