Why citizens should buy from their own country

Ramification of supporting not buying products manufactured solely from your own country

This paper is a research to support the claim that citizens of a country should support the economy by buying products based on quality, price, and availability of products. The paper intended purpose is to persuade the reader that buying products only from his or her country is necessary for his or her country’s economy. In addition, the paper will evaluate the advantages of buying from one’s own country and the consequences of not doing so.

Introduction:

In order to understand the effects of buying locally or not, one has to understand the meaning of economy and how it works. By definition, economy of a country refers to the economic system, the labor system, the capital system and the land resources system in place combined with a various other economic agents.

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These systems do not necessarily have to be isolated but must work together and participate in harmony towards production, distribution and consumption of goods and services in a country. Eventually, an economy becomes the end result of a number of systems and processes in terms of historical, social, geographical, technological and natural factors. When therefore the economy of a country is mentioned all these issues must be taken into consideration (Marshall 16).

It is also important to understand the various economic factors and how they relate to each other. These will enable a person in a certain country to endeavor in playing a role in its economy. To effectively accomplish this it is crucial to know how the following factors relate to economy; capital, labor, natural resources and technological innovations.

Capital refers to a factor of production that is used in creation of goods and services. Capital does not get used up in the process of production and since it is man-made is can be used over and over again. In other words, capital is anything that can be used in the process of creating something new (Marshall 177). Labor refers to the work done by human beings with intent of producing good and services. Natural resources mostly refer to land which is the source of all raw materials that can be used in creating goods and services (Marshall 139).

In every economic system of a certain country, the entrepreneurs play a role of bringing together the already discussed factors to produce and distribute good and services. This may however vary according to the policies and culture that has been put in place by the national government.

There exist various economic setups such as capitalism, communism and socialism and which have diverse methods of putting economic factors to work. For instance the United States of America is a capitalist economy whereby a small group of people control large amounts of money as well as making of major decisions in the economy. A socialist economy vests more power in the political systems but in modern times has been absorbed by mixed economy whereby both the government and the private sector work hand in hand (Marshall 29).

For a nation to fair well in economic terms there has to be natural resources such as minerals, fertile farming land and good climate. These must be coupled with presence of good harbors and rivers which aid in transport. Labor should also be available since it converts natural resources in to goods and it comes in the form of workers. Labor usually gets a boost from immigrants who come into the country to add to the available workers.

Nevertheless, for labor to be effective, it must be comprised of skilled and willing people and these are attained through education and training. Further, management is necessary in order to assign skilled people to perform task that are worthy and which contribute positively towards the economy. Through the formation of corporations, capital is gained in various ways such as selling stock or bonds and this is what will eventually help in producing goods and services (Mankiw 407).

Literature Review:

Having understood how the economy of a country operates, it is now important to know the role of a consumer in the economy. In a growing economy, it follows that goods and services will be produced if the factors are well utilized. But if these goods and services are not consumed, it will not make sense why they were being produced.

A consumer is an individual or group of individuals who use goods and services that have been generated in an economy. When consumers opt to use goods and services, they create demand for them and hence more needs to be produced. In a healthy economic system, demand and supply must coexist for growth to occur; otherwise the economy collapses. Despite this economic phenomenon taking place, consumers are very choosy and demand certain factors about the goods and services they buy.

Consumer behavior dictates that they make the ideal decision before embarking in any sort of buying. They therefore ensure that every concept is satisfying to them in terms of quality, price, availability, place, position, and promotion of goods and services. If consumers in a certain county feel that any of the above factors are not achieved they may tend to ignore goods and services and opt for other places where they will be satisfied. Generally, these can be summarized in a black box model which groups consumer behavior in; market, environment, personal and psychological stimuli.

Marketing stimuli involves consideration of whether the type product is correct, if the price is worthy, if the place and promotion done are excellent. Environmental stimuli must be satisfied by economic, technological, political, cultural, natural and demographical ideals. When it comes to the consumer’s personal characteristics, the stimuli to be satisfied include attitudes, motivation, perception, personality, lifestyles and knowledge. The buyer of a certain good or service will therefore consider all these aspects beforehand and if any of them does not appeal to him or her, a problem ensues (Hoyer 3).

To effectively allow a consumer be able to consume good and services that an economy has produced, it is important to woe them so that they will find satisfaction in what is availed. This must also be of excellent quality, of considerate price and be readily available should the consumer have a liking for the product. The best way to deal with unsatisfied consumers is to have a wide variety of products so that they may make a choice accordingly.

In case they doubt a product, the provider of goods and services must offer information and make it available under which circumstance the buyer analyses that information. It has been observed that consumers may consider alternative goods and services in case the primary ones do not meet their requirements. An ideal economy should therefore have a variety of alternative goods and services. Timing is also of importance since some goods and services are needed by consumers at certain times and not others. It thus means the economy should have a strong background of when certain goods and services are required and when they are not.

The importance of considering consumer behavior is essential since it creates a path in which goods and services will move away from the hands of producers in to consumers. There still remains a problem of where the consumers will come from. In a perfect economic setup, every good and service that has been produced must find a consumer. More importantly, if consumers are sourced from the neighboring surroundings the better business will be.

In modern times there is an emerging trend of goods and services reaching consumers at any part of the world due to globalization. Under this system, people or consumer have greater access to goods that have been produced in other countries. In as much as this is important to all countries, a question begs for the citizens of a certain country as to which is better; buying locally or internationally.

This question can be answered by offering the many benefits a country’s economy gains when its people buy locally. This aspect does not however mean that people should restrain from acquiring goods and services from other countries. This is because there are countries which under whatever circumstances can not sustain their market with all products people may require due to lack of resources or technical knowhow in production.

