A couple of decades ago, expanding products internationally was a cumbersome process. It required establishing a regional consumer team, determining distribution channels and logistics, and incorporating the company in another country. It was exhausting, costly, and if we’re honest, not always worth it.
The introduction of digital solutions has greatly streamlined global product launches. Digital products have eliminated the need for managing physical inventory, resulting in significant cost reductions and simplification of logistical processes. With everything being digital, companies can execute faster and more agile launches with reduced risks. However, this simplification can potentially lead to overgeneralization, which can pose a threat to the regional reputation of your brand.
In this article, I share my professional experience in launching products internationally, as well as key best practices that product marketers can employ to avoid a cookie-cutter approach.
Download the International Product Launch Cheat Sheet here!
Your Market Worth is Your Market Research
The widespread use of digital payment methods and the optimization of mobile infrastructure have streamlined online transactions, enabling e-commerce companies to achieve economies of scale by attracting a broader international consumer base.
Projections from Shopify indicate that global B2C e-commerce will surge from $4.8 trillion in 2023 to $9 trillion by 2032 (Shopify 2023).
Different regions offer distinct market entry opportunities. For instance, Latin America’s e-commerce market is forecasted to grow by 22% from 2023 to 2026. Meanwhile, the Philippines boasts the fastest-growing e-commerce market worldwide, with a 24.1% growth rate in 2023 (Shopify 2023).
In a past life living in Madrid, I worked on the acquisition team at Fever, a Spanish entertainment company. My responsibilities included expanding into the US during a very difficult time – the pandemic.
The dust had just started to settle after the traumatic onset of Covid-19 and people craved in-person experiences, but safety precautions were still necessary.
Fever’s data-driven approach allowed us to navigate these complexities effectively. Working closely with the growth and BI team, we leveraged US market research and campaign-level data to create visual reports, allowing us to segment our customers more effectively. These insights shaped our go-to-market strategy and informed our campaigns, enabling us to overcome pandemic-related obstacles and tailor our offerings to specific audience segments.
By investing time to truly understand our market, we not only outperformed our initial revenue projections but also captured a significant share of the market.
Thorough market research is crucial to avoid misinterpreting cultural nuances and overlooking the preferences of new markets, which could undermine your efforts.
Pro tip: use resources such as the International Trade Administration, Cultural Atlas or BBC Country Profiles to familiarize yourself with historical and cultural insights of your target country
Positioning isn’t always permanent
A common oversight brands make is not adapting their positioning to the evolving market needs. Just because a product is positioned successfully in one country doesn’t mean it will automatically succeed in another. However, this doesn’t mean creating a new product for every market you enter.
From your initial market audit, you gain insights into local consumer preferences and behaviors. This data helps tailor positioning and messaging to align with consumer expectations, a process known as localization.
Localization is key in global product marketing because it significantly impacts how a brand positions its products. For example, while Diet Coke is known by the same name in the US and the UK, it is called Coca-Cola Light in many Southern European countries. This is because the term “diet” is often associated with medical or health-related products rather than low-calorie or weight-management drink.
A great SaaS example of effective localization is Airbnb. In the US, Airbnb’s positioning emphasizes unique and local experiences. However, when launching its service in Japan, Airbnb had to change its strategy.
“Omotenashi” is a deep-rooted concept in Japanese culture that embodies the spirit of selfless hospitality and service. It goes beyond basic customer service to create an experience that is considerate, anticipates the guests’ needs, and makes visitors feel genuinely welcomed and cared for. Big hotel enterprises have mastered this craft, dominating the lodging sector and posing a challenge for Airbnb to gain significant market share.
Airbnb brilliantly understood this concept unique to Japanese culture. They integrated it into their services and marketing strategies to better resonate with Japanese consumers and drive a successful launch. Through their marketing campaigns, Airbnb highlighted stories of Japanese hosts who epitomized “Omotenashi,” thereby building trust and rapport with potential future consumers.
Without proper cultural understanding, such nuances can make or break a product’s success.
There’s no such thing as a “good” ROI
A 3X Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) may be considered outstanding performance in one country but underperforming in another. Return on Ad Spend for the same product can vary between countries due to several factors:
- High Competition: In countries with high competition, the cost of advertising is generally higher, which can lower the overall ROAS
- Fluctuating Exchange Rates: Fluctuating exchange rates can affect both the cost of advertising and the revenue generated. If the local currency weakens against the dollar, the cost of digital ads priced in dollars increases, impacting your ROAS
- Differences in Purchasing Power and Consumer Preferences: Variations in purchasing power and consumer preferences require adjustments in advertising strategies. In regions where consumers have lower disposable income, the same ad spend may not yield equivalent returns compared to wealthier markets
As part of your market research, it is crucial to define what a successful ROAS or Return on Investment looks like for each country.
While working at Fever, my team was tasked with launching the Spanish event platform in the US market. Historically, our Meta ads had achieved stellar returns (ROAS) due to the lower advertising costs in Southern Europe. However, when we applied our European model to the US, our ROAS took a significant hit. If we had used our European ROAS as the gold standard, we would have been deemed unsuccessful by that definition.
Instead, we conducted a thorough analysis of the US market, taking into consideration the higher advertising costs. With this understanding, we adjusted our benchmarks to more realistic key performance indicators (KPIs), enabling us to redefine success and thrive in the new market.
Become your company’s biggest influencer
At its core, product marketing is about relationship building. This doesn’t change when launching internationally. Being an influencer within the company allows you to lead your vision more effectively. This influence enables you to drive alignment, overcome obstacles, and ensure that your vision for a successful international product launch is understood and supported across the organization.
The best way to gain influence with your regional teams is through a collaborative approach that empowers them to provide invaluable market insights. This was a strength that a previous company I worked for mastered; regional sales teams were enacted in every country we launched in.
We recognized that these teams, being closest to the market, could best understand local nuances. As we prepared our go-to-market launch, I ensured that every regional lead was included in key conversations. By demonstrating trust in their expertise, regional leaders openly shared market insights and contextual cues that would otherwise be difficult to grasp. Consequently, we uncovered crucial insights into cultural dynamics that directly impacted how our launch plan would be received by local consumers.
The key takeaway: Product Marketers hold significant power to influence cross-functional collaboration.
Our regional teams greatly appreciated our efforts to decentralize strategic conversations, which in turn led to stronger collaboration. When you get everyone on the same page, you can lead a unified and effective international product launch flawlessly.
Bringing it all together
International product marketing is no easy feat, but with the right approach, launches can be highly successful. By understanding local markets, adapting strategies, and building strong relationships, you can navigate the complexities of global expansion and unlock new levels of growth.
Key Best Practices:
- Be your company’s best influencer: Cultivate strong relationships with regional teams, empowering them to voice their insights and collaborate closely. By becoming everyone’s ally, you gain more influence, making people more inclined to follow your lead
- Make Market Research your Best Friend: Leverage local and online resources and tools to gather cultural insights to power your positioning
- Localize, Localize, Localize: Using insights from market analysts, adjust product positioning based on local preferences and behaviors
- Set Reasonable KPIs: Align sales goals and OKRs with the local market economy
