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Key Takeaways
- Don’t assume a network affiliate is a local expert; quality and market knowledge vary widely.
- Bring local teams in during planning, not just execution.
- Judge local campaigns against local benchmarks, since a “small” result globally can be significant market penetration in a smaller market.
Global brands love a proven playbook. When they enter a smaller market, the temptation is to run it again but at a smaller scale. However, a smaller market isn’t an easier one, and strategies that work in large countries can fall apart when they meet different buying habits. After years of helping international brands launch in Armenia, I’ve seen global brands make the same assumptions, and each one is avoidable.
Relying on affiliates rather than local experts
Hiring, as any business owner knows, is a pain. So, it’s understandable that a large global company looking to enter a smaller market might default to international affiliates already within its network. This approach, however, isn’t always the best.
The problem comes in when you assume that the reputation and expertise of a globally recognized agency network automatically extends to every local affiliate operating under its name. In reality, the quality, capabilities and strategic expertise of local affiliates can vary significantly.
This also means not relying solely on regional hubs (especially in Europe, where proximity doesn’t necessarily mean similarity in humor, expressions and cultural references). Understanding these nuances is key to entering smaller markets successfully. At Prodigi, for example, we’ve received requests from international agency network affiliates to execute digital marketing services for their global clients in Armenia. In such cases, the global brand selects an agency based on its international network affiliation, while the actual local expertise and execution come from an independent agency. This raises an important question: are brands choosing the most capable local partner, or simply the most familiar international name?
Applying global strategies to local markets
At Prodigi, we also frequently see that international companies fall into the trap of applying global verticals and channels to local markets. While sticking to a successful strategy seems sensible, in reality, smaller markets often require a completely different approach.
For example, a global marketing team may automatically prioritize Google Ads in a new region as it’s one of its core international acquisition channels. In smaller markets, though, local platforms may have greater reach and influence among target audiences.
This was the case for a major pharmaceutical company with which we worked. Its global strategy was structured around different stages of the buyer’s journey, but it led to a disconnect between the global buyer’s journey and reality of the local market.
In other markets, online shopping options supported the action/conversion stage. However, in Armenia, the brand had no equivalent digital purchasing channel.
Despite this, the global team insisted on maintaining the same strategy initially. Rather than simply copying the global framework, Prodigi adapted the approach to the brand’s actual business goals in Armenia and incorporated relevant local media channels.
Assuming smaller is easier
A smaller market doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easier. When a country has fewer consumers you can reach and several brands vying for their attention, you typically need a more focused and targeted strategy.
Take the use of influencers, for example. A global company may have seen strong results from working with macro-influencers in larger countries. However, in smaller markets, a large follower count doesn’t necessarily translate into meaningful business results. In these markets, influencer selection requires a deeper understanding of local audiences, engagement quality and brand fit.
Prodigi’s experience working with a premium international automotive brand illustrates how global brands sometimes prioritize impressive-looking influencer metrics over campaign objectives and actual audience relevance. For this project, the campaign’s objective was to grow the brand’s local social media page.
Despite our recommendation to consider alternative creators who are better aligned with the local audience, the global marketing team insisted on selecting a macro-influencer with over 250,000 followers and a visually attractive profile. The result: just five new followers.
Using local expertise only for execution
Linked to the first point, using local experts purely to adapt or distribute global campaigns is another mistake we often see. Instead, they should help shape strategic and creative decisions before campaigns become difficult or expensive to change.
Case in point is our direct experience with a global beverage brand. The brand developed an international campaign featuring a famous football player as the central element.
However, the licensing agreement excluded Armenia and some other countries. As a result, the local team wasn’t permitted to use the campaign’s main creative assets.
This oversight significantly limited our creative options and we couldn’t fully bring the original campaign concept to life in Armenia. This problem could’ve been identified earlier, if the local market requirements were considered when the global campaign was planned and the local teams involved prior to the execution stage.
Applying global benchmarks to local performance
Finally, when evaluating the performance of a campaign in a smaller market, a brand must use the right metrics. Rather than setting targets for reach, acquisition or conversion rates based on international campaigns, a global marketing team should use performance metrics that reflect not only the market size but also the local consumer habits and digital maturity.
Failing to do so can lead a brand to underestimate what constitutes good performance. What’s dismissed as a small result for a global campaign can represent significant market penetration in a local market.
It can also push the execution team toward targets that don’t make business sense locally, as our work for an international quick-service restaurant brand shows. The brand wanted to drive online orders and purchases via its mobile app, following its global digital strategy.
However, the Armenian market was at a different stage of digital adoption and customers weren’t yet as accustomed to ordering online or through a mobile app. This meant that applying the same expectations for digital orders and app adoption in more mature markets wasn’t realistic.
This is why entering a smaller market really requires local expertise from the beginning to the end of the journey. The most valuable step a global brand can take when it enters a new market is to listen to the people who know it best. This means choosing partners for their local knowledge rather than their network name and involving them before the plans are finalized.
Key Takeaways
- Don’t assume a network affiliate is a local expert; quality and market knowledge vary widely.
- Bring local teams in during planning, not just execution.
- Judge local campaigns against local benchmarks, since a “small” result globally can be significant market penetration in a smaller market.
Global brands love a proven playbook. When they enter a smaller market, the temptation is to run it again but at a smaller scale. However, a smaller market isn’t an easier one, and strategies that work in large countries can fall apart when they meet different buying habits. After years of helping international brands launch in Armenia, I’ve seen global brands make the same assumptions, and each one is avoidable.
Relying on affiliates rather than local experts
Hiring, as any business owner knows, is a pain. So, it’s understandable that a large global company looking to enter a smaller market might default to international affiliates already within its network. This approach, however, isn’t always the best.
The problem comes in when you assume that the reputation and expertise of a globally recognized agency network automatically extends to every local affiliate operating under its name. In reality, the quality, capabilities and strategic expertise of local affiliates can vary significantly.