Advances in Natural and Applied Sciences, 8(8) July 2014, Pages: 1-13
AENSI Journals
Advances in Natural and Applied Sciences
ISSN:1995-0772 EISSN: 1998-1090
Journal home page: www.aensiweb.com/ANAS
Corresponding Author: Rabiul Islam, School of Economics, Finance & Banking, College of Business, University Utara
Malaysia, 06010 UUM, Sintok, Malaysia.
E-mail: rabiulislam88@gmail.com
Analysis of International Marketing Strategy among Malaysian Exporters
Saad Dubayyan Alshammari and Rabiul Islam
School of Economics, Finance & Banking, College of Business, University Utara Malaysia, 06010 UUM, Sintok, Malaysia.
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received 2 April 2014
Received in revised form
13 May 2014
Accepted 28 May 2014
Available online 27 June 2014
Keywords:
Marketing strategy, Export,
Adaptation, Marketing mix,
Antecedent factor
Taking into account how globalized the current market is, companies have viewed the
process of internationalization of their activities as a technique to keep up with the
competition and secure good competitive advantage. The study aimed at investigating
the impact of marketing strategy of exporting companies in Malaysia through the
mediating influence of marketing mix adaptation. A questionnaire was used as the
instrument of the study and the data collection procedures included self-administered
questionnaires and emailed ones. The findings generated from the present study were
then reported and detailed discussion about them was presented in the line of the
available literature. For the relationship among Malaysian exporters of the export
performance through the mediating influence of the marketing mix, the findings
revealed that the marketing mix does mediate this link in some factors while it does not
in other factors. Furthermore, it was reported that 3 out of four marketing mix strategies
have a significant impact on the export performance of Malaysian exporting firms. The
findings also revealed that some of the Malaysian exporters have a significant impact
on the marketing mix adaptation strategies while others seem not to have this
significant impact. The study concluded with some recommendations that can be of a
great use to the Malaysian exporting firms while making decisions about their exporting
activities.
© 2014 AENSI Publisher All rights reserved.
To Cite This Article: Saad Dubayyan Alshammari and Rabiul Islam., Analysis of International Marketing Strategy among Malaysian
Exporters. Adv. in Nat. Appl. Sci., 8(8): 1-13, 2014
INTRODUCTION
Over the last few years, the world has witnessed an increase in the total number of firms located in
emerging economies and global markets, in countries like Brazil, China, India, and other East Asian countries,
growing from just under 3,000 firms to more than 13,000 firms currently (UNCTAD, 2006).
This phenomenon stems from a comprehensive internationalization of these firms In 2008, emerging
economies contributed 38% of world merchandise exports (WTO Trade Report, 2009). These emerging
countries, comprising the biggest and fastest growing economies, are helping to stabilize the world economy, as
a result of their dynamism and openness. For the Asian region, the contributions to world trade have been
phenomenal, with a GDP expansion exceeding 6% in 2007, as opposed to other regions, such as Latin America
(3.7%) and Africa (3%) (UNCTAD Report, 2008). A majority of these emerging countries are achieving current
account surpluses, thus becoming significant capital providers to the other countries (UNCTAD Report, 2008).
The success of emerging economies from Asia, in terms of their exports, has ignited great interest to
comprehend the international marketing strategies used to enhance export performance in the Asian region
(Shoham, 1996). Generally, when firms begin penetrating into a foreign market, the main step towards
successful international market penetration is the correct selection of suitable international marketing strategies
to ensure adaptation to products exported (Chung, 2002). Therefore, globalization throughout the international
market is significant for international marketers to understand the extent of adaptation of their products in
international markets.
Countries in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Philippines, are being
hailed as the major players in the global market. Their firms are becoming very significant globally, and some of
them have been listed as top ranking multinational firms in the world, along with multinational firms from
developed countries. It is relevant to note that international trading from the Asian region contributes a total of
approximately 56%, which represents over half of the world trade flow (UNCTAD, 2009).
Malaysia is considered as one of those countries in Southeast Asia that has recently undergone rapid
economic growth. Malaysia is considered as a model for successful economic development by many
organizations, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Recently, Malaysia is regarded