Common mistakes businesses make when entering global markets

Foreign Tongues Translation

Entering the global market place is an exciting venture but it often comes with mistakes; here are four of the most common:

1. Not doing enough market research

To go global you must have an understanding of the local market, its culture and traditions. You have to learn local industry trends and forecasts; who your competitors are, their strengths and weaknesses; distribution and commonly used marketing channels and learn about the taxes, customs and legal requirements of your target customers.

2. Relying solely on in-house research

In-house marketing and research teams are very valuable and cost effective, but don’t be afraid to ask for external help. Relying on the research conducted by your internal teams may not be enough for you to succeed. Market research is important but as with everything else, it needs to consider behavioural elements. 

For example, Best Buy’s attempt to enter the European market was unsuccessful because the company failed to notice that Europeans prefer smaller shops to larger supermarket stores, amongst other factors.

3. Localising but not translating 

Translating your marketing materials and slogans is one thing, localising it is another.  If you were to take an English slogan and translate it into Japanese without any contextual meaning, it wouldn’t make any sense. Before you proceed with translation, double check what language the population likes to be spoken in. Certain countries have diverse populations, speaking many languages and may have preferences as to which ones they are accustomed to. 

The same goes for your website. Your website content should be translated by an experienced language translator. Someone who understands the local language, the emotional and practical aspects of it and knows how to make your content appealing to your new audience. This is not something machine translation will be able to achieve due to its many limitations, including its inability to understand context and tense.

4. Underestimating the prominence of cultural differences

Inadequate research can lead to failed expansion. One of the most common mistakes is to assume that the business model used for your home market can be duplicated across international markets, without adapting to local marketing channels, consumer behaviour or product preferences.

Changing the name of products and the currency is simply not enough. A further analysis of the ecosystem, the ways of living and purchase decision making habits have to be evaluated and used in practise. Traditions, behavioural influences and local laws should also be taken into account.

Not taking shortcuts, investing time and resources into research prior to international expansion can be the make or break of your firm’s global success. Local market knowledge will enable you to shape your marketing strategy, your product and messaging. Furthermore, it may open doors to future opportunities and insights to upcoming trends.

If you are looking for help with translation and localisation to support your international expansion, ask Foreign Tongues. We work with experienced, local translators, worldwide. You can request the free quote here and we will get back to you immediately.