International Advertising: Twitter, YouTube & Blogging

In my last blog on international advertising for Facebook, we touched upon various options when using Facebook for an international audience. This week, let’s talk about using Twitter, YouTube and blogging for our international audience.

Twitter: A popular option for targeting an international audience is tweeting in multiple languages. This requires creating multiple Twitter accounts to minimize confusion with readers who don't speak multiple languages — like me. Dell, for example, has Twitter feeds in English, Norwegian, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish.  This is not something every business has the time for, but make sure to shout out to your specific international audience, at least on occasion, to let them know they are on your mind.

YouTube: While creating your video content in various languages is a huge undertaking that may not be possible, adding subtitles to your YouTube videos is a great way to reach a larger audience on YouTube, which is the world's largest video site and the second largest search engine. 

Blogging: For the most part, unless you are fluent in another language or have a translator, if you are reading my blog you are probably writing your blog in English. If this is true for your business, look at the trends and current news of your international consumers – while there are some topics that are universally interesting, geography does play a role. It is always wise to incorporate some reference to a hot topic in a blog post, so make sure that you stay up to date with current events relevant to where your audience resides. If you are using WordPress as your blogging platform, they actually have a translator plug-in that you can add. Now doesn’t that make life a little easier!

Creating content for an international audience is not drastically different from writing for those that reside in your own country, just think about the little things that appeal to them. The ultimate goal for successful international social media is to widen your audience by making it easier for them to access your content. Other than that,

Have fun! Que se diviertan! Amusez-vous! Viel Spaß! Buon divertimento! Om pret te hê! Zabavite se!

(compliments of Google Translate)

International Advertising: Facebook

We all know international advertising comes with challenges. For small business it takes in-depth research before jumping in. When thinking about international advertising, it is important to consider your social marketing, since it is such an integral part of an overall marketing plan. 

We thought we would devote a series of blogs to international advertising and social media. This week we will talk about Facebook. There are two key strategies for reaching global audiences using Facebook. The first, is creating multiple brand pages, which really makes more sense to me (although it is more work). The second, is to post updates that specifically target different audiences. This can work, and is a practical solution for smaller businesses with less time and money to devote to social media, but can get sloppy.

Multiple Brand Pages 

Global brands like Nike have a main Facebook page, but also have specific country pages. Nike UK page for example. This page specifically caters to their UK consumers.  They have large amounts of consumers around the globe, so this is a great way to brand. Creating multiple pages increases the localization of each page but requires more time for customization, as different logos and content are created for each page.

Targeted Updates
If having multiple pages is a bit more of a commitment than you are able to handle, you can target updates by location, demographics, and language on your main Facebook page. The advantages of having one single page are the time and cost savings, consistency, and more easily keeping your brand personality  intact. Additionally, fans from around the world can, where there are no language barriers, connect around a shared passion. 

Chances are you will immediately know which option is right for your business. Considering your strategy before launching is a good start. 

Remember to check back next week for tips on international advertising for Twitter and YouTube!