Digital Marketing

Real-World Scenarios: Why Multi-Market Expertise Outperforms One-Size-Fits-All Models

jpressman — Fri, 20 Dec 2024 18:00:48 +0000

Real-World Scenarios: Why Multi-Market Expertise Outperforms One-Size-Fits-All Models jpressman Fri, 12/20/2024 - 13:00

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Expanding into new markets isn’t just about reaching more people—it’s about connecting with them. Understanding regional and cultural nuances helps brands speak to local audiences in ways that feel authentic and relevant. Without that expertise, even well-intentioned campaigns can miss the mark. The following real-world scenarios and case studies highlight how tailored, multi-market approaches deliver stronger results than one-size-fits-all strategies:

Scenario 1: A Global Product Launch in Diverse Markets

Challenge: A cosmetics brand aimed to launch a new skincare line in North America, Europe, and Asia. The campaign initially centered on "anti-aging" —a term widely accepted in Western markets but considered offensive in parts of Asia.
Solution: Partnering with a multi-market agency specializing in cultural insights, the brand tailored its messaging for each region. In Asia, the focus shifted to "skin health and rejuvenation," better aligning with local preferences.
Result: The product experienced a 35% higher adoption rate in Asia compared to previous launches and avoided backlash that could have damaged the brand’s reputation.

Case Study: Coca-Cola’s Regional Social Media Strategy

Client: Coca-Cola
Problem: Generic global content struggled to engage audiences in Latin America and Europe, leaving the brand’s social media underperforming in these key regions.
Approach:
- Leveraged ��ɫ Digital’s cultural and linguistic expertise to create region-specific campaigns.
- Developed a Spanish-language series celebrating Latin American heritage and a European-focused campaign tied to football sponsorships.
Outcome:
- 47% increase in engagement rates across Latin America.
- 60% growth in social media followers during the European football season.

Scenario 2: Crisis Management Across Multilingual Markets

Challenge: A pharmaceutical company faced reports of adverse reactions in France, Germany, and Brazil, sparking public concern and misinformation. A generic, one-size-fits-all response could have risked mistranslations, further compounding local fears..
Solution: The company partnered with a multi-market specialist to craft culturally nuanced press releases and social media responses in French, German, and Portuguese, aligning with local healthcare narratives and regulations.
Result: Trust was quickly restored, reputational damage was minimized, and potential lawsuits were avoided.

Case Study: Airbnb’s Localization Strategy

Client: Airbnb
Problem: Adoption of the platform was slow in Japan and South Korea due to mistrust and cultural differences around personal space and hosting etiquette.
Approach:
- Developed onboarding materials in Japanese and Korean that addressed cultural norms and expectations.
- Conducted region-specific workshops to help potential hosts navigate the nuances of local hospitality practices.
Outcome: Airbnb achieved a 75% year-over-year increase in listings and saw improved user ratings in both markets.

Scenario 3: E-Commerce Adaptation for Regional Shopping Behaviors

Challenge: A global fashion retailer launched its online store with a single, standardized checkout process. However, sales lagged in key markets like China—where mobile-first payments dominate—and Germany, where installment plans are a preferred payment option.
Solution: The retailer partnered with a multi-market agency to integrate Alipay and WeChat Pay for the Chinese market and optimized payment plans tailored to German consumers.
Result: Sales increased by 200% in China and 150% in Germany within six months.

Key Takeaways

Cultural Sensitivity Prevents Missteps: Multi-market expertise helps brands connect authentically by aligning messaging and strategies with local expectations.
Localization Drives Results: Tailored campaigns that reflect local habits and trends consistently outperform generic, one-size-fits-all approaches.
Agility Accelerates Success: Engaging with multi-market specialists allows businesses to respond swiftly and effectively to unique challenges or market shifts.

By partnering with ��ɫ Digital, you can confidently navigate the complexities of global markets with precision and cultural expertise. We’re here to help brands adapt quickly to diverse market needs and achieve measurable results.

Let’s Chat!

By The ��ɫ Digital Team

Global Business

Digital Marketing

The New Frontier: Specialized Agencies in a Consolidated World

jpressman — Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:53:02 +0000

The New Frontier: Specialized Agencies in a Consolidated World jpressman Wed, 12/18/2024 - 12:53

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The advertising landscape is undergoing a seismic shift with the recent merger of Omnicom Group and Interpublic Group (IPG), creating the world’s largest advertising entity. This union is reshaping how brands approach global campaigns, data-driven strategies, and creative execution. As the industry trends toward larger, consolidated agencies, specialized firms like ��ɫ Digital offer unique advantages in agility, global expertise, and tailored services.

