How important is localization? According to this study conducted by Common Sense:
56.2 percent of consumers prioritize being able to find information in their own language over price72.1 percent of consumers spend most or all of their time reading content in their native language72.4 percent of people studied would prefer to purchase products when the information is in their language
Not only that, social media posts using geo-targeting were six times more successful overall. If you’re ready to start localizing your campaigns to improve growth and conversions, keep reading. The information below is a great starter’s guide.
Tailor Your Product Offerings to New Markets
McDonald’s has restaurants open all over the world. However, if you look at their menu offerings from the United States to India and various locations in between, you will see striking differences. For example, in India a vegetarian-friendly product called the Pizza McPuff is quite popular. For obvious reasons, the chain doesn’t sell beef in that part of the world either. In Spain, Gazpacho is an option. This doesn’t mean that you need to come up with an entirely new suite of products or services to succeed in new markets. What it can mean is that you might want to make some adjustments to make them as appealing as possible to your new target customers.
Understand What Matters to Your New Audience
The people you are trying to reach in each new area have their own unique set of values, beliefs, problems, interests, and concerns. You have to adjust your marketing efforts to address those. For example, if your marketing uses lots of pop culture references, those may not be meaningful to new audiences. Also, a marketing campaign in one area might be embraced as irreverent and funny, but will be seen as highly offensive in another. Know the traditions, belief systems, even the current events impacting the areas where you are expanding. Cultural insensitivity in marketing can have extraordinarily damaging effects.
Work With Localization Professionals
Depending on the specifics of your situation, this may not be a task you can tackle on your own. A certified translation service with localization professionals, can give you the kind of professional assistance that you need. Remember that it takes more to reach local audiences than simply translating your content into their language. There are the cultural issues to take into consideration. In addition to this, there are some very specific details that must be taken into consideration when reaching people in new communities. These include date and time formatting, currency symbols, forms of address, etc. There is also the matter of properly translating commonly used colloquialisms. Education, sensitivity, and knowing when to bring in outside help are likely the most important factors in ensuring that your marketing efforts are successful overseas. Remember that in order to make your mark internationally, you have to appeal to local communities.
