- log in
We’ve seen over the last two articles in this series how vital the online world is to the modern marketplace and what it means to go global.
But why go global in the first place? After all, if your business is growing steadily (or at the very least sustaining itself during a period of global uncertainty), then going for the international market might seem like an unnecessary risk, with the potential to backfire and result in heavy losses.
Whilst going global is unlikely to work for every business, one of the most common reasons why major international expansions fail is due to lack of preparation and research into your target market.
Getting your groundwork right is essential to a successful expansion – and key to that is speaking in the same language as your local audience. Given the right preparation, your international shift could see great results for your business, and eCommerce retail is one field where the possibilities are potentially endless.
As seen in this IMRG report, eCommerce brands have seen a huge boost in revenue over the past year – and it’s a shift that’s even more pronounced as you go further down to the smaller players. Small eCommerce retailers have seen increases in revenue as high as 200% in some cases. This is likely a result of the strain placed on larger, more well-known eCommerce retailers, who last year, as the pandemic began to take over our world, suddenly found themselves with a huge surge in demand that they were simply unable to cope with (managing demand and supply chain logistics is another area in which going global requires careful planning).
Going global doesn’t just open up the marketplace to eCommerce however. Gaming is another area where globalization is vital to driving growth and building successful games. Indeed, can you imagine the worldwide success and popularity of games as varied as The Witcher 3 (50+ million copies sold, available in 14 languages, 7 of which have full audio) and the Pokémon franchise (upwards of 200 million units) without widespread localization?
The playability of these games in multiple languages is part of what has made them such a huge hit everywhere. No matter the quality of the game, if there isn’t a localization, then it simply makes it almost impossible for it to find an audience outside of its native territory. There’s a thriving culture of fan localisations in the gaming world, but as admirable as these efforts are, they predominantly focus on cult games whose parent developers have long since moved onto new projects. There’s no refuting it, for games developers willing to invest in localization and engage with a global audience from the start, there is the potential to achieve incredible market growth.
And you’re not just limited to working within the market your company is known for. Chinese smartphone company Xiaomi for example, are making inroads into the Indian market – but on top of smartphones, they’re also selling electric folding bikes and self-balancing scooters. Going global is an opportunity to diversify too.
As you can see, going global can fling open the doors for your business, giving you access to innumerable new markets and audiences. Like everything in business, there’s a balance to be struck between risk and reward, but going global can open the keys to years of growth.
Upload your documents to WordsOnline and pay online for a fast, simple service. 10% discount on your first order
We will help you transition to the new world of continuous localization!
