Being a global marketer is a tricky task to say the least. Working in an ever-changing environment can make it hard to keep on top of the next trend – especially when the trends differ between countries.
As a professional translation agency, it’s our job to keep our clients up to date with any marketing trends in their chosen markets. We also advise how to address any issues that might arise, so that everyone is fully prepared for changes that need to take place. Whether that be amending web content or updating images – we ensure everyone is up to speed. Because of this, we think we’re pretty well equipped to talk about the challenges and opportunities that marketers face in international markets!
So what exactly are the challenges today’s global marketers are faced with, and what opportunities could these present? Let’s take a look.
High-quality content
With global marketing comes the opportunity to reach a whole new audience and establish your company in a new market – an exciting prospect for any business. By approaching an international audience, profits can increase, brand reputation can be improved and your company will be exposed to business opportunities that aren’t available in your domestic market.
Although there are clearly a number of opportunities that come with appealing to an international audience, there are also some issues that can arise – particularly when it comes to marketing your brand for a local audience.
Translation is one of the biggest and most common hurdles that global marketers will face during global expansion. First impressions are pretty important – especially in the day and age of quick clickers and high bounce rates – so it’s vital that your copy is translated to a high standard.
As a marketer, we’ve no doubt that you understand the importance of good copy! If you visit a website that is badly written, or see an advert with a spelling mistake, your perception of the brand is instantly tarnished – right? The same principle applies to translation. If your website isn’t well written in the native language, the viewer simply won’t engage – full stop.
To make sure that your content portrays the right message and is written fluently, consider using a professional translation agency specialised in marketing translation – like Brightlines. Not only will this relieve some of the pressure from you, but it’ll also ensure that the copy will be well received by your specific audience. Not to mention that professional marketing translators will be able to incorporate SEO search terms into the copy. After all, it’s no good having brilliant content if your target audience can’t find it!
Cultural nuances
Approaching an unfamiliar market can seem like a daunting task, but it brings a variety of opportunities to your role in marketing. You’ll be able to learn from other cultures and their ways of working, adopt new methods of communication, and learn about new marketing practices and principles from those in another market. It’s a great learning curve from anyone in the industry, and will undoubtedly develop your professional skills.
But with global expansion comes the responsibility of ensuring that all content is culturally sensitive. As a marketer, it’s your job to ensure that all marketing collateral – whether that be an online campaign or a hard-copy flyer – appeals to the local audience. You want to keep your audience happy, after all.
This is where localisation comes into play, the process of which requires the translator to be aware of cultural nuances and consumer preferences. Professional marketing translators will include localisation as part of the translation process, meaning that they’ll have an understanding of the respective nation’s cultural quirks, traditions and superstitions – and this will be incorporated into the content without losing the message that you want to get across. This can involve anything from changing the colours and images on marketing collateral, to altering the layout of your website to make space for a language that is shorter or longer than the previous copy. Have a look at our blog post about the difference between translation and localisation for more information.
If you want to make sure that your copy is localised to a high standard, talk to a marketing translation agency like Brightlines – our professional translators are industry experts who specialise in localising copy. Contact us today to find out more.