We’ll outline why partnering with ��ɫ Digital positions you for success in the post-merger landscape.

The Impact of Consolidation

The Omnicom-IPG merger has introduced new dynamics into the market:

Mega-Agency Focus: Consolidated agencies prioritize their largest, most lucrative accounts, potentially leaving smaller or mid-sized clients underserved.
Operational Complexity: The integration of multiple agencies can lead to inefficiencies, slower decision-making, and a less personalized approach to client needs.
Global Competition: The merger aims to compete with tech giants like Google and Meta by emphasizing AI and data-driven advertising, creating pressure for clients to find specialized expertise in niche areas.

Why Specialized Agencies Matter

In a world dominated by mega-agencies, specialized firms offer critical advantages:

1. Agility and Personalization

��ɫ Digital thrives on delivering bespoke solutions tailored to each client. While large agencies may struggle with bureaucracy, we provide:

Faster turnaround times.
Personalized account management.
Flexible solutions that adapt to your needs.

2. Global Expertise

With over 30 years of experience in localization and international marketing, we help brands execute seamless global campaigns by:

Localizing content across over 200 languages.
Optimizing for international SEO and digital performance.
Streamlining workflows for multilingual content production.

3. Advanced Technology

As the Omnicom-IPG merger leans heavily on AI, ��ɫ Digital is already leading the way with:

AI-powered translation and content management tools.
Data-driven insights to optimize campaigns.
Scalable platforms to handle high-volume, multi-market content needs.

4. Independence and Focus

Without the complexities of a consolidated structure, ��ɫ Digital provides:

Unbiased, conflict-free services.
The ability to work seamlessly across agency ecosystems.
A focus on client success rather than internal politics.

The ��ɫ Digital Difference

Delivering value in a changing industry with:

Localization Expertise: We are the go-to partner for brands looking to resonate with diverse, global audiences.
Seamless Integration: Whether you’re working with in-house teams or multiple agencies, our tools and processes ensure smooth collaboration.
Data-Driven ROI: By combining advanced technology with global insights, we deliver measurable results that align with your business goals.

How to Navigate the New Frontier

Strategies for success in a consolidating industry:

Prioritize Specialized Partners: Work with agencies like ��ɫ Digital to fill gaps left by mega-agencies.
Leverage Technology: Invest in AI-powered tools for efficiency and scalability.
Focus on Personalization: Ensure your campaigns resonate with local audiences by partnering with experts in localization and cultural adaptation.
Stay Agile: Choose partners who can quickly adapt to shifting priorities and market conditions.

Next Steps

As the advertising world consolidates, the need for specialized expertise becomes more critical than ever. ��ɫ Digital is uniquely positioned to help clients navigate this new frontier with confidence.

Contact us today to learn how we can support your global campaigns with precision, agility, and measurable results.
Explore our AI-driven tools and solutions for scaling your marketing efforts globally.

By The ��ɫ Digital Team

Global Business

Digital Marketing

A Human Touch Helps Generative AI Hit the Mark

kgentile — Tue, 01 Aug 2023 18:32:17 +0000

A Human Touch Helps Generative AI Hit the Mark kgentile Tue, 08/01/2023 - 14:32

Blog

It’s a rookie writer’s misstep my wife and I still joke about 23 years later. Back then, we were cub reporters at the Sandusky Register newspaper in Ohio, assigned to cover the weekend Milan Melon Festival. I filed my story on Saturday, and she filed hers Sunday.

As prideful young writers, even a local street fair was going to get our best artistic write-up. So, we were more than a little embarrassed to discover we’d ended up writing the same lead to our different stories, each of which made the front page: “Rain didn’t dampen any spirits.” Some artistes we were, eh? Turning out identically lame clichés!

Fast-forward a couple of decades, and these grizzled writers have taken turns leading creative teams, overseeing editorial efforts, and serving as content coaches and safety nets for new waves of writers and their unwittingly problematic prose. In the digital world, that puts us on the front lines of unleashing a creative force seemingly more disruptive than any rookie reporters out to memorialize deep-fried Twinkies and festival queens.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion can whip up written and visual content on command. But the potential pitfalls are many, including inaccuracies, outright falsehoods, bias, and copyright infringement—not to mention a watered-down output that, while it may save time, does not exactly make for memorable or profitable content.

