Need to Skim? Key Takeaways:
- Global brand consistency makes it so that no matter where in the world customers are engaging with your brand, they experience the same core values, voice, elements, and messaging.
- 46% of U.S. consumers prefer to pay a higher price for a brand they trust. To earn and build on that trust, global brand consistency is a must-have.
- Strengthen brand consistency by clearly defining your brand values, prioritizing standardization, and empowering regional teams or local partners that can adapt marketing to cultural nuances.
- Sneaky costs and miscommunication are common challenges, but international partners (like Imprint Engine) can minimize costs and keep you from having to communicate with foreign customs and international regulations officers altogether.
Table of Contents
One thing every successful global company has in common is global brand consistency. To be recognizable worldwide, your brand needs to establish a streamlined process in accordance to every region or country you’re in for how you produce, distribute, and manage your marketing and products.
Imprint Engine executes digital and tangible brand experiences for enterprises all over the world, so we know a thing or two about maintaining global brand consistency. Read our list of 6 key elements for effective global account management.
What is Global Brand Consistency?
Global brand consistency means your brand maintains a unified and consistent image across all markets and channels. This includes both your physical and digital marketing. It makes it so that no matter where in the world customers are engaging with your brand, they experience the same core values, voice, elements, and messaging.
Why is Global Brand Consistency Important?
46% of U.S. consumers prefer to pay a higher price for a brand they trust. To earn and build on that trust, global brand consistency is a must-have. You want customers to recognize your brand for its messaging and elements, even if this requires minor tweaks based on cultural or regional preferences and idiosyncrasies.
How to Strengthen your Global Brand Consistency
Now let’s run through 6 best practices for building, strengthening, and maintaining your global brand consistency.
Define and Embody Your Brand Values Across Borders
Your brand values should resonate with people of all backgrounds. Define, embody, and align your brand values across borders using a messaging strategy that builds loyalty. Any inconsistent messages about your values will lead to distrust and a lack of credibility.
Balance Global Standards and Localization
We achieve true global brand consistency through our local presence in global markets. Our “secret sauce” is having local systems and support in North America, Europe, and APAC so that our centralized team can source, produce, and ship products locally while maintaining a high standard for brand consistency.
Read more about our global operations.
Adapt Marketing to Cultural Nuances
Localizing your messaging and customer service requires more than just language translations. Global markets come with cultural nuances that may require different narratives or approaches. Of course, your visual branding should stay consistent, but localizing your message goes a long way.
Foster Diversity & Inclusion in Every Market
Translation is important, but there is so much more to understanding new regions than simply interpreting messaging to their native language. Fostering inclusion by hiring diverse teams always leads to greater cultural insights and more innovative ideas.
Leverage Partnerships
Finding local partners in global markets will help you better adapt your messaging or service approach to each market. Local partners can also expand your business with more credibility in their region. It’s important that your partners understand and share your values so they can amplify your brand with consistency and scalability.
Empower Regional Teams
It can be challenging to truly connect with regional teams from around the globe. Encouraging collaboration and team bonding, establishing clear brand guidelines, and keeping an open line of communication for pivots and feedback are great ways to empower regional teams and make them feel part of the organization from anywhere. Thankfully, today’s remote and hybrid work landscape is paved with tools and ideas for keeping teams connected regardless of location.
Read about the global team building initiatives we’ve adopted at Imprint Engine.
Overcoming Challenges in Global Brand Consistency
Achieving global brand consistency comes with many challenges. For starters, every country in the world has its unique set of rules, regulations, and communication and shipping standards, not to mention the hidden costs that seem to pop up right as your budget is bursting at the seams.
Sneaky costs and miscommunications are common challenges, but international shipping partners (like us) can minimize costs and keep you from having to communicate with foreign customs and international touchpoints altogether. Read more about the hidden costs of global distribution.
Partner with Someone Who Gets It
Maintaining global brand consistency requires aligning brand elements and empowering teams that can adapt your brand for local markets. For our clients launching global brand experiences, we get to know their brand as though it’s our own. From there, our global team is able to produce, distribute, market, and project manage in any region necessary.
Having a partner like Imprint Engine that’s already equipped with the tools for global success is the best way to save time and money, avoid loads of logistical headaches, and maintain brand consistency.
Chat with our team today. We get it.
We can’t wait to connect with you.