Why Content Marketing and ASO is like peanuts and beer

Last Thursday after working I was having a beer with a colleague. It was a sunny afternoon with +18 comfortable degrees. Perfect time to have patatas bravas while enjoying a craft beer. With the beer, we also got some peanuts.

Peanuts are one of those many little things that make life worth it :)

I like peanuts … and I like beer, I can enjoy them at their own … but what happens when you combine them??? Oh, boy! that’s so good! those flavours combine so well... the little grains the salty peanuts melting with the little bitter bubbles of the craft beer. Little guilty pleasures! Now … why I’m talking about all this? This is supposed to be a post about Localization……. So, where’s the connection?

The connection is that some things are much better when you combine them … and even if they look different when you use simultaneously they complement perfectly each other.

In the world of Localization: Content Marketing and ASO are like peanuts and beer. They look different, actually, they are! However, if we focus on complement them and work in their similarities instead of the differences…. we will be able to enjoy the experience much more! Please keep reading to understand why Content marketing and ASO go as well together as the peanuts and the beer.

I will divide this post in a series of entries  to ensure I cover properly what’s required for a proper localization content marketing strategy and how to integrate ASO in that strategy.

But before that ... let’s start from the beginning with the Content marketing definition,

“Content marketing is a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.”

Content marketing is much more than “just” Localization … in content marketing we do really need to focus on knowing our audience.

We know, specially those of us working in the localization industry that clients will be readier to show us their money! (Jerry Maguire!) if they understand what they read. There are many articles who proofed this; from the legendary report from Common Sense Advisory elaborated 10 years ago Can’t Read Won’t Buy to a more  a more recent study by Forrester last year that it suggested that the best way to increase engagement is to communicate with prospects in their own language. According to KPCB’s Internet Trends, 6 out of 10 global sites are based in United States however 86% of their traffic originates internationally. Hmmm …. Does this ring any bell? :)

What I’m observing lately is a disconnection in the way how Content marketing, ASO and Localization is executed. In my opinion these components should be done in parallel and integrated simultaneously in the marketing strategy.

Some techniques I have seen to succeed in the content marketing initiative from different clients have always something in common. They shared one of the basic concepts. They are based on the concept: Know your audience!

• Each market is quite different; therefore, we need to understand our consumers to design an effective content marketing campaign. For example, if we are going to run a campaign in multiple countries and one of those countries is China or India it’s important to understand that in those countries the number of mobile devices is much larger than desktop computers. This will mean that you need to prepare your content so it can be:
  •  nicely displayed in mobile devices,
  • visually rich and
  • we must be prepared for some localization qa, as unfortunately, one size fits all doesn’t work in this environment
• We need to be very aware of cultural sensibility and run name checks to avoid problems. For example, I remember a few years ago that Nokia Lumia marketing campaign became very popular in Spain … unfortunately, it was not because of the great features of the phone or the impressive tech details of that device … it was because in Spain the word “Lumia” might have some association to a word used to describe a “prostitute” …. Ehhhmmm?
• We must pay attention to cultural nuances. We need to be aware of idioms, slang or culturally specific references. The world is just too big and our marketing budget is not :) It would be great to cover all regions and markets, but let’s be realistic. Our budget is not infinite, I’m not discovering fire here … this means we need to prioritise content marketing localization to our most important markets
• Understand the power of colours! Colors are very important in any marketing strategy, we associate colors with brands, but also with emotions!, and different colors have a different meaning in different cultures. In Spain, if you go to a wedding you will see the bride in a beautiful white wedding dress ... That wedding in China will show a lot of red instead of white! Therefore a marketing strategy in Spain of a wedding dress company will be quite different. I find quite fascinating the meanings of colors and the emotions they bring in the different cultures. Here you can find a nice summary of the world of colors and their emotions
• Also in content marketing is very important to localize and create local or regional case studies every time we can. Clients will relate better to our offer if they recognise our product as something local, something that they know, something that it was created for them. Something they feel familiar close to them rather than something happening far far away in a unfamiliar country ....In this sense, I do like the approach AirBnB took. Please check this impressive set of slides to understand better how to execute a flawless content marketing campaign.

yolocalizo.com

To summarize: content marketing is all about create, localize, transcreate, translate relevant content for each market, my favorite short definition is from  Chris Bolman, Director of Integrated Marketing, Percolate, Inc. He referred to content marketing as “Content marketing is advertising that delivers value to its recipient, not just an impression.”

Now the next question is … how clients will find us? Specially in the world of stores swampped with apps … please get ready to meet ASO the beer that the salted content marketing peanuts need to be unbeatable … stay tuned to my next post where I will cover effective ASO strategies. Meanwhile … have a great day!
@yolocalizo