In a recent webinar, some of our TPT Digital team members working most closely with generative AI shared what they’ve learned so far—and how keeping a human hand in AI workflows has been key to improving output and carrying us closer to a more productive future.

Generative AI: What Is It? How Does It Work?

Fred Bane, Senior Manager of Data Science, admitted laughing at the results of AI-generated translations only a few years ago. As a trained linguist, he took pride in not only being able to say something in another language that conveyed the meaning of a source text but understanding enough about the subject and its context to deliver something ideally as nuanced as the original. Machine translation would comically miss that mark.

Until it didn’t.

Early AI models had the disadvantage of being new to the content they were emulating. By now, their training gains have been exponential—not just absorbing reams and reams of data but racking up repeated applications of the patterns they’ve learned into specific assignments and deliverables.

The data models that have been fed into AI solutions, like ChatGPT, are so vast that a mere prompt can get you other qualifier outputs. So, the focus of data scientists like Bane is on refining instructions to hone what AI delivers.

For example, a machine translation tool can be told to translate “cheese” from English to French. Adding examples of what you want to see come back, including coaching on tone, length, and style, will shape the response more beneficially.

Because generative AI can create content in a target language—without even the need for a source—Bane recognizes its evolving power to replace traditional translation workflows with native content creation. One drawback? AI does tend to make things up.

In one case, a popular home furnishings retailer needed to add product descriptions to its website pages. Fed information on the product catalog, ChatGPT dutifully came up with paragraphs about the items—including many attributes they did not, in fact, possess. But AI can’t think for you, Bane points out—it can often be just as much work honing clear instructions as producing copy yourself. You can’t achieve efficient, scalable AI until you’ve taken the time to run experiments: What works for certain applications? What doesn’t? And, how can the kinks be trained out of the process?

Smart Approaches to AI Content for Digital Marketing

Before recommending AI as a tool for clients, it’s important to understand a client’s goals for a project and weigh where generative AI can help, said Henry Barfoot-Saunt, Executive Director at TPT Digital.

Not all content is created for the same purpose. When quality is paramount, or strategy needs to lead the way, human copywriters might be the best bet. If it's quantity a client is after, and the text demands a workmanlike approach, AI—if properly trained and managed—could present an advantage. Breakthroughs in keyword research and suggested optimization could make AI an ideal SEO partner, but the final edit is still likely to be carried out by your flesh-and-blood specialists.

Barfoot-Saunt and Digital Account Manager Paul Carlier have put AI to the test on a pair of recent projects. In the first, creating blog content in Chinese for Taiwan, they relied on human expertise for keyword strategy and content optimization, but AI did the copywriting. In the second, AI generated content for product description pages in e-commerce while humans fed in the prompts and edited the output.

“We had to establish new workflows and comprehend the overall capabilities of the tool,” Carlier said. “We made adjustments on the fly, and the experience has been really exciting, especially when we discovered the right approach to achieve our goals.”

AI struggled, at least for now, with optimizing content with keywords and crafting meta content within strict character limits, Carlier noted. But part of the trial and error was seeing whether human editing time could be reduced to an acceptable level to make the AI effort worth it.

More and more clients are interested in raising the stakes—not just in text generation but pursuing AI-assisted projects for images and video. During our webinar, audience surveys revealed 60% of attendees were already actively testing or publishing AI-generated content while just 19% had yet to get started. Of the most popular industries testing AI capabilities, retail led the way at 43%, followed by media and entertainment, and travel and hospitality. Regulated industries like life sciences have been slower to adopt—so far.

The push for more content—and quality content—has Barfoot-Saunt convinced that AI will generate more jobs for digital teams, not fewer. Experienced writers now become the editors that are learning from, and teaching, the AI engines.

Carlier, a confessed early adopter, embraces that change.

“We’re still in the early stage with this technology, and its implementation will…(grant) us the opportunity to dedicate our focus to other areas that demand strategic thinking,” Carlier said. “I cannot predict the future, but I know we can all at least continue to follow the developments of these tools and keep experimenting.”

To learn more how you can better utilize digital marketing, visit www.tptdigital.com

By Colt Foutz

Sr. Director, Client ��ɫ, TPT Digital

DataForce & AI

Digital Marketing

International Search Summit

kgentile — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 16:35:23 +0000

International Search Summit kgentile Thu, 07/20/2023 - 12:35

Event

Digital Marketing

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel

kliniger — Mon, 19 Dec 2022 21:22:12 +0000

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel kliniger Mon, 12/19/2022 - 16:22

Blog

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel
An Off the Clock Podcast Special

What does your digital future look like? Or more importantly, what would you like it to look like? It’s not necessarily a question that can be answered in one take, yet one that should be on any company’s radar in this ever-changing digital world. TPT Digital’s Off the Clock podcast welcomed industry leader Laurent Ezekiel, an esteemed partner, client, and friend of ��ɫ, to discuss more in-depth the future of digital marketing, how a company like WPP positioned itself to win the work of The Coca-Cola Company, and approaches to managing brands globally.

