Early in the global learning curve

Zia Daniell Wigder | August 15, 2008, 02:11 PM

As I’ve dived into research and interviews for both the global online video and online advertising campaigns reports, one overarching theme that’s emerged is how early companies are in the learning curve in both areas. To date, for example, very few companies are creating professional online video that transcends borders - some B2B companies being notable exceptions. Online video technology providers are beefing up their international offerings in anticipation of a coming wave of interest, yet few companies have taken them up on their promise to help localize and expand the audience for online videos.

Likewise, when it comes to global online advertising campaigns, it’s tempting during these Beijing-focused weeks to assume that advertisers have mastered the planning and execution of international campaigns. To the contrary, most online advertisers have focused on tackling one region of the world rather than a truly global campaign, and have taken cautious steps even in that one region. Language translation is widespread, but localization is not: online campaigns still tend to be based on a core idea developed centrally rather than one that can be easily adapted to take advantage of nuances in different international markets. And integration with offline campaigns remains a core challenge, especially when different channels are used in each market and success metrics can vary within the same channel.

While clearly some market leaders have bucked these trends, (as well as some smaller ones highlighted in the reports), creating global online campaigns remains far from a streamlined process. Our report will look at how advertisers and agencies have worked through the complex issues associated with global campaigns, and highlight some of the more innovative online campaigns that have emerged as a result. Stay tuned.