Cross-cultural differences in marketing communications : The Importance of cross-cultural differences in the marketing communications: Investigated in Central and Eastern Europe.

Abstract: Despite the globalization and cultures’ convergence, it is scholarly recognized that cross-cultural issues are important in a business context, especially for companies extending their activities internationally. However, existing theory does not provide an explicit answer of how cultural differences between countries influence customers’ perception of different aspects of marketing communication mix. That is why the underlying task of the current paper is to investigate if cross-cultural differences within the same geographic region are big enough to affect customers’ perception of marketing communication mix used. To facilitate a data collection, Central and Eastern European region represented by Ukraine and Czech Republic were chosen. As a reference tourism industry was used, due to its’ current significance, scale and global nature. Data was collected by conducting secondary and primary research, both having quantitative nature. Secondary data was collected through statistical offices and official on-line sources. For the primary research purposes a questionnaire survey was conducted among pre-defined target audience in Czech Republic and Ukraine. 300 responses obtained provided a solid basis for the further analysis.  Based on the relevant theory and secondary research findings four hypotheses were developed to address the research question “Does cross-cultural differences within Central and Eastern Europe affect the marketing communication mix in a specific industry?”. The study results provided that cultural differences exist not only between different regions, but also found within the same geographic region. When considered from marketing perspective, they are significant enough to influence customers’ preferences and perceptions of different aspects of marketing communication mix. The results obtained are specific for a particular case, so they can not be applied to some other countries. However, when it comes to marketing communication perceptions, the results can be used as guidelines by other industries then tourism