Competitive Marketing Strategies: A Survey of Japanese Manufacturing Firms' Competitive Performance in the British Market

Abstract

The role of Japanese corporations in world markets has become so crucial that an understanding of the rules of competition employed by the Japanese is essential for all those involved in international business. The aim of this survey was to gain an insight into the role marketing plays in affecting the competitive position of Japanese firms in the British market. In particular the researcher focused on the overall approach of Japanese companies to the marketplace and the process by which they identify and bring products to the market.The broad findings emerging from this study present few surprises, Japanese companies do not seem to suffer from a "sales orientation", a "production orientation" or "finance orientation" as opposed to a "marketing orientation". The in-roads being made into the British market are based by and large on a strategy aimed at satisfying customer needs and wants. Japanese companies saw their strengths in placing emphasis on research and engineering and bringing the right product to the market quickly and decisively.

Japanese Financial Services Organizations

“…In the industrial and commercial sectors, Japanese attitudes towards marketing strategy had shown a strong marketing orientation at the top management level (El Din, 1990, p. 20). This embodied both long‐term strategic planning and achieving a leading market share position (El Din, 1990, p. 21; Wong et al , 1988). An extreme articulation of this was put forward by Viner who concluded that, in financial institutions, “market share is pursued regardless of immediate costs and short‐term losses.…”

“…By the late 1980s, Japanese business corporations had achieved international competitive advantage in several industry sectors and the strategies of the Kaisha were frequently analysed as sources of good practice (Abbeglen and Stalk, 1987; Dace, 1989; El Din, 1990; Kotler et al , 1985; Ohmae, 1985). Research findings published in 1988 had suggested that “the Japanese were unmistakably aggressive, single‐minded in their pursuit of market share and undeniably more market‐oriented than their US and British counterparts” (Wong et al , 1988).…”