To give some background, WPP is a British, multinational communications, advertising, public relations, technology, and commerce holding company headquartered in London, England. It is currently one of the largest agency-holding companies in the world thanks to the quality of its people and culture. From a capability perspective, the breadth, depth, and international nature are what has led to such success of acquiring a client like Coca-Cola, which was the largest agency win in history at $1B. Not to mention, it was one of the most global engagements with all marketing channels and media on scope.

WPP prides itself on the experience, creative work, media, data, technology, PR, design, and technology that has led it to manage the brands it has. Laurent says, “I think, given that we have all those capabilities at WPP and given that The Coca-Cola Company has engaged with us across those capabilities, we are putting together an integrated marketing planning process to make sure that we truly deliver on everything that we put out—for every creative charter, as we call it, that we put out.”

Serving as Chief Marketing and Growth Officer at WPP for the past three years, Laurent Ezekiel comes from an extensive digital background with over 20 years of experience in the field. Prior to WPP, he was the CEO of Digitas and spent 16 years affiliated with Publicis Groupe. Currently based in London, Laurent has a wide breadth of knowledge in the digital landscape and where he sees it going. Interested to hear his thoughts?

Tune in to his episode on TPT Digital’s official podcast, Off the Clock, as he takes a deep dive into how he won the Coca-Cola business and provides advice on the best approaches to lead your multi-platform business in the digital era.

Click here to get in touch with one of our experts to start your digital transformation experience today.

By: TPT Digital

Digital Marketing

Holiday Marketing: 3 Strategies for the Final Stretch

kliniger — Tue, 06 Dec 2022 22:50:44 +0000

Holiday Marketing: 3 Strategies for the Final Stretch kliniger Tue, 12/06/2022 - 17:50

Blog

The holidays in my house bring certain traditions you can hang your Santa hat on: matched stockings hanging by the fireplace, candlelit carol-singing, Mom’s Christmas morning sausage soufflé, and… my brother Dan and I engaging in a whirlwind, last-minute shopping spree.

We’re not procrastinators, per se. Just gift-givers of delayed inspiration. Prone to combing already-ravaged aisles for the left-behind, the deeply-discounted, and the giddily gaudy.

This is how our younger brothers and beleaguered parents ended up with canned hams, backpacking barstools, and Executive Stress Eliminators (complete with a “bombs-away” sound effect). But our jolly sprees have also yielded bounty that has kept our kids giggling and our wives smiling: a rain of pirate’s gold chocolate coins; bales of cozy, wearable blankets; and the last-in-stock, ultra-special LEGO Ninjago Robot (you have to know where to look).

As for digital marketers, you need not fear the passing of Black Friday or Cyber Monday—there’s still time to reach shoppers, even the most deadline-pressed. While publishing your holiday content 45 days in advance will help you harness 90% of online traffic, putting your program out there with just a week to spare still brings in 50% of that traffic.

Follow this short list, check it twice, and cue a hearty ho-ho-ho!

1. Prepare a Place for the Casual Shopper

Although 51% of shoppers say they go online planning a specific purchase, 49% admit they don’t know what they want until they see it. Of those intrepid searchers, 19% say their purchases are unplanned, and 30% are open to inspiration.

So, how do you reach those last-minute shoppers? What’s your holiday marketing strategy?

Create a specific section on your site for holiday shoppers that’s decked out in holiday imagery and themed content. Drive visits to it from search, social, display, and video channels.
Develop your holiday marketing campaigns around keywords that target customers looking for deals, last-minute ideas, and the like.
And make sure your site looks great on mobile—64% of holiday-buying happens on phones.

2. Roll Out the Promotions in Your Holiday Marketing Strategy

Why does 57% of holiday shopping happen online? Customers cite convenience (77%) and the option of free shipping (72%) most often.

In fact, 74% of shoppers say they buy online because they expect a great deal, and 40% say they choose online shopping because of easier access to promotions.

So make your value propositions clear to customers in your holiday marketing strategy.

