Are Your Services Unfair to Your Global Customers? |
Posted: March 28, 2017 |
In today’s globalized economy, business need to be concerned about more than just their local customers. Businesses who offer online services such as content streaming need to be particularly watchful of how they treat their foreign consumers. Even online retailers are taking more care in targeting communities around the world. The top companies in the world have been steadily implementing plans to reach wider audiences, and their efforts are paying off. Amazon, the leading retailer in the U.S. and abroad, has already reached over $100 billion in sales in a single year, and that number is only going to increase. Their efforts to reach foreign consumers, including catering to Chinese shoppers by selling more Japanese products, are intentional and well planned.Any business looking for success would be wise to do some research on how they too can cater to foreign groups and widen their customer base. Facebook has proven to be successful on the world market as well. Over 300 million are using Facebook throughout Europe, over 200 million in South America, and nearly 150 million in Africa, contributing to a total of almost 2 billion active users worldwide. Facebook makes it convenient for users across cultures to share and view information on its network. Automatic translation features and suggested friends and groups make it easy to stay engaged, no matter what language the user speaks. However, not everyone is so focused on their global consumers. Websites such as Netflix and Hulu offer exclusive content to their American customers, leaving the rest of the world with minimal to no access to their services. Foreign users of these websites are forced to use VPNs to access content granted solely to U.S. based viewers, making it anything but convenient for the global community. Netflix offers some services to people around the word at a reduced quality. However, the value of Netflix Australia, for example, does not compare to Netflix USA because its missing hit shows like Breaking Bad and Sons of Anarchy and hundreds of other popular titles. The company attempted to block Australians using VPNs to access USA content, but users quickly found a way around the proxy error. While Netflix and Hulu boast high revenues, their numbers could be much higher if they took their wider audience into more consideration. What You Can Do 1. Don’t restrict your website or services to U.S. locations only. Many websites don’t make their content or services available outside of the U.S., severely limiting sales and frustrating potential customers. Aside from excluding natives of foreign countries, you also restrict your U.S. users abroad from accessing your business when you do this. Turing away people who wish to visit your page and buy your products will quickly give an unfavorable impression that could last forever. 2. Study your top competitors in each targeted market. Different regions will have different needs, depending on what’s already being offered to them. Some customers will respond to a lower price while others will respond to convenience or variety. Keep this in mind when marketing to different regions of the world. 3. Look for underserved market segments. Look for neglected market segments that need what you can offer and plan a marketing campaign to attract them. Competing with established competitors may be too risky for you, and going where no one else is looking will give you more ideal results.
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