When a business is expanding globally, there are a lot of hurdles to face, from legal to logistical to economic. But communicating in different languages can be one of the toughest.
Many companies try to tackle this by translating their website, but that is just the beginning. Global marketing involves not only mastering a market’s primary language, but also adapting to cultural norms and values. What works in one market does not always translate well in another.
Smartling, a cloud-based translation technology platform, helps brands access new markets to create greater value for themselves and their customers. CEO Jack Welde offers the following ways brands can develop and improve upon their global marketing strategy.
1. Use a 'one-size-fits-one' approach.
If you had a successful marketing campaign in the US, it could be tempting to use the same one in another market. But this is one of the biggest and most common mistakes US companies make. To build brand loyalty, you will need to create a native brand experience that caters to the target audience’s culture.
2. Hire an in-country marketer.
Even if you don’t have a brick-and-mortar presence in a particular country or city, you should still work with someone from the area to gain the 'insider's perspective'. Hiring a translator and marketer from the region is a great way to connect with local customers and tailor your approach to meet their needs and preferences.
3. Use the right technology and software.
Since 2012, about 200 million people each year have logged on to the internet for the first time – averaging more than 500,000 people every day. To capture market share, your digital assets should be available in as many languages as possible, in real time. And with the right software, you can shorten your translation cycle and cut costs by 90%, according to Welde.
4. Use all available data.
Look at your analytics regularly to see which parts of your website are attracting viewership. Using data properly can help you to cultivate better marketing strategies, improve your online presence, strengthen your branding, and allow your brand to resonate with each audience in every market you target.
5. Understand your global growth priorities.
It’s essential to understand what your company values most: Earning higher revenue, growing your user base, or something else.
For greater sales and revenue, you’re better off providing services in languages spoken in countries that have a high GDP per capita average like Germany and Japan. But if your company wants to cast a wider net of users, you could translate your services into the most widely spoken languages, like Chinese and Spanish.
6. Manage expectations.
Don’t overextend your company by trying to enter too many different markets at once. It’s a much easier transition to start with just one or two new markets. Once you master linguistic and cultural fluency of those markets, you can move on to other languages to tap into the growing, online pool of potential customers and clients.
Using cloud-technology like Smartling's Global Fluency Platform allows brands to transform the way their content is created and consumed around the world to gain a more dominant position.
Find out more about global reach with Smartling's Global-Ready Success Kit.
This post is sponsored by Smartling.
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