Test placement of discount messaging up front in ad titles, description lines, calls-to-action, and callouts.
Make sure to remind shoppers about when deals start and end.
Let your shoppers know the last day to order for Christmas shipping.

3. Make Your Content Stand Out with Video

Did you know video content can increase traffic from search results by 157% and boost sales from your site by 80%?

The key is resourcefulness. The most useful videos to shoppers help answer questions about your products including how to set them up, how to use them, the most prominent features, and other frequently asked questions.

Videos are also the gift that keeps giving: tease them in links from social media and search, excerpt from them to create multiple days of content in organic posts, and anchor them on your website with full-text transcripts and article content, optimized for SEO.

Reach Shoppers, Now!

So don’t fear the holiday rush—harness it, and enjoy the ride into a bountiful new year!

If you would like to discuss more in depth holiday marketing campaigns for the 2022 and beyond, contact us here.

By: Colt Foutz Regional Director, TPT Digital Client ��ɫ

Retail & E‑Commerce

Digital Marketing

Retail & E-Commerce

The Digital Shelf: Why It’s So Important | TPT Digital

dmarra — Thu, 27 Oct 2022 19:27:49 +0000

The Digital Shelf: Why It’s So Important | TPT Digital dmarra Thu, 10/27/2022 - 15:27

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The Digital Shelf – Why It’s So Important

We all know what a store shelf is and why it exists, but have you ever thought about a digital shelf? So much of a consumer’s journey is online, and the process of shopping from discovery to purchase can be constant, non-linear, and random. Digital experiences are a key part of educating consumers about products and influencing what they buy. Whether they’re buying in a retail store or via an influencer’s online post, a shopper creates their own digital journey.

The digital shelf is how and where a brand’s product is displayed online and is the online equivalent of how someone shops in a brick-and-mortar store. To succeed with your digital shelf, you must manage the combination of all the digital touchpoints used by consumers to engage with brands, influence purchase decisions, and ultimately lead to buying a product.

Why Invest in the Digital Shelf?

The digital shelf is a very important part of any online retailer’s strategy. As mentioned before, the consumer digital journey now is non-linear, meaning that someone may visit multiple digital touchpoints before visiting a brick-and-mortar store or vice versa. They might see a product in-store and validate their purchase choice by doing their research online. By making sure that your business’s digital shelf is optimized for every step of the customer journey, you’re ensuring that you don’t miss out on customers because a competitor is doing it better.

With eCommerce capturing 14.3% of total U.S. retail sales in Q4 2021 and growing, we can see a huge business incentive to optimize for the digital shelf. Leading multinational companies are heavily investing in this space already, as evidenced by Coca-Cola’s 2021 plans to "accelerate its digital transformation journey” with a new digital hub based in Dublin to help support the execution and efficiency of its own digital shelf.

Best Practices for Winning on the Digital Shelf

To win on the digital shelf, there are five key points along the customer journey that you need to be aware of and have KPIs to measure in order to ensure success:

Availability: When an item is out of stock, brands can experience a weekly loss of up to 22% for each day an item is not available. Take measures to ensure product availability and identify stocking issues.
Findability: Paid search should be a top priority. Identify items that are currently unfindable, and benchmark your search performance against competitors.
Display execution: Content is king here. Making sure that content is both accurate and high-quality is one of the best ways to attract potential buyers to your product. Optimize keywords within titles and descriptions to bolster findability.
Value proposition: Pricing and promotions should be regularly monitored across your brands to ensure compliance. Take a look at your competitors to achieve a consistent, competitive edge.
Brand equity: Reviews and ratings should be top-of-mind, as this is where many customers go to finalize their buying choice. Optimize copy with user-generated keywords to help drive conversions.

How We Can Help You Win the Digital Shelf

Engaging consumers wherever they are is a key principle of the digital shelf, and this means making sure that your content is available to all markets in their preferred languages. It also requires keyword research in-language to be done from scratch to optimize search results.

We can optimize or create product content on marketplaces and retail websites to maximize sales and audit your competition to discover any opportunities. ��ɫ has all the resources required to make sure your brand and products are winning the digital shelf no matter what markets you’re targeting. Click here to get in touch with one of our experts to start your digital transformation experience today.

TPT Digital

Retail & E‑Commerce

Digital Marketing

Retail & E-Commerce

How to Choose the Best Social Media Channels for Your Business

kliniger — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 21:19:16 +0000

How to Choose the Best Social Media Channels for Your Business kliniger Thu, 10/06/2022 - 17:19

Blog

Not seeing the results you hoped for when launching your company’s social media platforms? Questioning why your content isn’t resonating with your audience? If this is the case, it might be due to the channels you’re are choosing and not the content. It’s important to look into the performance of your content to see what is and isn’t working, but for now, let’s focus on the channels.

