Export Marketing Strategies of an Emerging Country: An Exploratory Study of the Main Challenges and Factors Leading to Success for Chilean Food Exporters

Chile is one of the most stable and developed nations of Latin America and is strongly impulsed by exports. Historically, the main Chilean exportation has been cooper, which in the 70?s represented 80% of total exports. However, in 2004, cooper represented only 47% of Chilean exports as a national strategy of diversification based on the introduction of innovation and marketing. The Chilean fruit industry has been growing consistently during the last decade reaching 17% of total Chilean exports in 2004. Similarly, wine exports have been growing during the last 10 years at a rate of 33%, reaching in 2003 almost US$ 700 millions. Furthermore, salmon and trout exports have also increased at a rate of 25%, with exports for 2003 of US$ 1.127 millions. The main objective of this study is to analyze the food industry, including salmon, wine and fruit exports, to understand: which has been the main role of marketing in the performance of exports?, and how can marketing continue aiding with confronting the main challenges of these firms?. For the investigation, a qualitative methodology was done, consisting in interviews, an secondary information. The results of this study suggest that marketing has contributed to food exports I several ways, such as product development, profesionalization of the sectors, and foreign promotions. However, today there are still several challenges for the future, such as positioning adequately the brand of Chile in the foreign markets, deepen market research to understand more in detail de final consumer of diverse nations, and development of adequate channels of distribution where the role of marketing is fundamental.