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Southeast Asia (SEA) is a diverse region that includes 10 countries and is home to over 630 million people. With more than 330 million of the total population being internet users, which is more than the internet users in the USA, SEA is witnessing a mobile and digital revolution.

A report by Google forecasted that between 2015 and 2020, 3.8 million users will get online every month. This would make Southeast Asia the fastest-growing region of internet users in the world. The internet economy is estimated to be worth US$200 billion by 2025.

As compared to other regions whose internet infrastructure is far more developed, in SEA, people rely on the internet on their smartphones to access information, consume entertainment, and upload and share content on social media. More than 90 per cent of Southeast Asians who use smartphones spend 3.6 hours on mobile internet, surpassing everyone else on the planet.

The SEA region, with the fastest-growing disposable income, smartphone ownership, and access to the internet, this region presents an exponential opportunity for global brands to expand their customer base.

Simultaneously, SEA brings along unique challenges for global companies looking to expand their business locally. Although the economic patterns are similar, the people in this region speak different languages, have cultural diversity and diverse consumer preferences. Many users are in the process of getting familiar with online payments and mobile shopping, with internet speeds slower than the global average.

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Here are the four things to remember while localising multinational marketing in SEA, for brands wanting to penetrate in this market.

Localise your content

Localising into the regional languages is critical to building a presence in the SEA market. In markets including Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam; English is not the first language, nor widely used. Translating the content into the native languages helps you empathise with your audience, which gives you a competitive advantage over the other players in the market.

Consider localising the content as per the cultural norms of the region. There are cultural differences between SEA and other regions. Each country has a unique set of etiquettes and social habits. Hence, think about localising your website, logo, and visuals making them culturally relevant to that audience.

The popular fast-food brand KFC localises its website, the layout, visuals, and media in every country. The cost of entering a market, with the branding and marketing going wrong is a lot more than not entering it at all. Conduct ample research about the buyers, their cultural and social diversity before launching there.

Localised pricing

As compared to developed markets, the disposable income in SEA is comparatively lower. This means when you localise the pricing in different languages and as per their purchasing power, it helps you connect with your customers. Prospects buy from brands they feel connected to, and hence, you need to package and market your proposition based on the varying needs of each region.

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Decode, how much your customer is willing to pay for the service as well as the native currency. Evernote, a productivity app has localised its pricing for every country.

Along with pricing the offerings based on the user’s ability to pay, consider the payment gateways commonly used in the regions. For example, in Vietnam, people prefer paying through Moblamo and VTC Pay while transacting online. In Singapore, the most tech-savvy SEA region, the preferred mode of payment is through Mastercard and Visa. Indonesia, with the highest number of internet users in SEA (260 million) prefers paying through Doku Wallet, along with Mastercard and Visa.

The currency type displayed on your website or app affects the customer’s perception of your brand. It is beneficial to charge in local currency instead of in dollars.

Optimise your offerings for the growing markets

Let’s take the example of one of the most successful globally localised fast-food chain McDonald’s. Their offers differ vastly based on local tastes. They iterate their menu to accommodate regional cuisines.

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In a country such as India, where the population is largely vegetarian, they offer vegetarian options such as McRoyale Paneer. In Korea, their menu includes Shrimp Burger Deluxe. The spice levels are also different in every geography. They do not serve beef burgers in India, while in Indonesia their menu does not include pork, thereby respecting the local sentiments.

Every nation has a unique palette, authentic flavours, and culinary preferences that are based on their traditions. What is considered a delicacy in one culture would be inedible in another part of the world.

The downside of ignoring or not understanding cultural connotations leads to offending local consumers. Don’t fall prey to that.

Localising social media

As per a report by Hootsuite, 63 per cent of internet users in Southeast Asia are active on social media. Staggering indeed!

Facebook is so popular in the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Taiwan that they are among the world’s top ten advertising audiences. While Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and WhatsApp are extensively used, SEA has its local networks. Also consider WeChat, Seina Weibo, Naver, Line and Qzone to digitally market your brand in SEA and to provide customer support on the local social media platforms.

One of Asia’s largest ride-hailing company Grab uses separate Twitter accounts for the Philippines and Indonesia. The Indonesian account uses Bahasa Indonesia to communicate with the users. While on the Philippines account you can see tweets in both Filipino and English.

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Research about the social networks commonly used in the location you are targeting. You could start building your brand’s presence on the top two of the most popular networks and then expand to the remaining social media. Afterall social proof skyrockets the trust and credibility of the brand.

To support your multicultural marketing campaign, hire native customer support agents, allowing the website visitors to communicate in their native language, through live chat, chatbots, emails, phone calls and social media. You could research the available cloud resources and service providers using GetVoIP. The reviews and ratings on thousands of vendors will help to make the right choice about the business communication solution to opt for.

As economies in Southeast Asia continue to grow, international brands are presented with tremendous opportunities to find new users and boost their revenues in this market. For global brands to nail localized marketing, tailor your offerings, content, pricing and customer support to the geography you want to enter.

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Image credit: ALBERT RENN on Unsplash

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