Managing social media can be overwhelming and frustrating, but when used right, it’s proven to contribute to a company’s success—so much so that 78% of consumers are willing to buy from a company after having a positive experience with them on social. Increases in sales, brand recognition, and new markets/audiences can all be positive outcomes from a well-run social media program.

But how can you get there?

First, consolidate your efforts within one to three meaningful social media platforms until you have the capacity to scale to another platform. Let’s take a look at a few ways to choose the best social media channels for your business.

Determine Your Social Media Goals

What matters the most to your marketing on social media platforms: brand awareness, customer retention, more leads, content quality or something else? When thinking about your goals, try to factor in your team’s strengths; big teams divide and conquer at a faster pace, and in-house content creation allows you to save on outsourcing costs. Think of achievable goals with the current outlook of your team. This part is crucial in any social media strategy as it is the foundation from which you will grow. Without any goals, you might as well not present yourself on any platform.

A good example is what Wayfair has done with Instagram and its new features. Wayfair clearly defined its end goal on Instagram: to create a convenient, user-friendly way for its consumers to shop. If a user spots an item they like on Wayfair’s Instagram channel, within just a few clicks they can transition from browsing to buying.

These features have helped ramp up site visits, even when they were first introduced. Five percent of the consumers who arrived at Wayfair.com came from a social network, which is more than double the year previously.

Determine Your Target Customers

After you establish your goals, it’s then extremely important to understand your target audience. It’s great if you find a good channel for your company, but without the proper audience, it won’t go very far. Take the time to understand where your customers live on social media. Track their buying journey.

To put it into perspective, 4.70 billion people around the world now use social media, with 227 million new users online within the last 12 months. When you find your proper audience, your company’s content can make an astronomical impact.

A good example is Nike’s recent “Play for the World” campaign. Nike has demonstrated that it truly understands how to tap into the mood of its audience while simultaneously inspiring people through the power of sport. The campaign, which was rolled out across Nike’s social media channels, stressed the importance of social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic. Featuring both influencers and members of the public, the campaign was designed to reinforce the notion of togetherness. This is a prime example of Nike taking the time to understand its audience(s) to deliver content that would actually resonate and not be dismissed.

Run an Audit

According to weforum, the average American spends 2.25 hours per day on social media, and the average social media user worldwide spends 2.5 hours.

Your job is to find out which channels your customers are on. What other interests do your customers have? What are your target demographics? Are there any international markets worth exploring? These are the things you will need to know in order to align with your goals.

In addition to your research, find out which social media platforms do well in your industry. What channels are your competitors on? What are they doing well? What do you think they could be doing better?

The key here is to have data to back up your strategy. It’s one thing to just think you know what’s best, but it’s another to actually know.

If you would like to discuss your social media marketing strategy, contact our expert team today at tptdigital@transperfect.com.

By: Josh Lawas, TPT Digital Director, Strategic Accounts

Global Business

Digital Marketing

Prepare to Shop with Our Black Friday 2022 Predictions

kliniger — Tue, 20 Sep 2022 17:48:39 +0000

Prepare to Shop with Our Black Friday 2022 Predictions kliniger Tue, 09/20/2022 - 13:48

Blog

Black Friday 2022 is almost upon us—that infamous time after Thanksgiving when businesses offer deals on all kinds of consumer goods, from electronics to jewelry and clothing. Black Friday has caused quite a frenzy for shoppers, retailers, and security over the years. But have you ever wondered where the name came from?

The term “Black Friday” originated in Philadelphia in the 1950s. A huge number of shoppers would come to Philadelphia for the annual Army-Navy football game, which was played on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. On Friday, visitors flooded the shops, and police were called out to control overcrowding, deal with traffic jams, and catch shoplifters. In the 1980s, the term caught on nationally to represent the shopping spree for Christmas presents that took place the day after Thanksgiving.

Since the ‘80s, Black Friday has evolved from stores opening early on the Friday after Thanksgiving to opening on Thanksgiving evening, and the doors have continued to open earlier and earlier since then. Stores would battle it out with competing deals and “online doorbusters” to encourage the shopping frenzy.

And then in 2020, COVID-19 changed everything for Black Friday. Stores couldn’t encourage in-store events as they had to meet local health mandates, which prohibited large gatherings in the majority of the US. Businesses adapted by driving more online sales and extending their specials. These changes gave consumers more flexibility and, as a result, consumer spending increased. So what should we expect for Black Friday in 2022? Here are our predictions.

