This study aims at contributing to the international marketing debate by investigating the issue of standardisation based on the experiences of German firms operating in the US market. The sample was chosen on the basis of research indicating that studies on German firms operating in the US market are rare. Their experiences can provide useful insights as to how companies in this large market can successfully operate. Therefore, the main objective of this research is to examine the degree of marketing standardisation which the studied firms employed in the US market, and to identify the factors of significant impact on the selection of a standardised marketing strategy as experienced by German firms operating in the US in order to provide implications for companies seeking to enter this market. Finally, through statistical analyses it was examined which internal and external environmental factors are key in standardising or adapting the particular elements to a certain degree to achieve an impact on performance.

Tobias Richter heads the international business study programme at the Business School of Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany). He lectures and researches on marketing management and advises leading corporations and international institutions in Europe. Prior to accepting his professorship, he served as Executive Member of the Board of Directors and as European marketing director (EMEA) of a major American sporting goods corporation. Previous positions include: marketing director of a German marketing agency and company secretary of a trade marketing agency in the UK. He started his management career in a German DAX-30 company where he had worked as product manager (Germany), category manager (Europe) and project manager (Global). The author studied Business Administration at Freie Universität Berlin, and at the Haas School of Business at University of California at Berkeley (USA). He holds an MBA of the dual master programme of the University of Bristol (UK), and the École Nationale de Ponts et Chaussées (France). He earned his doctorate in the Marketing and Strategic Management Group at the University of Warwick (UK).

Contents: International marketing standardisation – Contingency factors of marketing standardisation – International marketing programme standardisation – International marketing process standardisation – International marketing standardisation and performance. Inhaltsverzeichnis