International Visibility and Global Expansion Using Digital

Global expansion is cited as a top priority for many international companies and manufacturers in 2014. And while we can’t necessarily influence trade barriers or complex sales channels, we at Envano do have some insight into international visibility and global expansion using digital.

Long before jumping into the strategy and tactics, it’s always important to begin with the audience. Territory expansion is often costly — especially with global initiatives. Variable languages and laws often dictate that companies approach international audiences with more personalization, as these audiences do not respond to the same message designed for the United States, simply translated.  You must consider customs and culture as well when presenting a message to an international audience.

Think of your global business expansion in military terms.

You can’t conquer and divide with a small army, the only way you can take a ground assault is if you have troops on the ground, otherwise you have to fight smarter. Traditional warfare called for shock and awe — which was based on overpowering your opponent with size. As warfare evolves we see that tactical strikes with limited resources can also produce good results.  Translate that to marketing and the same strategy takes shape when leveraging digital marketing tactics. If you’re trying to build markets in international areas and you don’t have a strong ground presence you really need to think about a strong digital strategy and invest your money there. This includes focus on and interaction with finely tuned targeted audiences as opposed to a widespread shotgun approach typically found in traditional marketing.

The key is not to push your message to the masses in areas that you do not have any brand recognition.  Instead, use a refined and focused message geared toward niche audiences, reaching them when and where they want via interactive. 

Once you have this down and thoroughly understand your international audiences, the interactive tactics come easy. A mix of paid advertising, social and mobile conversations to fuel new relationships result in the international visibility, education and awareness that is key for business growth. Using digital to reach out to and engage with foreign audiences, including content by culture and regional targeting, has the potential to drive quick global expansion if you start by considering core audience needs.

Connect with us to chat about how to expand into international markets using interactive tools. Because when trying to conquer new territory with a small or limited army, if you don’t leverage digital — you’re fooling yourself.