International Marketing Case Study Blunders & Tips to Prevent Them

If you follow marketing then you likely have seen brands make the sometimes fatal mistakes of branding an entirely wrong message. It happens more often than not, and even the most established brands have made a few blunders when it comes to branded messages in another language. If you are considering global expansion, then consider the following case studies before making that leap of fate.

Language & Cultural Differences:

Coca-Cola a brand that is recognized by many cross-cultural consumers, which ran into trouble with their brand name in its initial debut in China. Coca-Cola was rendered as ‘Ke-kou-ke-la.’ Unfortunately, this company didn’t make this discovery until thousands of signs has been printed, with the phrase “bite the wax tadpole” or “female horse stuffed with wax”, depending on the Chinese dialect. Coca-Cola then went on to research over 40,000 Chinese characters and found the closest phonetic equivalent “ko-kou-ko-le”, which can be translated loosely to mean “happiness in the mouth.”

Going along with the lines of carbonated soft drinks, in Taiwan, the Pepsi slogan “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” was written as “Pepsi will bring your ancestors from the dead.” (Yikes!)

The most infamous of case studies, is when GM introduced the Chevy Nova in South America, they were clearly unaware that “no va” really means “it won’t go.” After GM figured out why they were not selling any of their vehicles, they went on to rename the car ‘Caribe’ in the various Spanish markets.

Ford also had a similiar problem in Brazil when the Pinto flopped. The company discovered that Pinto was the Brazilian form of slang for “tiny male genitals.” Ford pried all of the nameplates off the cards, and substituted Corcel, which means ‘horse.’

Branding

Whether you are a large brand or a start-up when you are going to take the leap for global markets consider the translation and its meanings. Here are a few tips to help you as you grow your business:

1. Make sure that you research every market and possible language translation meanings. You want to ensure that your market will give you a positive response versus a negative one. These types of mistakes can be really costly, and for a smaller enterprise it can be crippling.

2. Test your ‘slogan’ or ‘branded message’ in a focus group if possible in the proposed markets. When you come up with the messages consider testing them in markets that speak the same language, or in that particular country. Don’t just go in blindly.

3. Don’t just consider your slogan think about imagery, and the over all branded message. The simple asthetics such as color, the people in the background, or even the spokesperson should be taken into consideration. There are rules of engagements for each international country, the last thing you want to do is offend someone with a creative color scheme that works in the United States, but would offend others in another market.

These tips are simple and straight-forward, but there is more than what meets the eye. We take measures in working with our clients especially as it relates to marketing and branding. Before you begin your expansion into the global market, consider what we have outlined above. Happy Marketing!!