Description

Research Report - Selling Overseas and Marketing in Another Country:

• Select a product or service that you currently own (or use) and a country that you're not familiar with. You are encouraged to select a product or service that is unique and innovative.

• Your Task - Write a 3-5 page report that describes the product or service you plan to market abroad; briefly describes the country you have selected, indicates the types of people who would find the product or service attractive, explains how the product or service would be transported or introduced into the country (or possibly manufactured if materials and labor are readily available in the host country), recommends a location for a regional sales center, and suggests how the product or service should be sold. Your report is to be submitted to the chief operating officer of the company, whose name you can either make up or find in a corporate directory. The report should include your conclusions (how the product or service will do in this new environment) and your recommendations for marketing (steps the company should take immediately and those it should develop later). You are highly encouraged to include financials and/or an action plan.

• General Format -

1. The paper must be typed
2. Use headings within the report when appropriate (please review Pages 433-452 for Parts of a Formal Report). For this report please include a Cover, Memo of Transmittal, Table of Contents, Introduction, Body, Summary, Conclusions, Recommendations, and a Bibliography (The Cover, Letter of Transmittal, Table of Contents, and Bibliography will not be counted towards the 3-5 page requirement).
3. Plan the paper carefully so as to develop an organized and non-redundant report. It should be organized and assembled as a continuous report and should not appear to be several independent segments bound together.
4. Please cite your sources using MLA or APA Format - (the Writing Center can offer assistance if you do not know how to do this).       

Imagine that you are with the international sales department of the company that manufactures and sells the item (or service) that you are proposing to make or introduce in the country you have selected.

The first step is to learn as much as possible about the country where you plan to market the product. Check almanacs, encyclopedias, the Internet, and library databases for the most recent information, paying particular attention to descriptions of the social life of the inhabitants, their economic conditions, and cultural traditions that encourage or discourage the use of the product or service.