China is a huge market with great opportunities for global businesses to increase revenues. It is the world's second-largest economy and most populous country worldwide. It will be a huge breakthrough for your brand if you actually make your place in this market. However, the Chinese market is not very easy to capture because of political factors and intense competition.
You have to be very mindful of various factors while localizing your brand for the Chinese market. Make sure you have the best translation project management system and professional linguists. In this post, you will get to know about some important aspects of Chinese markets that would help you effectively go about the whole localization process.
What Should You Know While Localizing for the Chinese Market?
If you are considering entering the Chinese market, you are better ready for the challenges you will face throughout your localization journey. Here are some important points to notice before making your localization strategy.
There Is a Huge Language Barrier
Language could be your biggest challenge while entering the Chinese market because Chinese people rarely recognize English. So, you must have professional linguists and a TMS translation tool in place to generate quick Chinese translations for your brand's content.
Your Chinese customers are totally indifferent to the western world and are not very much into pop culture. So, you may need to change the names, slogans, and whole feel of your brand. Using the reference to pop culture might not be a good idea while doing Chinese translations. Moreover, also consider the formality of tones to deliver the right emotions through your brand message.
Beware of the Diversity of Dialects and Writing Systems
The Chinese language is more complex than you think. There are multiple variations of the Chinese language that sometimes make it hard for companies to find a standard way of translating the content. In addition, the Chinese use different dialects and writing styles throughout the region.
So, you have to be very particular about the dialect and writing style of that specific region you want to target. Mandarin Chinese is the state's official language, and the official writing system is simplified Chinese. Although, the traditional Chinese writing system is more in practice. So, you must be careful about the Chinese language intricacies while doing professional translations. You can do multiple versions of translation for different regions and manage it all through a translation project management system.
Culture Is an Important Thing to Consider
China has a very rich and unique culture, so any brand wanting to enter the Chinese market should understand its cultural sensitivities and social values. The cultural resonance of your product makes it more trustworthy to potential customers because they get an instant sense of belonging to your brand. When your brand embraces the local culture and respects the social values of people, it will go a long way to building your credibility in the market.
For instance, PUBG was first released in China; it faced a major backlash because of the violence it promotes. Now, after the localization of the game to Chinese socialist core values, PUBG has the highest user base in the Chinese market.
Consider The Legal Factors
China's political factors and trade policies also play a major role in how well a specific brand performs in the market. China, a people's republic, and its government have been making some rapid and unsettling changes to the policies that might affect foreign businesses and trading.
So, if you want to try your luck in this market, you have to be ready for uncertainties. Your long-term business and marketing strategies might not go as you have planned. Moreover, unlike other democratic countries, your brand should not offend the interests of the communist party or any leaders. Otherwise, you will get banned.
Use Local Web and Social Media Platforms
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are not active in the Chinese market. For whatever good or bad reasons, the Chinese government doesn't want the public to have any exposure to the world's opinions. They have their own social media platform and web for networking and trading purposes.
So, you must leverage their local technology and platforms to promote and market your products and services. Moreover, you have to do your SEO separately for Chinese search engines. Around 70% of Chinese customers use Baidu as their default search engine. You better improve your SEO ranking on Baidu to enhance your brand visibility. You may need to conduct detailed market research to figure out where your potential customers are and how they spend time online.
Conclusion
Understanding the Chinese market would make your localization processes much easier and hassle-free. Make sure to follow the guidelines in this article to effectively manage your localization project for the Chinese market. In addition, you should have a reliable TMS translation tool in place to manage extensive language translation throughout the region.
