Mindshare POV | How international brands can localize

Article originally published by ADTODAY

Slighted edited for clarity

With the emergence of new domestic consumer brands, brand localization and a thorough understanding of domestic consumer needs have become crucial subjects for every international brand that wants to enter China.With a track record in serving international brands wishing to enter the Chinese market, Mindshare not only helps clients stay competitive in the media landscape through rational media investments but also offers a wide range of comprehensive media services. In this continuously changing era, Mindshare is committed to driving maximum values for clients’ communication investments.

ADTODAY invited Audrey Low, Chief Client Officer of Mindshare China, to share her experience with international brands’ localization.

Audrey Low 
Chief Client Officer, Mindshare China

ADTODAY: What research do international brands usually do before entering the Chinese market?

Audrey Low: Typically, there are many things to do when a brand wants to enter China, but it all centers around the consumer segment that the brand wants to tackle, and how the brand wants to make an impact. For example, if the brand wants to target a certain set of consumers, it needs to really understand what consumers think of it in the first place or are these consumers even aware of the brand internationally? Do they have any positive mindset or sentiments about this brand? 

Apart from the consumers, the brand owner also needs to know who their competitors are, what segments they want to drive in, and who are they competing with directly as well as indirectly.

Therefore, really understanding the category in China and how to differentiate the brand via innovation and agility is important. In the recent Mindshare Huddle, we had a topic on “Winning in China via Agility and Innovation” talking about how local brands are growing, how they drive growth in China, and how they drive growth across different sections, from product packaging and designing, to commerce and marketing. Learning from the emerging local brands that have made their mark in China is also important.

ADTODAY: Many international brands already have a large user base. What methods will they use to quickly arouse the memory of domestic consumers after entering China, so as to promote consumption？

Audrey Low: Many big brands tend to adopt a single national approach when they come to China. Although China is one country, there are 34 provinces, more than 50 ethnic groups, and close to 700 cities. China's wide landscape and fast-paced development require a very diversified market approach. This is what we called hyper localization. 

In Mindshare, we have a new approach called Citynality. From looking at consumers’ fixed moments to fluid content, Citynality provides a set of features for brands to consider when they want to interrogate city-based opportunities. By leveraging all these features, brands can then improve their localization strategy to better resonate with consumers or to take these cultural elements to broader markets. 

ADTODAY: What impact do the new domestic consumer brands have on the strategic layout of international brands?

Audrey Low: I would say today’s emerging domestic brands come with an added advantage, which is speed and skill. They are fast, and they can scale up overnight. They launch, come in quickly and with a lot of investments to build awareness, and capture the consumer's attention. Not just one local brand will do this at a time, but many local brands at once. You can imagine at least five to ten times more brands launching or entering the market year after year, which means more intensified competition. All brands, whether you are local or international, have to work really hard to get market share. 

The rate of new products launching here is absolutely insane. While most of the time, international brands have key products or franchises that they want to push, the challenge should then be how they can stay relevant, and how to find new ways, which innovatively capture the heart and minds of the consumers. Any brand that wants to survive in China, or any international brand that wants to launch in China, should also be thinking of a long-term growth plan, rather than just focusing on the short term.

ADTODAY: The younger generation of consumers is the most valued group to brands at present. What measures do international brands take in this regard?Audrey Low: 

We would recommend that brands go by a consumer mindset most of the time and really understand their consumers and what resonates with them most, not only from a media perspective but effectively communicating with them using the right message. At Mindshare, we adopt an approach called Precisely Human Intelligence, looking at accuracy as well as empathy. 

Accuracy is having the right media channels to reach our consumers. In today's world, key platforms, such as Douyin, RED, or even Tencent further amplify and build their resource and ecosystem. We should go beyond a single platform to build cross-synergy platforms. Brands will further benefit from these with the enhancement of reach, greater efficiency, and a lot more on building engagement. 

When it comes to empathy, it's all about understanding consumer behaviors and their passion points and connecting deeper with them. Mindshare’s Culture Activation Framework is a great tool to help activate interest-based communities, define the role of brands when investing in these consumers and help brands to reach them on a deeper level.

ADTODAY: IP co-branding and cross-collaborations have always been common marketing methods for international brands. In your opinion, what are the benefits for brands?

Audrey Low: There are two things that we should be looking at. Number one is the consumer. Brands, whether domestic brands or international brands, have to be on a constant lookout for consumer trends. It’s hard to differentiate and profile Chinese consumers today since there are many emerging consumer segments based on interests and passion points, like stand-up comedy, pop toys, camping, vintage collections, etc. 