Discussion:

The various advantages of buying locally are thus explained as follows and with examples. The first basic principle under the urge to buy locally is that money stays in the same country.

This concept ensures that money that has been used for purchases by the consumers within a country revolves in it. Such money can be used in other developments by the government or it may filter down to other consumers who will use it as well. Had the money been used and went in to another country, a vacuum ensues which to fill it will take the citizens producing more or seeking buyers from outside the country (Cato 99).

It is common that when people buy locally, the price of products reduces. This concept emanates from the fact that locally produced goods do not need specialized processing and packaging. These in turn if done increases the cost of a product remarkably as well as transporting the product does. Eventually a locally produced and consumed product becomes cheaper in comparison to those sourced from outside the country. At the end of it all the consumers benefit due to low prices and the country if it increases production attains economic growth.

Bearing in mind that manufactures and producers of goods and services are in fact employers, it therefore means that if their products are bought locally they make more profits. Such profits will in the end trickle down to the employees who work in such factories and their standards of living improve when their salaries and wage are increased. Both the employer and the employee attain stability over time as the losses are reduced and business in on a growth path.

The government on the other hand has its share when consumers opt to buy locally produced goods. As more and more of these products are created, so does the business grow and in turn the taxes remitted to the government. Also, when employee’s salaries and wages increase, the taxes they remit to the government increase and thus the government makes more revenue. In countries and especially those seeking industrialization to promote local buying, they are in fact building a base for economic growth.

The principle of buying locally also ensues saving and investing locally. This comes about from the aspect of local businessmen investing their profits in other business ventures and also supporting the government in initiating worthy projects such as local schools and organizations. What this concept attains in the end in development in all parts of the country regardless of the background of the people in that area. Had people or consumers taken that money to another country, they will be deprived of such developments.

Local buying, as already seen that it reduces products price, thus leaves an excess unutilized money in the pockets of consumers. It is this money that people will tend to save for their future undertakings. Local buying ensures saving and the culture of saving is very vital to all citizens. Not only is saving confined to money but also to time. The time it would have taken a person to go to another place so as to make purchases is spent on other matters since he or she obtained what was needed at a nearby place (Benefits of Buying Local, web).

In recent times, there has been rallying calls to reduce pollution which comes with increased production of goods and services. Studies have shown that many processes like packaging and curing products increases environmental pollution either to air, water or land. When product are manufactured and consumed locally without unnecessary packaging or processing, then environmental pollution is remarkably reduced.

It is very common that there be people in a certain manufacturing plant to addresses any issues that consumers may raise. Customer care plays an important role in ensuring the end users of a product get any information about the product at any time and upon request. In local production though, this process becomes easier as information can be gained instantly and from people one knows and can trust. In case of any problem, it can be dealt as instantly as possible unlike when one has to rely on customer service from a far off place like another country.

As already stated that local manufacturing and consuming does not require lengthy transport of goods, it becomes obvious that wear and tear is reduced considerably. Some goods are so sensitive that subjecting them to long distance travel will only reduce their quality and life span. If then such distances are local, products which reach the consumer will bear excellent quality since they have not travelled for long distances.

A good example is the perishable fruits and vegetables which if were to be taken to another country require much processing and careful handling during transport. Local production and consuming therefore entails freshness and the best out of such perishable products (Holthaus 248).

In as much as we have seen the many advantages of local production and consumption, a country may at times need products from elsewhere to fill any gap that may arise. This however should not be done so as to discourage local buying. One disputed fact that accompanies those advocating against local buying is the quality of products. It is a common scenario to see products from other countries come in and still be cheaper than those locally produced. People may also prefer them instead of their local ones.

As this is a widespread problem facing the developing countries yet it can be countered by encouraging quality local production. These countries may not have the capacity to produce all their requirements but in the few instances they manage to do so, they must be encouraged. The governments in such countries must also devise policy that oversees a certain percentage of consumption being constrained to locally produced goods.

Recommendations and Conclusion:

Economic globalization promotes increased economic interdependence among countries. This is especially in areas of trade through trans-border exchange of goods and services, capital and technology. This concept has seen countries share their products with one another and if a country fails to check itself well, it might fail to realize the negative aspect of it. Such a system might slow local production since goods and services may flood a country’s market from another country.

By adopting a stern measure like embracing protectionism, a country can be shielded from outside competition and hence local market will grow. Protectionism involves restraining trade between countries by putting in place measures such as tariffs on imports so that the phenomenon is discouraged. Under the anti-dumping legislation, cheaper foreign good that may cause local firms to loose business are discouraged.

In conclusion, the economy structure of a certain country is very important. It is the base on which all other factors of livelihood of a country’s citizen lies. This therefore implies that the economy of a country needs to be growing; not declining or stagnating. In order to achieve this, measures must be taken to ensure growth is in place. Such measures must comprise the government, the entrepreneur and ordinary man as each has a role to play.

One very important aspect to promote a country’s economy is by encouraging local buying. Consumers in every part of the country must be encouraged to buy products that have been manufactured in their own country so as to boost their economy. In doing so, they will eventually see the many benefits that comes with buying locally produced goods and not only to them but also to the country’s economy.

Further, the need to change their behavior so that at no time should they argue that quality of locally manufactured products is inferior to imported products. By actively participating in entrepreneurship and innovation, consumers should realize that they too can achieve the same product quality as that they may envy in imported goods.

The government too has a major role to play in encouraging local consumption since it also enjoys the benefits as already seen. They can do so by promoting protectionism legislation that discourages their country’s market is not flooded by cheaper foreign goods. They may also put effort in educating the citizenry on the benefits of local manufacturing and buying (Judith, web).

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