#1 Online Shopping Will Still Prevail

Gone are the days of abandoning the dinner table after the pumpkin pie is served to hit the stores. Many a Thanksgiving night used to be broken up as people planned and plotted which stores to hit to maximize their shopping dollars and avoid or beat the long lines. Bundled up to brave whatever weather they were facing, it was worth it for many to get a deal, despite the cold, crowds, and even fights over that last item. But COVID-19 brought a stop to the frenzied in-person shopping experience.

While some stores will have in-person events and sales in 2022, online shopping, including mobile shopping, will continue for several reasons. Mainly, consumers have gotten used to shopping online and are more aware of health risks. Additionally, AAA predicts travel will be up 13% from 2021, with estimates of 53 million Thanksgiving travelers. For people planning to travel to see friends and family, shopping online is a more convenient and safer experience that allows them to keep loved ones healthy and not miss out on the holiday fun.

So stay around the Thanksgiving table for another piece of pie and cup of coffee, enjoy your family and friends, and take advantage of online shopping.

#2 Online Shopping Deals Will Continue to Grow and Change

To adapt to post-pandemic shopping trends, stores will continue to focus on making things easier for consumers while also maximizing their sales. Some of these changes include offering deals as early as October and continuing through November, deals that last longer, and online specials. Plus, many of the specials that used to only be in stores are now online. With these changes, consumers can take advantage of deals comfortably and safely.

This trend was evident in Black Friday 2021 sales, which were down 1.3% on Black Friday itself and completely flat on Thanksgiving Day compared to 2020. However, consumers spent $109.8 billion in November 2021, which was up 11.9% from 2020. Vivek Pandya, a lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, stated, “Shoppers are being strategic in their gift shopping, buying much earlier in the season and being flexible about when they shop to make sure they get the best deals.”

This year, Walmart will continue “Black Friday Deals for Days,” a series of events held throughout November offering different deals on a variety of products. Walmart debuted this concept in 2020 instead of its typical in-store specials to provide a safer and more convenient shopping experience. In addition to the Black Friday events, Walmart will offer rollbacks on online and in-store products, and Walmart Plus members will have early access to deals.

In 2021, Amazon offered early Black Friday deals in November on everything from electronics and small household appliances to health and beauty supplies, toys, and more. They also had a 48-hour Black Friday event on November 25 and 26 that included thousands of deals from small and medium-sized companies, Black-owned businesses, independent artisans, and more. In addition, Amazon expanded their return policy on most items to January 31, 2022, to give consumers plenty of time to make changes if needed.

These are just some of the ways that businesses are adapting to accommodate Black Friday shoppers while still meeting financial goals.

#3 Supply Chain Issues Will Continue

Earlier and longer-lasting shopping deals offered by stores will hopefully help prevent some of the supply chain issues that have plagued businesses and consumers the last two years. From the domestic labor shortage to tight shipping containers to overseas factories plagues with COVID-19, some items may not make it in time for Christmas. Electronics, books, some toys, and even artificial Christmas trees were hard to come by in 2021 due to supply chain issues.

Consumers should shop early again this year, whether it’s online or in-person. And the specials that retailers are offering before Black Friday should help spur earlier shopping.

#4 More Shopping on Small Business Saturday

The 31.7 million small businesses in the US make up 99% of all businesses in the country. Unfortunately, many of them have been hard-hit by the pandemic and have had to lay people off, change their business structure, or shutter their doors.

Small Business Saturday, which is recognized on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, is a shopping day dedicated to supporting locally owned businesses, from restaurants, stores, and service-based businesses to online stores. So while this day happens after Black Friday, it’s considered part of the ongoing holiday sales and a very important part of the shopping season.

The good news is that there’s been widespread support for small businesses during these tough times. Despite the pandemic, consumers spent a record $23.3 billion on Small Business Saturday in 2021 compared to $19.8 billion in 2020. Pre-pandemic spending in 2019 was $19.6 billion. More than 83% of consumers say they are willing to pay a little extra to support a small, local business.

#5 Consumers Will Spend More Money

Black Friday 2022 spending will be up, but not by much. Things like inflation, recent natural disasters, and loss of income will be factors. People have been waiting for this time of year to see values and special deals, especially for things that they don’t normally purchase or upgrades on things like electronics. And with so many early deals, competition on deals, and online availability, people will have more choices.

