The effects of globalisation on marketing
Globalisation has changed the way that business is conducted and, as a result, marketing has had to adapt to meet the circumstances of the modern age.
Campaigns now need to take into account the fact that many companies operate across national boundaries and have to cater for markets across different continents and time zones.
In practical terms, the development of an inter-connected world has informed marketing strategies in a numbers of ways.
Language
Marketing and slogans go hand to hand. Yet globalisation has meant marketers need to mind their language. There have been a number of embarrassing occasions of translations that have left companies red faced over the year. From KFC’s ‘finger-lickin’ good’ being turned into ‘eat your fingers off’ to Coors’ ‘turn it loose’ being read as ‘suffer from diarrhea’ in Spain. It’s tricky, but modern day marketing efforts need to be mindful of the language barrier.
Imagery
Companies who operate in different countries need to find a way to build a brand that speaks to everyone. Strong bold imagery on livery can create a brand that is recognisable the world over. Companies deploy spray rooms like those from Airblast in order to get large numbers or planes, for example, emblazoned in their colours – with a good logo and colour scheme able to transmit a brand identity the world over without any of those pesky language problems outlined above.
Time zones
It’s always been important to get your timing right as a marketer – and the impact of globalisation has made that even more important. Companies with a foot in different markets need to tailor their efforts accordingly, timing press releases, social media posts and announcements at a suitable time for the relevant people – it’s no good merrily tweeting away from London at midday expecting someone in LA to pick the message up at 4am.
Speed
The biggest benefit for marketers from new technology has been to speed up the whole process. Social media offers brands an instant form of communication, means that someone sitting in an office in New York can now orchestrate a campaign in Beijing, or vice versa.
The best best grasp this as a big opportunity, rather than become daunted by the size of the challenge.
Unifying forces
Marketing in a global age becomes a lot easier if you can spot opportunities to appeal to your whole audience in one fell swoop. Many big brands associate themselves with major sporting events such as the football World Cup or Olympic Games and these have become even more important now as an opportunity to get in front of the eyes of customers across continents. Collaborations with musicians and models that have an international appeal are also effective ways to do this.
Competition
While it’s great to be reaching out to a potential audience in every corner of the globe, the flip side of that is that potential competitors can now come from anywhere in the world. From a marketing point of view that means that brands need to be acutely aware of the operations of rivals in different countries, studying their output in the way that they would domestic competitors.
Category: Business and Politics
