Localization: A Crucial Step in GTM Strategy

What is a localization MVP team?

Your localization MVP team is a group of people who'll carry out your localization GTM strategy. There are several options to choose from, each with pros and cons:

• Asking someone to translate in-house. In-house translators have detailed knowledge of your company and product. But they may only have expertise in a few languages and lack localization experience.
  
  
• Using machine translation software. This is a cost-effective option that’s much faster than manual translation. It's great for simple text like product descriptions but can struggle to accurately translate complex text. If you use this option, be sure to review the results.
  
  
• Hiring a localization professional or team. These professionals have hands-on localization experience and expertise. This is a more expensive option, though, and you’ll have to train them in your brand voice and terminology.
  
  
• Using an LSP or external party. This is the best option for multiple languages and specialized content. LSPs draw on a large pool of translators and localization experts, so have a short turnaround. The downside is the cost and the lack of intimate brand knowledge. 

Avoiding embarrassing mistakes 

To avoid mistakes, you need to use localization testing and quality assurance before going to market. QA ensures your product works as expected and your localized content is up to scratch.

The tests you’ll need to run vary depending on your product and target market. But, at the very least, you need to ensure your product works in terms of:

• Placeholders, strings, and concatenations
• Compatibility with local hardware and software
• Load times and responsiveness
• Cultural appropriateness of colors and images
• UX and the customer journey
• Currency and pricing structure
• Date and time formats
• Linguistic correctness, fluency, and context
• Compliance with local regulations

Automated testing can significantly speed up the testing process, freeing up time and resources for other tasks.

Building a product plan: how do I grow my localized product or service? 

To launch and promote your localized product or service, you need to build a product plan. A product plan for a localization GTM strategy has three main stages: Analysis, Decision, and Execution.

At the ‘Analysis’ stage, your aim is to gather all the information you need to localize. That means you need to:

• Define your goals and objectives
• Research your target market and audience
• Analyze your competitors
• Examine your resources (like budget and team) to establish a timeline

At the ‘Decision’ stage, use the information you gathered to decide the best course of action. Specifically, you need to decide which markets to target and what resources to use (including what will be done internally, and what will be outsourced). You also need to define your KPIs and determine how to monitor and update your strategy.

Finally, the ‘Execution’ stage is when you establish a clear roadmap and assign roles and responsibilities. Then, you’re ready to take your localized product to market.

Beyond go-to-market

Once you’ve launched your localization MVP, you need to measure the results based on the KPIs you’ve set. Common KPIs are sales, email signups, website traffic, and social media engagement.

It can be beneficial to break down your KPIs into quarterly or monthly targets. For example, you could set a target of increasing sales by 5% each month and then measure the results.       

You should also conduct localization testing to see how well your product is working in the new market. You can then fix any issues and tweak your strategy before the main launch.

What is a go-to-market strategy?

To recap, you use a go-to-market strategy to launch and promote a new product, service, or feature.

Every go-to-market plan is different, but they all involve identifying your target audience's pain points and how your product can solve them. They also detail how you'll market your new offering in the competitive landscape.

When is a GTM strategy needed?

You need a go-to-market strategy every time you launch a new product or service in a new (or existing) market. 

Having a GTM strategy ensures you’re targeting the right audience on the right channels in the most effective way. It also ensures your potential customers understand the value of your product or service in solving their pain points.

While a GTM strategy doesn’t guarantee a product’s adoption, it reduces risk and gives you the best chance of success.

The benefits of product localization

By localizing your GTM strategy, you’ll answer key questions about your target market, such as:

• Who are they?
• What are their pain points?
• How can you best reach them?

Answering these questions will help you better target local audiences. 

If you localize from the beginning, you can get your product to market faster. You won’t have to make last-minute changes, and each new market will need less work as you’ll have a localization framework in place.

Plus, by localizing, you can attract customers who don’t speak English. You’ll also retain customers for longer, as they’ll feel more connected to you than if you simply run your content through a translator. This will in turn boost your revenue.