You’re mistaken if you think that simply translating your website into another language brings you closer to opening your business up to new markets.
If you want to create new business opportunities beyond your borders and multiply your profits, your brand needs to be present in both the local and the international market. To do it effectively, focus your commercial strategies on greater reach, diversification, specialisation and closeness.
Become your own international customer and do your research. Every region has its own interests, culture and preferences. With the right marketing tools, letting you filter by area and by hobbies or needs, you’ll be close to reaching your ideal international customer. Adapt your message sensitively to the specific features of the new environment. Approach different audiences in a personal, distinctive way. One example of adapting the same product to different settings is McDonald’s, which has tailored its menu to each country. So while beer is on offer in Germany, the menu in France includes wine; burgers are made with lamb in India and Finland has rye bread, as imeanticipa points out
What if we launch an international campaign to promote our products? Great idea! Social media lets you reach a wide audience at low cost, but do you know which network best suits your goals? We’re sorry to say that social media is a good tool, but it isn’t a cure-all. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn and TikTok help globalise products, services and ideas, but they don’t all work the same way or in every case. So you need to choose the right social network to get closer to your goal based on your type of business and audience. A good example is Netflix, which has used localised digital marketing strategies through its streaming platform. Arguably the most influential and revolutionary brand of the digital age, it has managed to personalise content and take it to more than 190 countries, according to César R. Sánchez, digital strategy consultant.
If you want your products to cross borders, your physical space, your shop, needs to as well. Take your brand online, think about your business from a global perspective, and work on a website that attracts customers from different places. Optimise for search engines (SEO), in other words, optimise your content. Every global strategy needs to pay special attention to regional differences such as language, culture and local considerations. Also improve your website’s accessibility, navigation and readability, including on mobile. Zappos, the online shoe and clothing retailer, “uses keyword research tools to identify and target its content at the specific searches its potential customers make”, as Metatron Projects explains
Guarantee exceptional customer service: this is key to winning new markets and building loyal audiences. Earn the trust of a satisfied customer and it’ll pay off in many ways, including more publicity for your product through word-of-mouth marketing. We recommend having specialist staff on your team who know not only the language but also the reality and interests of that potential overseas audience.
Likewise, it’s worth having strategic partners. Finding alliances in other countries is decisive. Through ambassadors or influencers, your product can make a triumphant entrance into another country that catapults it to success. NIKE, like other sports brands, often works with athletes and public figures to promote its products and reach new markets.
Your brand’s success depends on staying informed and constantly up to date. Markets evolve, and your brand has to as well. Having the best strategies doesn’t always work and metrics can fail, so you need to assess and study global and local factors and adapt your efforts to new needs. Swedish company IKEA has partnered with local designers and manufacturers in different countries to create products that suit each region’s specific needs and tastes.
There’s no doubt that applying international marketing techniques is more valuable than ever in business. It’s not just a question of wanting to: expanding and winning international markets takes a lot of training, research and investment.
Want your brand to win over an international audience? Let us help you connect with a global audience and build a strong community around your brand.
