Cultural Issues and Business in the Russian Federation Research Paper

Cultural Issues and Business in the Russian Federation - Research Paper Example In terms of social protocol, there are not many differences between Russian culture and Western culture. However, specific cuisine and the custom of first-time meeting and gift exchange is common. For instance, if an individual business associate is invited to the home of another, it is expected that they should bring a gift, either for the family as a whole or at the very least – for children that might be exhibited within the household. As far as taboos, it is expected that individuals will remove their shoes once entering someone else’s place of residence. Traditionally, male and female interactions do not differ greatly as compared to other Western European nations and gestures and body language remains ultimately the same as well. Furthermore, with respect to the monetary system, the Russian Federation, as well as the Soviet Union before it, has operated on the monetary unit of the rubble for centuries. The rule, of course, fluctuates with respect to its overall strength against the dollar; however, at the current time, the ruble is approximately 29:1 USD. Compared to the United States, wages paid to workers are of course quite low. For instance, the average salary within the Russian Federation per year does not yet approach $20,000. The greatest expense with respect to doing business has to do with the long wait times and difficult to navigate bureaucracy defined so much of the Russian Federation. For instance, many firms have found themselves waiting up to one year for a permit as simple as gaining access to existing public water.

Luxury and convenience commodities Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Luxury and convenience commodities - Assignment Example Now the building up of the habit to gain access to such convenience products happens to cite different alternatives or substitutes of such products to the consumer. The consumer of convenience products in addition to building up a relationship with the product category also tends to reflect a passion for a certain brand relating to the same. However in absence of the specific brand of such convenience product the consumer in the light of other possible alternatives tends to frequently switch over to other available brands. Hence the marketer of the brand of such convenience product needs to develop strategies to attract and sustain the consumers of such products in the global marketplace. The marketer needs to further understand that the total gamut of convenience products available in the marketplace can be generally sub-divided into three parts like Staple, Impulse and Emergency. Staple type of convenience products are refereed to such that tend to reflect a very large availability in the market like grocery commodities and even merchandises like petrol and diesel. Again Convenience products are categorized as being Impulse type where the consumers tend to get largely impulsive in gaining the same from market outlets. Thus commodities like chewing gum or chocolates are categorized as impulsive buys for they do not involve greater amount of planning. Similarly regarding Emergency products like safety aids, bandages and other repair and maintenance utilities and even medicines consumers desire to gain ready access to such in times of sudden needs. Thus in all the three categories of Convenience products it is observed that people procure such by chances or in needful situations thereby spending less time in planning and taking decisions (Baines, Fill and Page, 2011, p.294-295). Like convenience products where the marketer must focus on making every possible attempt to enhance the brand awareness of the same with the targeted consumers to reduce the chances of s witching over to other lower price alternatives strategies are also required to be in place for luxury or high priced merchandises. Consumers of luxury or high-priced products would not go for availing the same without rendering adequate planning. Consumers on the other hand would require gaining a large amount of information relating to the same before finally deciding on to purchase it from the market. Information gained substantially would help the purchaser in making adequate plans to gain the same. Thus herein the marketer is required to reinstate the benefits and advantages related to the brand of such luxury product in question to effectively lure and sustain the attraction of the person to the particular brand (Baines, Fill and Page, 2011, p.296). Management of Online Branding Activities for Luxury and Convenience Products With the development of internet and possibly of social networking platforms the marketing activities of producers and marketers of both convenience and l uxury commodities have gained far flung changes. Marketers of such products have come to acknowledge the fact that the emergence of internet has contributed to the birth of a global marketplace wherein a large number of consumers and buyers are found to mutually exist for different categories of products. Herein the online marketer in order to