Localisation Strategy: Advantages & Disadvantages (Updated for 2025)

Article updated October 2024

A localisation strategy brings many advantages and disadvantages for business growth in 2025 and beyond. Localisation is a tactical marketing approach that a business takes to differentiate between certain customer behaviours, purchasing habits and overall cultural differences in each country they operate. 

When an organisation enters a foreign market, they may face certain challenges they would not experience in other countries. By developing a localised marketing strategy for each country (or even city) they function in, they’re ensuring they can provide the same level of service the customer expects from local businesses. This removes any sense of alienation a customer may feel and cuts through any cultural barriers that may unintentionally come to the surface. 

Before we dive into the advantages and disadvantages of using a localisation strategy for business growth, let's take a look at what goes into creating a localisation strategy.

What makes up a localisation strategy in 2025 and beyond?

There are a variety of elements that make up a strong localisation strategy, and these include:

1. Web marketing:

• Some audiences may prefer mobile browsing while others prefer desktop, and this could impact your web design and development strategy. 
• High-quality content marketing is vital, and AI-enhanced local SEO and content translation fills the potential engagement gap between a business and its audience. Over 50% of marketers are already using AI as part of their daily work to address similar challenges.
• Domain structure consistency is important to maintaining a strong global brand presence.

2. Purchasing preferences:

• Purchasing behaviour varies in each country and should be based on local buying preferences, payment options and, of course, currency.
• Some countries prefer to use credit cards as a payment method, while others prefer different payment gateways.

3. Be part of the community:

• Stay abreast of current events and assist communities in times of need.
• Seek out days of importance and put these in your social media strategy.
• Help the community in a way that is genuine.

4. Localised apps for mobile audiences:

• Of course, translated content for your website is a big focus of a localisation strategy, but you need to focus on creating unique content for mobile devices and apps, too.
• Creating localised apps can be a plus as they offer a unique opportunity for business growth. In fact, app development is especially important in markets where mobile growth is on the rise - such as Africa and the Middle East.

5. Social media

• Make sure to keep up with social networking trends in individual markets.
• Social channels such as Facebook and Twitter may be popular on a global scale, but local networks and usage trends should be used where appropriate. 
• An example of this is in Saudi Arabia, where, alongside more renowned social networking sites, the popularity of IMO chat should be considered. If a business wants to succeed in the Saudi Market, it will need to build a presence on this network. 
• Essentially, find out where your target audience in the country is mostly located online - and develop a social presence where they are.

6. Technical components:

• We have mentioned content translation, but localisation is more complex than simple translation. There are technical and nuanced components in language that need to be considered when putting together localised website and social media content.
• Other aspects of your digital marketing that need to be considered include website layout, design and even font size.  AI can assist in automating these adjustments, making the localisation process more efficient. 
• All the information and content you present on your social media channels and website needs to be presented in a way that feels natural and familiar to the specific market. 

The above are just a few parts of a localisation strategy for business growth. In 2025, having a specific brand identity is no longer enough. You need to speak to your audience like you know them and can relate to them - no matter where they are in the world.

This means that your business can no longer send the exact same campaign to every region or country in which it operates. In fact, a survey conducted by Common Sense Advisory found that 87% of European consumers won’t make a purchase from an English-only website. 

With the above in mind, you may think that this means you will have to create separate online collateral for every region you operate within, but this is not the case. The best brands are using AI to launch localised campaigns, and this transformative innovation is simplifying the process.

But is a localisation strategy viable for business growth? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of creating a localised strategy for business growth.

The advantages of a localisation strategy in your marketing for business growth in 2025

Relevance builds trust

As mentioned, language can be a huge barrier between your brand and its audience. If you fail to run marketing campaigns in your customers' mother tongue, you are alienating them from your brand. Powerful marketing campaigns also go deeper than regional language and should be based on cultural norms and relevant topics. This is why you need to embrace technology that gives your local teams the ability to create regional adaptations of campaigns - within the global brand guidelines, of course. 

By allowing marketers to make regional changes for local customers, you are making your brand relevant, building trust and, ultimately, driving more sales - helping you grow your business better.

AI, relevance, and trust increase value

HubSpot recently conducted a study in which 85% of business leaders stated that they believe AI will transform the experience customers get from their businesses. AI democratises the ability to provide personalised content to customers as opposed to a one-size-fits-all campaign. Previous studies have shown this approach to yield better conversion rates and a more positive overall custom experience.

This speaks to the value that is added via relevance. Relevant content drives a greater response from your local customers and builds trust - therefore increasing the value of your business on a global scale. 

To accomplish this, you can invest in a content distribution platform that allows your marketing team to instantly access campaign templates for each location. AI and digitisation play a crucial role in a localisation strategy as it makes the process simpler, more effective and more efficient. 

The disadvantages of a localisation strategy in your marketing 

Mistakes matter

Localisation marketing cannot be done half-heartedly. If you make a mistake, be it on the basis of culture or language, it can have a negative impact on your brand. In an ideal world, every business would be able to produce content that is relevant to audiences in each region, however, this can be a challenge. 

Therefore, in order to avoid creating campaigns that can fall short of the mark, you need to look for a distribution or content platform that can help ensure regional customisation without compromising the integrity of your brand. This means you should work with a team and/or platform that can approve processes so that every bit of content is created to a high standard. 

Technology meets teamwork

We keep reiterating that a content platform is vital for the success of a localisation strategy; however, this cannot exist without a team of local experts or local marketers. What these platforms can do, however, is help you run a tighter, more streamlined operation, which saves you time and money. 

This platform should be made available to your marketing teams, ensuring hands-on involvement and elevating your investment in the long run. 

The wrap-up: localisation marketing is a must in 2025 and beyond

In today's hyper-personalised consumer world, the advantages of creating a localised strategy far outweigh the disadvantages. But, without the right technology and the right team, your local strategy can quickly go off-brand, which can result in severe consequences. 

If you want to use localisation as part of your business growth strategy, you need to invest in AI and other digital transformation tools, and ensure you have a strong team in place to launch well-coordinated campaigns. 

With this approach, you can be sure that your campaigns will be relevant, build trust and improve your bottom line - all while remaining in line with your brand identity. 

If you are looking to localise your business strategy in 2025, contact NEXA today. Our team of experts will ensure that your localised campaigns are designed and optimised for business growth.