Brands can engage these consumer communities by leveraging the IP that interests them most. As these communities grow, they can deliver more positive results for the brands that grow together with them, such as explosive growth in organic content, increase in brand engagement, or even rapid audience segment expansion, and many more benefits. 

Another point is all about how we build long-term IPs and how we evolve them. It’s not a one-off deal. We should go beyond a single moment. Take the example of KFC, which is one of our biggest clients - our content specialists and planning team have created and evolved an e-sports IP to a whole new level. In the span of about six or seven years, we have evolved its role from just a normal sponsor into a community driver, extending its collaboration with virtual idols, and creating new brand assets in the form of collectibles.

ADTODAY: There are many major festivals at the end of the year in China. What does this mean for international brands?

Audrey Low: The festivals here are not just Christmas or New Year. We have a lot of online commerce festivals. Brands need to understand what these festivals really mean for them and decide what role they want to play and compete against. 

For example, Double Eleven or Double Twelve used to be a pure ROI sales game. Everyone was chasing sales. But it has evolved over time, and now it's all about driving connection, driving more engagement with the consumers today. In this aspect, brands have to really keep up and have a balance of not just chasing sales, but connecting and driving engagement with consumers, down to the right content, the right product, and the right KOL.

ADTODAY: In the process of brand localization, we have seen many successful and failed cases. What do you think of this phenomenon?Audrey Low: 

You don't expect a baby to start running before it even learns to crawl. Similarly, from the perspective of brand building, I think successes are good, but failure is even better, because it is a crucial part of the learning process. What’s important here is to review and investigate further into what went wrong; whether the market ready for that brand, how that brand can learn further from that, etc. Learning from those failures matters a lot, so that we can ensure the same mistakes do not happen a second time.

ADTODAY: What is the impact of strict control over the pandemic situation for international brands to enter China?

Audrey Low: First of all, any brands that want to enter China need to understand all the rules and regulations and be sure to comply with them. That's really important. What matters most after that is brands need to keep a lot of flexibility and set a lot of contingency plans as a backup. 

International brands that are already in China also need to be up to date with all the latest regulations. They need to also devise a local plan/alternative to make sure that their business model can sustain, especially when there are strict rules on importing materials from overseas.

Last but not least, brands need to be very sensitive to all the local nuances, and really understand the culture, the Chinese consumers, what you can say, what you cannot say, and what you want to imply. This is crucial to winning in China. 

ADTODAY: Based on your years of experience in the industry, what major changes have taken place between international brands and the domestic market?

Audrey Low: China has grown to be one of the biggest economies in the world during the past years. This means consumers in domestic markets are becoming more sophisticated, and more affluent. In the past, international brands only delivered the promise of good quality/premium quality. But as consumers become more sophisticated and their mindsets have shifted, quality now has multiple meanings to them. It can be the quality of a product, the quality of an experience, or it can also be the quality of a post-purchase service, etc. International brands should keep up with the sophistication of consumers to renew their understanding of them and drive relevance to their set of audiences.

ADTODAY: What impressed you about this year's case when you were the media judge of the 2022 Cannes Lion International Creative Festival?

Audrey Low: I was fortunate to be part of the Cannes Media Lions jury. It happened during the lockdown in Shanghai and there were hundreds of cases to be judged. It was stressful, but truly rewarding to see so many different cultural insights from all different parts of the world. For me personally, there were a few key takeaways. 

First of all, I was judging last year's cases. At that time, covid was hitting everyone hard, which centered the entries a lot more around the pandemic, how brands survive, and how they find different ways to connect with consumers in the middle of the pandemic. 

Secondly, humor used to be the key factor in the past Cannes. But this round of cases, interestingly, has toned it down a lot. There was less humor, and a lot more purpose-driven campaigns, something that has immediate benefits to consumers. 

There was also a lot more sustainability, where advertisers were willingly and genuinely investing to make a difference in consumers’ lives or make a more meaningful impact on the environment.

Finally, DEI it’s here to stay. A lot of cases highlighting these initiatives at how they had impacted people's lives and campaigns that drew emotional needs around gender issues, disparities, or any social and just were really eye-opening. 

Epilogue

History has witnessed many cases with a variety of results in the process of brand localization. A successful brand localization process requires more than just knowing domestic consumer behaviors and their passion points: Brands also need to have a full understanding of domestic policies and competitors. As one of the biggest media agencies in the world with a promising future, Mindshare China opens the gate for international brands to enter China with their specialized knowledge.

To learn more about Mindshare China, scan the QR code and follow our official WeChat account.