Globalisation advice services
You never get a second chance to make a first impression
Selling your products directly to foreign markets, especially via the Internet, always includes some level of risk. As they say, the first impression is also the last impression. What this means is that your product names must communicate your intention to customers using other languages, and who may be from very different cultural backgrounds. There are numerous examples of failed advertising slogans and of misnamed products where the brand meaning, overtones, and associations lacked sufficient research in the target market.
Before a brand debuts in a foreign market, we need to establish how it will be perceived there. Indeed, linguistic and cultural differences can result in quite unexpected interpretations.
However, assuring your brand achieves the right reception in global markets can be achieved by first ensuring that all communications pass the following checklist:
At Skrivanek we provide globalisation advice services to aid our business customers in defining, planning, and implementing their global strategies in foreign markets. We approach each project from the perspective of the business goals, analysing all potential problems in order to offer high-level solutions.
We evaluate brand and product names, sales literature, and service descriptions in the context of your target market, identifying any potential linguistic or cultural barriers. We examine the meanings, impact, tone, content, format, and all other characteristics of your communications from the perspective of the specific market and culture. As a result, you can avoid problems with unexpected customer reactions, while your brand and product names appear in search engines in a form that is best optimised for the target market environment.
Our localisation advice services include:
Product Market Adaptation
A crucial part of entering a foreign market with your products or services is adapting them to the specific characteristics of that market. This is achieved through product or service localization, which involves translating all related content while tailoring it to the expectations of the target audience, local culture, and legal requirements. This process typically includes elements such as product or service descriptions, packaging content, user interfaces, and user manuals.
Key actions taken in product or service localization include:
- adapting units of measurement, currency, and date formats (e.g., converting kilograms to pounds for the U.S. market);
- modifying packaging and labels to meet local standards;
- adjusting visual elements to align with cultural norms (some symbols or colors that are neutral in one country may be inappropriate or offensive in another);
- ensuring compliance with certification requirements (e.g., CE marking for the European Union);
- adapting to local legal regulations (e.g., mandatory allergen labeling in accordance with local law);
- incorporating localized references (for example, changing names on Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” labels—Tomek in Poland, Luca in Italy);
- transcreation of marketing materials — a creative adaptation of content that ensures it triggers the same emotional response in the target audience as the original did in its native context.