Effective Cross Cultural Marketing-Know Your Customer

Here is a cautionary tale:

A disappointed salesman of Coca Cola returns from his assignment in Israel.

A friend asked, "Why weren't you successful with the Israelis?"

The salesman explained, "When I got posted in the Middle East, I was very confident that I would make a good sales pitch in rural areas. But I had a problem - I didn't know how to speak Hebrew. So I planned to convey the message through three posters . . .

First poster- A man lying in the hot desert sand...totally exhausted and fainting.

Second poster - The man is drinking our Cola.

Third poster- Our man is now totally refreshed.

Then these posters were pasted all over the place.

"That should have worked," said the friend.

The salesman replied, "I didn’t realize that the Jews read from right to left."