The success of marketing lies in knowing your audience. But here’s a statistic you may not have realized — 72% of consumers say that they are more likely to interact with advertisements in their own language.
Localized content incorporates not only the specific cultural, linguistic and geopolitical sensitivities of its audience but also their tastes, habits and interests.
When it comes to improving engagement, loyalty, and ultimately conversions, localized content is no longer an option. It’s a necessity. This post looks at what localization means, why it’s important, and how you can do it successfully in your content strategy.
What Is Localized Content?
Localized content is more than just translation. Where translation involves converting text from one language into another, localization means that everything about a document must be arranged so as to take into account the target audience’s cultural nuances, values, and idiomatic characteristics. For instance, the American public would respond positively to an advertising campaign emphasizing individuality; but in Japan such a campaign would not suit marketing objectives.
Localized content adapts everything from sun and idioms to the layout of data, visual examples, and product range. It makes sure that your message resonates as genuinely as possible with its audience.
Why Localized Content Matters
Builds Trust with Your Audience
Customers are more likely to trust a brand that understands and respects their cultural context. If your message speaks directly to their lifestyle, beliefs, or preferences, then credibility architects are built in trust and loyalty.
Example:
Imagine a clothing line being launched in the Middle East by an e-commerce platform. A blunt approach might offer lightweight summer tank tops and shorts all year round. However, localized content would aim to offer season-appropriate apparel that is culturally sensitive and maintains relevance: This fosters trust.
Improves User Experience
Localization transforms how your business and the public interact. They can now have a website in their native tongue that is easy to read or images reflecting local customs, creating a truly seamless and comfortable experience for users.
Pro Tip:
In addition to satisfying the language requirements of your target market’s customers, you should also think about offering popular local payment methods and units of measurement, baking country-specific imagery into your site.
Boosts Engagement and Conversions
People will like and share what they identify with. Approaching users in their own language is one way to win click-throughs, comments and shares. Besides, consumers are more likely to buy from a brand that personalizes marketing towards them.
Data Point:
According to the CSA’s Global Buyer Report, 40% of consumers around the world won’t make a purchase if they can’t read that information in their preferred language.
How to Create Effective Localized Content
Step 1: Research Your Audience
Localization begins with finding out all about your target market. You need to know things like:
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which dialects they speak
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what their cultural values are (formal? friendly?)
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their festival dates and events
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what they like to buy and how they consume it
Example:
If your product is something to do with winter and you do some basic research you’ll find that in Australia winter lasts from June until August. A campaign raving about a white December will not come across well when seen by Australian customers.
Step 2: Work with Local Experts
No artificial intelligence (AI) program or automatic translation tool will ever entirely be able to capture how people of a different culture feel or think. You will need the assistance of local language professionals or marketing experts to ensure that your content doesn’t stray into something embarrassing or offensive.
Case in Point:
Electrolux once attempted to run an ad in English-speaking markets that played on the power of its vacuum cleaners with the tagline “Nothing sucks like Electrolux”. As it turned out, the tagline didn’t translate well and ended up not only missing its intended meaning but actually backfired to damage customers’ view of the brand.
Step 3: Customize Images and Design
Images and graphics say a lot and need to be as relatable to your target culture as words. Consider customizing these components:
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Colors (In China, red symbolizes good luck; in America, it doesn’t — do-not-enter directions or restaurant signs)
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Models (Be sure that your images represent the people most likely to buy from you.)
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TextFonts (Some fonts are better suited for languages such as Chinese or Arabic)
Following visual norms states that you respect and take into account your audience’s cultures. And it can also help you avoid problems with earning trust.
Step 4: Localize SEO Strategies
Just as you need to localize your content so too with your SEO. What works in one country might not translate directly or as effectively in another language and culture.
Tips for SEO localization are:
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Perform keyword research that is specific to your target market.
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Update meta descriptions and the headings.
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Be mindful of search engine preferences (e.g., Baidu in China).
Step 5: Testing and Gathering Feedback
Localization is a kind of iterative process. Once you have localized an item, test it to see how well it performs and seek feedback from your target audience.
How to test:
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A/B Testing
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Surveys
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Analytics
With constant learning and updates, you will always enjoy the greatest success from your strategy.
Real Stories of Successful Localized Content
Example One – Netflix
As a global leader in the field of localized content, Netflix has long taken on projects overseas. When the company expands to India plenty of its films are made right there; but then something else happens. Original series like Sacred Games are created from scratch and tailored for a local audience. What about items such as this one? Again they go even further — this time with multi-language sub-titles and dubbed versions which make sure an audience that includes multiple native languages is all inclusive.
Example Two – Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke”
The brand “Share a Coke” from Coca-Cola has garnered quite a huge following, because each product was inscribed with a variety of common local names wherever they went.
Customers involved deeply in not only the campaign but also the brand itself. The product was sort of customized from countries as far apart as America and Australia (e.g., Mexico Pomegranate, Great Britain Cheeseburger). This led to both local buyers and expatriates becoming involved, quite accidentally, in a worldwide fashion trend.
Final Conclusion: Marketing in the Future Will Be Local
For multinational brands, localized content is no longer a mere luxury but an essential prerequisite for success. Instead of talking at your audience, think how to engage moment-by-moment with efforts that are neither intrusive nor obnoxious. And what is it you are actually trying to say? With the right blend of research, cultural understanding and careful implementation, your localized marketing campaigns may change the way customers perceive and trust your brand.
Looking to simplify things? Hire local experts, and maybe consider adding tools like Outwrite to further refine the style and readability of your content throughout markets.
Localization is not just about being able to speak the language; it’s rooted in understanding culture. Are you ready to make your marketing personal?
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