Many global brands are sleeping on the impact local marketing team expertise can have on the success of their international campaigns. While a strong central creative concept is vital, the nuances that make a campaign truly effective across different markets often lie in the details. These details can be garnered through research but also through local marketing team engagement. It’s common for global marketing teams to struggle to fully integrate local marketing team insights, perspectives, and experiences into the hectic international campaign development process.
Bringing the local teams on the journey and harnessing the right information requires coordination and the management of different opinions and objectives. But if a strong partnership of mutual respect can be secured, it will not only help facilitate a more creative and impactful campaign, it also grows a stronger, more successful team – and everyone achieves their goals.
Who should be involved in developing international marketing campaigns?
To take advantage of this local marketing team expertise, it’s crucial to involve a diverse group of stakeholders. Here’s who should be at the table:
- Local Marketing/ Brand Managers: These individuals have a deep understanding of the local market, including consumer behaviour, trends, and preferences. They can provide valuable insights into what will resonate with the target audience, what has worked well, what to avoid, and popular culture (influencers to be aware of for example). They can also help facilitate testing in-market.
- Sales Teams: Sales professionals are on the front lines and have direct contact with customers. Their feedback can highlight potential pitfalls and opportunities within the campaign that might not otherwise be immediately obvious.
- Cultural Consultants: For markets with significant or complex cultural differences, engaging a cultural consultant can help navigate potential sensitivities and ensure that the creative aligns with the local norms and values.
- Legal and Compliance Teams: It’s advisable to think about compliance as early as possible in the process to avoid any major setbacks later down the line. Involving any local legal teams would be invaluable.
- Social Media Managers: Local social teams can provide a great ‘on the ground’ viewpoint of your audience and brand sentiment in market.
When to involve local marketing teams in international campaigns
Engaging local stakeholders at the right time and in the right way is key to harnessing their full potential. Here’s when and how to involve them…
1. Early in the creative process
When: During the brief creation
How:
- Host collaborative workshops or virtual brainstorming sessions that include both central and local teams.
- Share initial concepts and gather feedback from local teams on potential cultural or market-specific adjustments.
- Encourage open dialogue to ensure that all ideas and concerns are heard and considered.
2. During the campaign development
When: As the campaign is being developed and refined.
How:
- Provide local teams with drafts of the creative for review and input.
- Use collaborative tools like shared documents or project management platforms to facilitate ongoing feedback and adjustments.
- Allow local teams to adapt messaging, visuals, and other elements to better suit their market.
3. Before launch
When: Just before the campaign is finalised and ready for launch.
How:
- Conduct a final review with local teams to ensure all elements are culturally appropriate and market-ready.
- Perform market testing or soft launches in select locations to gather last-minute insights.
- Make any necessary adjustments based on local team feedback before rolling out the campaign more widely.
4. Post-launch, and throughout the campaign
When: Ongoing – post launch
How:
- Regularly check in with local teams to monitor the campaign’s performance and gather feedback.
- Be open to making in-market adjustments based on real-time insights from local teams.
- After the campaign ends, conduct a debrief with local teams to discuss what worked, what didn’t, and what can be improved for future campaigns.
Engaging local teams in the marketing creative process is not just best practice; it’s strategically imperative for brands aiming to succeed on the global stage. At Freedman we support this collaboration; coordinating feedback, approvals and adaptations to ensure the campaign is as impactful as possible.
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