Promising, but also challenging, are the opportunities that open for marketers and companies in international marketing in view of the dynamics on the global market. SPS MARKETING has been active in the international E3 agency network for many years, where it is in direct contact with marketing specialists from all over the world. What are the current marketing trends in other countries and what are the stumbling blocks to watch out for?
The development of globalization often makes international campaigns indispensable. But in order to bring campaigns to the international stage that were designed for the home market, you have to deal with local peculiarities. Simply translating content into the target language and distributing it via the familiar channels is unfortunately far from the mark. In truth, it takes more than that to succeed globally.
Working with local consultants who know and can empathize with the local market is often advisable. This is because different cultural, political, economic and legal factors influence consumer behavior and market trends depending on the country. Cultural taboos, regional preferences or different language usage also require a deep understanding of local customs and norms in order to implement adaptation to cultural contexts. Media usage must also be taken into account, as communication channels may vary, sites such as Facebook or Google are blocked in China, for example. And even imagery can have pitfalls, because symbols and even colors are culturally coded and run the risk of evoking different associations.
International marketing poses complex challenges across countries. But which trends can currently be identified on a country-specific basis? We spoke to our colleagues in the E3 network to find out what developments they are noticing locally.
Gloria Anongor from Benchmark Marketing in Ghana is Country Manager and, as Chief Strategist, also looks after sourcing and profit & loss. In recent years, she has observed an increasing trend in the retail sector in the West African country to link shopping experiences more and more with leisure activities and gastronomy.
„Customer events and events that encourage people to buy the products are also becoming more popular as a marketing tool.“
She sees cell phone payment systems, which make it possible to use credit on a cell phone to pay bills or make purchases without a bank account, as a special feature in her country. Transactions can be made by entering a number on the cell phone keypad, even without a smartphone. "USSD is gaining ground as a means of online payment in Africa. And digital marketing, TikTok as a marketing channel, and events and restaurants that align with customer preferences with custom-fit offers are becoming more exciting as channels for selling high-value products. Online stores have been less well received so far because it's common in our culture to not only see products, but to be able to hold them in your hand and feel them before you buy them."
In South Africa, as in many places, there has also been a shift from traditional to digital marketing strategies and tactics. "In recent years, there has been a clear focus on better understanding and optimization in marketing to enable linkage to sales, and using tracking and analytics to more clearly evaluate campaigns and target overall investment and ROI," explains Consulting Teamlead Craig Johnston of Huble in Cape Town, , who primarily uses Hubspot as a platform when implementing their consulting services.
„South Africa is incredibly diverse! There are people who have never owned a cell phone, but also those who immediately buy the latest tech gadgets when they are released.“
"The adoption of digital technologies is still quite young in our country, although adoption is growing very fast compared to many other countries. I see a lot of potential in multi-channel campaigns that complement each other. This allows marketers to be more creative in their campaigns, encompassing everything from radio ads and billboards to PPC campaigns and online referral programs." This diversity requires a comprehensive understanding to work strategically and systematically, which is why people like to focus on multi-channel strategies. It also requires a strong CRM. "But many companies in South Africa don't yet fully understand the value of a comprehensive CRM that the local market really needs."
Einat Talal-Cohen, Digital Marketing Manager at OZ Global B2B in Manof/Israel, observes that microcopy is becoming more and more important in the user experience. The short mini-texts or hints give an easy access to user interface and use it in the first place. Einat also notes that the alignment of content with the pains and gains of the personas is increasing, so one is oriented to the needs and positive topics that excite customers, as well as to the negative experiences. In addition, brand awareness and employer branding campaigns are becoming more significant in her field of work. OZ Global B2B specializes in end-to-end marketing management for global Israeli B2B companies, with a focus on digital marketing, strategy and branding.
Account-based marketing (ABM) or account-based experience (ABX)? Engaging customers through targeted, personalized campaigns - apparently there is still a lack of understanding about this among Brits, especially when it comes to the input required from customers. "Marketers want to show that they are doing ABM, and are challenged to make clear the necessity, but also the effectiveness, of marketing. Instead of silo thinking and one-sided reviews, sustainable and holistic analysis is needed, and new scoring models that align with accounts. Econometrics is becoming increasingly important." Oliver Marshall is Head of Strategy at The Marketing Practice in Oxford/UK, which specializes in account-based marketing, demand generation, channel partner marketing and BrandGen, especially in the technology sector. He mainly analyzes targets in the areas of business and communication in order to develop strategies based on them.
Jon Cohen, President of Innovation Protocol in Los Angeles, also observes the increase in importance of omni-channel strategies in the U.S. market: "More and more people are experiencing brands, not just B2C brands, through a variety of channels - web, mobile, social media, podcasts, webinars, and so on. That's why omni-channel strategies are more important than ever. Especially for B2B brands, highly emotional and also visually compelling brand narratives and identities have become the norm. Videos are here to stay: they can accompany events or are often produced quickly for a short lifespan, as short videos with a clear message for a specific target group, which are also used as video series. Immersive web experiences are expected!"
For marketing in the U.S., Jon sees new trends that we've also seen in our markets, "The use of AI-based tools (ChatGPT, OpenAI, Dalle-2) is changing the way we do marketing: Content will be created much faster and cheaper in the future. In addition, diversity, equity, and inclusion have become very important in the US: People increasingly expect social engagement from companies. This is also an issue in talent acquisition and retention that we will be looking at more in the future. This is especially true in B2B, where such policies are especially important for purchasing decision makers who make multi-layered decisions over a long period of time."
Sascha Schmidt is a Consultant Strategy at Schindler Parent in Meersburg. The agency has mostly B2B clients in the medical, automotive and engineering sectors and focuses on communications, brand strategy, sales promotion and branding. "A very typical thing for Germany is that emotions and technology are readily associated when implementing campaigns. In general, the increasing digitalization of sales processes, which is reflected in lead management, and the growing need for employer branding campaigns are evident." For this purpose, Schindler Parent uses the HeyJobs platform as a marketing tool, which is set up throughout Germany and Austria. Sascha sees the lack of awareness of urgent transformation processes in marketing departments, especially in medium-sized B2B companies, as an exciting challenge. And because reliability is the top priority in good old Germany and everything is supposed to be one hundred percent secure, a lot of things are discussed out beforehand - which is why Sascha would like to see "sometimes a bolder approach to marketing activities" in Baden-Württemberg.
We agree with that: Because courage for the brand works across all borders! A bit of sophistication, humor and unusual approaches - authentically and professionally implemented - are happy to be remembered everywhere. Read about the global trends in the marketing world that you can't avoid in our next blog article in the "International Marketing" topic series.
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