Passage 1
Culture differences are sometimes ignored in marketing campaigns. Culture awareness in marketing is a lot more than careful translation of your products. There are subtleties and nuances(细微差别) to every culture. Almost most people wouldn’t be able to list the rules of their own culture, they certainly know when hose rules are violated.
In Japan, for example, a major household products company spent many millions of dollars on a marketing campaign in advance of introducing its laundry detergent (清洁剂). Nevertheless, when the detergent was made available, sales were miniscule. In fact, few shops stocked the soap. Non-tariff trade barriers? No, it was something much simpler. The typically American “large, economy-sized” boxes were far too big for the tiny Japanese retail establishments. And Japanese housewives don’t usually have cars —— they walk to the stores and carry their purchase home, to very small living spaces.
It can be a big mistake to assume a Pan-Asia market( 泛亚市场) or a “Latin American” or “European” buyer. Neighboring cultures elsewhere don’t necessarily share buying preferences any more than a US buyer does with a Mexico consumer. Furthermore, national borders don’t always delineate(描绘) buying behavior; regional patterns can be just as strong.
43.The detergent was popular in Japan.