When we market our products across cultures, we will undoubtedly be confronted with the cultural differences that exist between the different markets on which we focus. The challenge we have faced includes our ability to identify the differences between different cultures as well as finding ways to ensure that we do not upset consumers by not being sensitive to the cultural differences that exist within different markets. Being a multicultural nation ourselves, we are no strangers to cultural differences. Culture is made up of norms and practices common to any society. It is important to understand culture if we want to market our products and services to the global market. Culture is also about how different people give different meanings to the same object or phenomenon. Due to our different culture, we tend to interpret things like color, time and personal space differently. Before we begin our discussion of the different approaches used to explain culture, let's think about these scenarios. “Pepsodent tried to sell its toothpaste in the South East. Asia, emphasizing that it “whitens teeth”. They discovered that the natives chew betel nuts to blacken their teeth, which they find attractive. » “A company advertised glasses in Thailand by featuring a variety of cute animals wearing glasses. The ad was a poor choice because animals are considered a lower form of life and no self-respecting Thai would wear anything worn by animals. six-pointed stars. The Arabs interpreted this as pro-Israeli and refused to buy it. Another label was printed in ten languages, one of which was Hebrew - again, the Arabs did not buy it. lack of emotions. Offensive advert A local advert showing a man wearing a swimsuit has been removed because it was deemed indecent in our more conservative culture. Critics say what else should be worn in a swimming pool, but local culture finds this attire offensive and should not be shown in public. Service with a smile A lot can be said about service in Malaysia. Westerners often find it strange that when they complain about poor service, they are often met with a smile. For them, there is nothing to smile about about bad service. Approval by authorities Product approval in Malaysia is very common. Common approval bodies in Malaysia include SIRIM and JAKIM. These approval bodies give their seal of approval as an independent and neutral body..