You've finally signed a new client who's serving a multilingual market. They're asking you to help them become household names and not just dip their toes into the market. Or perhaps you have a client who's not getting enough results for them to keep working with your agency.
Whatever the scenario is, adding localization to the list of services you offer separates you from other agencies, helping you acquire and retain more clients. In this article, we'll look at the reasons behind this and explore some strategies to recruit local experts from international markets.
🏮 The key to stand out 🔗
Winning brands don't doubt the value of localization. They do it because they know it's a must for them to win in the markets they're trying to conquer. Such clients who don't doubt the value of localization are characterized by a few traits:
- 📣 They have an international audience (which means high profits).
- 📈 They have a product/service with the potential to grow further.
- 🗺️ They're apt to build a brand that will adapt easily to multiple cultures.
This is why your agency needs to offer localization as a service. Because a business that is expanding to new countries is a business that's growing. And a growing company doesn't only need localization. It needs other services, such as marketing, design, and account management, that your agency is already offering.
So, with these in mind, we can conclude that localization is your next best strategy to get new clients or retain existing ones. With localization, you're offering your clients a way to cement their reputation in new markets while creating a need for your services.
🗺️ Related: How To Help Your Clients Enter New Markets with Quality Localization
Localization is powerful because it makes a brand, no matter where it was founded, feel as if it was created for the local country that it is expanding to. Now, the key to offering this level of localization is to work with local experts. These can be linguists, writers, professional translators, cultural analysts, market experts, or marketing professionals who have a close understanding of the local customs, culture, and language and are preferably native.
🤔 Why does it make a difference? 🔗
You can always find cheap translators, proofreaders, culture analysts, or linguists for low prices online, but they're likely to hurt your business. If you genuinely want to offer quality localization to your clients, you need to bring together local experts who know the ins and outs of the target language.
Four reasons why local experts are your best bet are:
Native is always better 🔗
To understand why local expertise is essential, you need to understand the depth of localization. Localization focuses on the nuances of a language rather than a simple translation. 🔍 For instance, one of the critical concepts in localization is locale translation.
Locales differ from languages. You can have a website translated from Spanish to English in terms of languages. But usually, you need to go deeper and adjust to certain markets for localization. For instance, if you're expanding into the 🇬🇧 UK, you need to adapt it for the UK locale. If you're expanding into 🇦🇺 Australia, you must adapt the language and other elements for the Australian locale.
The locale includes several elements, from dialects to currencies, color nuances, imagery, and more. Only a native expert can help you localize digital content to such depth.
Locals know what works 🔗
Imagine trying to tell a joke in another language – it might land flat or, worse, come across as offensive. Local experts ensure your message hits the bullseye every time. A non-native language professional can provide you with textbook accuracy when it comes to adapting specific texts or other elements for the target culture, but a native speaker is aware of subtle differences that could make or break your message.
Locals understand social trends 🔗
Society evolves quickly, and the knowledge that a non-native speaker of the target language might have acquired about the target market could be outdated. 😅 You could end up producing content that is dull and even alien to the user base.
That's a big no-no you will want to avoid at any cost for your clients and yourself. But when hiring local experts, this becomes infinitely easier. Social media trends move faster than a hummingbird on Red Bull, and cultural norms can vary wildly from place to place.
Locals have their fingers on the pulse of what's hot and what's not, ensuring your campaigns don't land with a thud by referencing a trend that's already been retired.
You can get valuable business insights 🔗
Besides the linguistic aspect, business regulations are also important when expanding to a new country. That's when hiring local business experts becomes crucial. Local business experts can provide invaluable insights into your target audience's specific needs and preferences.
They know the competition, the regulations, and the economic landscape – basically, they're your secret weapon for navigating the market like a pro. This knowledge lets you tailor your offerings to local needs, maximizing your impact and boosting your bottom line.
🖇️ Tips to incorporate local expertise 🔗
Now, let us look into the practical guide to building local expertise for your teams. Whether your agency offers software, marketing, or other services/products, here are some key scenarios for building and incorporating local knowledge into your offer. We're addressing every kind of agency under the umbrella of digital agencies.
If you are a local digital agency 🔗
While the blueprint is similar for all agencies, a few details differ. So, let us start with the first one: digital agencies focused on one territory.
Here are five tips to help you gather local expertise and package it into your services:
1. Build a strong native team
The first one is pretty obvious. Get a team of real native experts who know their stuff. 😎 It's up to you whether you hire a full-time in-house or remote team. Either way, you can hire these experts through freelancing platforms like Upwork, LinkedIn, Indeed, and Glassdoor. As a local digital agency, hiring freelancers might be the best option.
2. Provide case studies
Show your potential clients what you've achieved so far. At this point, they want to know if you're really capable of helping them localize for new markets. Since you're a local agency, don't go too broad and provide case studies about your chosen region.
3. Create a solid partner network
If you want to build a stable revenue stream, you need to pay attention to building your partner network. Don't focus on making it all alone. Partner with other agencies specializing in other fields and exchange referrals to serve your clients better.
Chances are that you will get more clients and will do better work for the ones you have. Partnering up with other agencies means that you will offer your clients more than just your services, and the more problems you solve for your clients, the more they will want to work with you.
4. Build cultural authority
You gotta walk the walk, not just talk the talk. 🚶♀️➡️ Get your agency involved in local events, conferences, and online communities. Share your expertise, show your passion for the local culture, and become a thought leader in the space.
