Interesting insights from brandchannel.com - Five Avoidable Marketing Mistakes When Taking Your Brand Global by Susanne Evens
Nuggets from the article:
1. Understand Your Brand Name
Your company or product name could mean something undesirable in another language. Do the research necessary to ensure you do not sell a car that means "no go" or a computer product that means "frumpy woman." Even something as innocent as a person's name can trip you up. "Gary" sounds like the Japanese word for "diarrhea."
2. Understand the Cultural Significance of Colors
Colors can play a significant role in the aesthetics of your website or other marketing materials, but they also communicate a message. Unfortunately, the message and significance of a color may not be consistent from culture to culture.
In North America, for example, red is often used in operating instructions to signify danger, while other cultures often use green or black for the same purpose. In Asia, white is the color of funerals, while in Western cultures, white is the color of weddings. Without realizing the difference, a wedding company could be sending a disturbing message to its Asian audience.
3. Use Humor Carefully
What's funny in one culture may not even make sense in another. For example, when a preacher visited a missionary, his message on "The Four Ships of Christianity" (fellowship, discipleship, membership, and worship) was a disaster because it was based in a pun that was completely lost in translation.
4. Don't Alienate with Analogies
Similarly, analogies can trip you up. Common analogies in the US may make no sense elsewhere. Even worse, the analogy may be insulting. Neither scenario will help you reach your goal of gaining and maintaining customers.
5. Go Native Online
For years, many people assumed that being on the web meant that you were instantly global. But being available online internationally is a far cry from being able to act global and meet the needs of local international markets.
