International Marketing in Germany – From a cultural perspective

Education 
After language and religion, education comes as the next cultural dimension according to 
Terpstra. He has defined it as follows: 
“Education includes the process of transmitting skills, ideas, and attitudes, as well 
as training in particular disciplines. Even primitive peoples have been educated in 
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Terpstra, V., 
International Marketing,
(1987), p. 109 
72
Ibid, p. 112 

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this broader sense. For example, the Bushmen of South Africa are well educated 
in the restricted culture in which they live.”
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Education is not only what is learned in school, but also what an individual learns from his or 
her surroundings. The surroundings can be family, friends, an area in which a person lives, 
school and work. They all transmit a culture which forms an individual. Since the skill and 
educational level differs widely from country to country, it is important to modify the 
information according to its recipients. For a market that is used to use a certain product, a 
detailed manual is not necessary or wished, whereas in new markets or when the product 
category is new as well as when there is a high rate of illiteracy, a descriptive manual is 
crucial for understanding how the product works.
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Social Organization 
Furthermore, Terpstra has identified social organization as an important cultural dimension. 
His definition of social organization is: 
“Social organizations refers to the way people relate to other people”
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Social organizations can be family or social groups depending on geography, education, age 
and or status. In North America, a family is defined as mother, father and unmarried children; 
in less developed countries on the contrary a family includes grandparents, cousins, uncles 
and aunts. The family is in the latter case of great importance since they provide protection, 
psychological support, and a kind of economic insurance. Although family is still very 
important in developed countries, the importance declines with time and economic 
development. A social group can consist of a territory, the neighborhood or the city in 
developed countries and in developing countries the tribal grouping; it can also be an interest 
group or association.
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To create a successful segmentation a company has to consider the culture’s features, how 
the social organization is built and how it affects its marketing actions.