If you’re looking to enter new overseas markets, a basic understanding of that country’s language, culture and national identity are the bare minimum requirements for success; a service that the right commercial voice over agency can provide.

In fact, according to a study by the Pew Research Center, language is seen as the most important identifier to national identity by far, with majorities across 14 countries saying that it’s very important to speak a country’s language to be considered a true member of the nation.

Reaching global markets is becoming more vital for companies of all sizes. Want to communicate across any border using translation and voice over talent? Read our blog: How can a voice over agency help to improve your global marketing?

Over 80% of Dutch, British, Hungarians and Germans say knowing and communicating in their own language is very important to their perception of national identity. Strikingly, though Canadians and Italians polled it as it being less important, approximately 60% still made a strong connection between language and national identity.

For brands looking to go global and reach new markets, a commercial voice over that’s fluent in the target market’s language is critical to success.

The incredible impact of a multilingual commercial voice over

To be truly American it’s very important to be able to speak English, according to 70% of Americans. With so much weight globally attributed to language and identity, why do so many brands still get it wrong with their marketing materials, strategies and the voice over they choose to use?

One of the better examples of failing to understand a market is British supermarket chain Tesco, who believed it could easily crack the billion-dollar Chinese market with its Clubcard loyalty scheme. What Tesco’s team hadn’t accounted for (amongst other things) is that consumers’ shopping behavior in China is vastly different from how they do it in the UK.

Dreadful localization efforts played a major part in Tesco’s failure in China – something that could have flourished if there was a better understanding of the market. Perhaps Tesco could have marketed itself differently with a culturally-significant advertising strategy overlaid with a strong, local voice over and had a much more positive result.

Partnering with a professional voice over agency which specializes in translation and has access to voice artists who understand the needs of specific cultures, would’ve eliminated the problem entirely.

Voice over localization is a strategic winner

In fairness to Tesco, they’re not the only company struggling to implement a global localization strategy. According to research by CMO Council and HH Global, more than two-thirds of senior marketing executives say their capacity to translate and adapt international brand marketing content was below satisfactory.

Nearly half of respondents also said that they spend less than 5% of their marketing budget on creative adaptation and cross-cultural localization. With the world enjoying more digital communication channels than ever before, there has never been a better opportunity for brands to go global and reach out to new markets using localized voice over.

That’ll be much harder and more expensive in the long-term, though, if they’re not proactive with their marketing materials and their overall communications strategy. It’s important to consider, early on, how marketing materials can utilize audio to take audience impact to the next level. 

Working with a commerical voice over agency that has access to over 1,500 trained, energetic and passionate voice artists fluent in more than 75 languages can not only help brands better communicate with and enter foreign markets, but can also help with localizing existing content for new markets – more cost-effective than commissioning new campaigns from scratch.

As well as access to trained, professional, multilingual voice actors, Voice Talent Online is able to perform multistep localization QA reviews and services to help brands better engage with new audiences and communicate with them on an entirely new level.

Reaching global markets is becoming more vital for companies of all sizes. Want to communicate across any border using translation and voice over talent? Read our blog: How can a voice over agency help to improve your global marketing?