How can businesses approach international customers?

Today’s business environment is tremendously saturated, practically across every sector. Simply having a consistent brand image is no longer sufficient and so in order to remain competitive, businesses and organisations must find original and innovative ways to cut through the clutter and attract new customers, which consequently allows them to grow revenues and market share. This can be especially true when approaching foreign markets and international consumers. Nowadays, business owners are encouraged to approach such markets and potential customers with specifically tailored campaigns and personalised messages, which focus on targeting a particular consumer group.

In the era of globalisation and technology developments, language became a crucial and core part of those personalised campaigns. As a result, language translation agencies are now important business partners for companies of all sizes and industries. This is also strongly emphasised by statistics – the translation industry is expected to be worth over $45 Billion by 2020 according to the Common-Sense Advisory. Working closely with a translation company can allow businesses to attract international customers and approach foreign markets – something a rapidly growing number of business owners begin to truly appreciate. Today, we’ve decided to take a closer look at ways in which companies can approach and attract international consumers and how providers of translation services can help with doing just that.

Online sales

Translating a company’s website, social media and other digital channels is perhaps one of the most important aspects of attracting international audiences. This can be particularly true for companies from the SME sector which do not have a physical presence in the target market and strongly focus on growing their sales online. Generally, a company’s website will be the initial point of contact between the business itself and a potential customer, and as in such cases the website would create the ‘first-impression’ of a business, it is important that the site is accurately translated and carefully localised for the target audience.  

Interestingly, a recent study showed that over 50% of respondents felt more inclined to committing a purchase if the information about services and products were available to them in their native language. By translating and localising your website, you will naturally increase the conversion rates.

Tailored marketing

Traditional, off-line marketing is another aspect which can benefit greatly from translation services in approaching international customers. Whether translating leaflets, brochures, print materials or even business cards; your company will be able to create unique, tailored experience, which can consequently help in acquiring international customers.

Translating marketing materials aimed at international markets and audiences often consists not only of conveying the written word, but also taking into consideration cultural and social aspects, which can affect the material’s suitability. Visual aspects such as colours or images can have a direct impact on how the campaign is perceived, and so working with a linguist who is not only a native speaker of your target language, but who also understands the chosen market’s culture can be vital.

Brand image

A positive brand image is one of the key factors driving sales and revenue for any business. Brands perceived by the public as responsible and culturally aware in today’s business climate will be able to grow their market share successfully. Such positive brand image can be even more important during internationalisation. Approaching new, foreign markets where a company doesn’t yet have an established position is always a great challenge and business owners must ensure to cover all aspects which can affect their brand’s image.

Understand the market

Before approaching a foreign market, it is essential to fully understand not only it’s consumers, but also competitors and customs. A number of businesses make a fatal mistake of approaching foreign markets based on assumption, rather than research and data. Even large companies such as Tesco or IKEA failed miserably during some of their attempts to internationalisation, to the U.S and Japan respectively, as they invested in a market without a full prior understanding of consumer behaviours, what products and services are required within the chosen market and what factors drive customers.

Working closely with professional linguists and translation agencies can guarantee that the company’s material will be conveyed in a way which ensures cultural suitability within the new market, creating a positive brand image and attracting new customers as a result.   

Consumer behaviour, although easily affected by international trends, in many aspects remains unchanged across different markets. According to data, international customers are much more likely to identify with a brand and complete a purchase if approached on a personal and individual level. As a result, tailored marketing campaigns are no longer uncommon and became an industry standard in the recent years. Language, for many, is one of the most important aspect of such personalised campaigns and so working with translation agencies is no longer a necessity, but a preferred solution during an international expansion.