Conclusion

Consumers should have a lot of options for shopping during the 2022 Black Friday season. With online shopping, earlier and longer sales, and new opportunities, more people will be able to sneak in their shopping this holiday season while still enjoying time with family and friends.

If you would like to discuss your digital strategy for the 2022 holiday and beyond, contact us here.

By: TPT Digital Retail Team

Retail & E‑Commerce

Digital Marketing

Retail & E-Commerce

10 Mind Blowing International SEO Statistics

kliniger — Mon, 29 Aug 2022 17:13:08 +0000

10 Mind Blowing International SEO Statistics kliniger Mon, 08/29/2022 - 13:13

Blog

In 2021, the need for search engine optimization (SEO) increased quickly. With businesses going virtual and moving content and sales online, SEO helped open an array of doors. Now, in 2022, SEO is at an all-time high, as even the most traditional businesses realize they need to accelerate their shift to digital.

As experts in the industry, the team at TPT Digital can tell you firsthand that SEO is the most viable and cost-effective way to both understand and reach customers in key moments. You probably know that already, but have you taken your SEO to the next level? SEO can certainly improve a website’s overall searchability and visibility, but what other real value does it offer?

See for yourself, as we share some of the most astonishing SEO statistics we’ve seen this year.

Your Voice Matters

Seventy-five percent of voice-enabled speaker owners use voice search weekly to find local companies near them, so it’s important to make sure your keywords align with voice search terms.
Local SEO can help businesses better reach people searching with their voice.
Mobile voice-related searches are three times more likely to be locally based than text.

Is Your Content Optimized?

SEO can increase the business value of a blog visit by 429%.
Seventy-two percent of online marketers describe content creation as their most effective SEO tactic.
Organic traffic from SEO is more than 1,000% higher than organic traffic from social media.
Pages with videos are 53% more likely to be displayed on page one of Google search results.

Traffic Sources

Seventy-five percent of website visitors never go beyond the first page of search results.
Sixty-one percent of B2B marketers stated that SEO and organic traffic generate more leads than any other marketing initiative.
Google currently has 92.47% of the search engine market.
EU search engine Startpage claims to be the world's most private search engine.
Baidu, the leading search engine for users in China, holds almost 15% of the global search engine market share, second to Google.

If you would like to discuss your SEO strategy and how we can help you take it global, contact us here.

Resources:

https://sphereagency.com/

https://webinarcare.com/best-seo-software/seo-statistics/

www.wordstream.com

www.forbes.com

www.theglobalstatistics.com/seo-google-mobile-statistics-facts/

www.statista.com

By: TPT Digital

Digital Marketing

Digital Marketing

Real-World Scenarios: Why Multi-Market Expertise Outperforms One-Size-Fits-All Models

Scenario 1: A Global Product Launch in Diverse Markets

Scenario 2: Crisis Management Across Multilingual Markets

Scenario 3: E-Commerce Adaptation for Regional Shopping Behaviors

Key Takeaways

The New Frontier: Specialized Agencies in a Consolidated World

The Impact of Consolidation

Why Specialized Agencies Matter

The ��ɫ Digital Difference

How to Navigate the New Frontier

Next Steps

A Human Touch Helps Generative AI Hit the Mark

Generative AI: What Is It? How Does It Work?

Smart Approaches to AI Content for Digital Marketing

International Search Summit

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel An Off the Clock Podcast Special

Holiday Marketing: 3 Strategies for the Final Stretch

1. Prepare a Place for the Casual Shopper

2. Roll Out the Promotions in Your Holiday Marketing Strategy

3. Make Your Content Stand Out with Video

Reach Shoppers, Now!

The Digital Shelf: Why It’s So Important | TPT Digital

Why Invest in the Digital Shelf?

Best Practices for Winning on the Digital Shelf

How We Can Help You Win the Digital Shelf

How to Choose the Best Social Media Channels for Your Business

Determine Your Social Media Goals

Determine Your Target Customers

Run an Audit

Prepare to Shop with Our Black Friday 2022 Predictions

#1 Online Shopping Will Still Prevail

#2 Online Shopping Deals Will Continue to Grow and Change

#3 Supply Chain Issues Will Continue

#4 More Shopping on Small Business Saturday

#5 Consumers Will Spend More Money

Conclusion

10 Mind Blowing International SEO Statistics

Your Voice Matters

Is Your Content Optimized?

Traffic Sources

Resources:

The Digital Future – with Laurent Ezekiel
An Off the Clock Podcast Special