The more you're seen as a local expert, the more clients will trust you to handle their global marketing and localization needs. You can achieve this by attending events and having your team members, such as linguists and culture specialists, discuss their expertise while representing your brand.
5. Consider specializing in a single industry
Don't go too broad when choosing what clients to serve. The smaller the niche you choose, the easier it will be for you to position yourself as an expert and get the most clients. You can specialize in tourism, retail, fashion, or health. It all depends on your team's expertise and what's highly sought in the market you're serving (or intend to serve).
Maybe you will become the go-to agency for 🏖️ tourism marketing in Southeast Asia or for 🛍️ retail companies in Eastern Europe. By focusing your expertise, you can build authority faster in that industry as the best local agency in the space.
If you are an international digital agency 🔗
In this case, things can get slightly more complicated. At this point, you need to be more strategic about incorporating localization into your offer. You can't afford to offer localization in small markets or have it cost more than your primary services.
Here are some tips for your international digital agency to avoid these mistakes:
1. Pick your main markets
An international agency is expected to serve multiple markets at once, but you'll have more chances to grow if you focus on serving a few specific markets rather than many. Focus on a few of the top markets in which you know you can establish yourself as an expert in, and keep your eyes off the rest.
They'll just confuse you. Picking only a few key markets makes it easier for you to offer the best localization services and provide meaningful tips for your industry. Choose markets that best serve your team and the expertise you offer.
2. Invest in partnerships that make sense
Partnerships are critical to get more clients and serve the ones you have well. Specifically, partnerships with local agencies can be highly beneficial. 🤝 By working with them, you can outsource a difficult part of your project and have their help for culture-specific matters. By consulting with them, you can gain the expertise needed to expand in a particular market and offer the best services to your clients.
These partnerships provide in-country support, cultural insights, and access to local talent. Vet potential partners based on their industry knowledge, reputation, and alignment with your agency's values.
3. Promote synergies in your network
Consider your network of partners as part of your team to some extent. Don't just call them when you need help; instead, stay in touch regularly and exchange advice with one another. 📞
Encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing between your agency and your local partners. Regularly scheduled meetings, shared best practices, and joint projects can leverage each organization's strengths and ensure you win in your respective industries.
4. Hire a team of consultants for local reports and insights
They say that you can't improve what you can't measure. 📊 So, invest in hiring a team of consultants who can produce local reports and provide you with industry insights if you want to stay ahead of the competition and provide excellent localization.
The expertise of local consultants who can provide in-depth market reports and cultural insights will keep you from making miscalculated decisions. Supplementing your internal knowledge with local perspectives minimizes the risk of cultural missteps and maximizes the effectiveness of your campaigns.
5. Invest in solid support teams and support tech
Now that you have assembled your team of experts, it's time to make sure you are prepared for any inconvenience. Up to this point, you focused on bringing the best experts to provide impeccable localization for your foreign clients. But now, we'll look at an equally important issue: providing support and using efficient tech.
You must ensure that there's a multilingual support team that can respond to any query for your clients. In the best-case scenario, localization will bring more business for your client; in the worst-case scenario, it might bring more questions and complaints. You need a solid support team to resolve these requests effectively during both times.
✅ Make it easier with the right tech 🔗
Meanwhile, select the right technology to implement for your clients. This will save time and money for you and your client, making finding and managing local expertise easier. When we talk about localization, the necessary technology you need includes:
- 📝 Translation Management Systems (TMS). A TMS platform, like Localazy, streamlines workflows, manages translation memories (so you don't re-translate the same sentence a million times!), and keeps your team organized across borders. You should pick one with automation features that is intuitive, secure, and allows you to manage permissions for each member (which is necessary for large teams.)
- 🤹♂️ Project management tool. Juggling multiple projects and deadlines? Project management tools are a must-have. These platforms, such as Asana, ClickUp, or Fibery, keep everyone on the same page, ensuring smooth task assignment and timely delivery. They also serve as databases where you can keep and organize your data.
- 💬 Collaboration platforms. Distance shouldn't be a barrier. Collaboration platforms like Slack or Google Meet keep your team connected no matter their location. Pick one platform that works for everyone and stay coordinated.
- 🤳 Network discovery and social media management tools. Choose tools like Buffer or Publer to facilitate the distribution and management of multilingual content on social media. And use network discovery tools to save time when finding local influencers, bloggers, and other field experts.
- 💰 Global payment tools. International business can get messy financially. Global payment tools make cross-border purchases and hiring stressless, so adopt one that works for you. Also, consider using budget trackers. They give you real-time spending insights, allowing you to stay on budget and avoid surprises.
The right technology will help you stay sharp and provide the best service for your clients. Things can get challenging with time, but overall, the right tech can help you stay more organized and save time. You want to provide the best services for your clients, and nothing is more important than saving time in these scenarios.
📌 Conclusion 🔗
Equipping your agency with local expertise is a long-term investment in client success and agency growth. When you add localization to your agency's suite of services, you're making your offer more compelling and your clients more successful, which also rewards you.
At Localazy, we help digital agencies leverage localization efficiently with features like permission management for local teams, automated workflows, and an intuitive interface. We make it easier for you to gather local experts and offer top-notch localization services by providing you with an entire team of native professional translators and reviewers (more info here).
Try our Autopilot plan built for agencies and let our Continuous Localization Team connect you with the perfect translation team. Visit Localazy today and make your services/products irresistible with localization as an ace up your sleeve.
