THINK FRENCH by Simon Silvester

The United States is the home of marketing - that’s what all the textbooks say.

The US is where Coca-Cola was invented, where TV commercials were first seen, and where modern detergents first promised whiter whites.

France, on the other hand, is the country of medieval farmhouses, of foie gras and of four hundred cheeses.

Few would think of France as the home of cutting-edge marketing.

But perhaps the world’s marketers ought to look more closely at France.

The emailable version of this document is at pubs.yr.com/thinkfrench.pdf And wonder why so many New Yorkers insist on drinking French mineral water.

Or why the kind of Tokyo woman who would never buy a foreign food or electrical item always seems to carry a $2000 French handbag.

Or why hard-nosed Chinese businessmen celebrate deals with fine French wines and cognac.

French marketing is very different to American marketing – but it is often more effective.

In the cut-throat world of the 21st Century, every marketer needs to understand it.

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