Oxford defines ‘culture’ as “the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social groups.”
Every place on the planet has its own rules, customs, and flavor. In short, it is crucial to be mindful of those differences when thinking about branding if your business will be venturing into foreign markets. Even at home, any company will not be every person’s cup of tea, so making your branding as inclusive as possible will give you the highest chance of success.
That isn’t to say that you can’t have an ‘exclusive’ or ‘luxury’ vibe for your brand. The secret is to ensure that the exclusivity lies in price and feel, rather than blocking out a specific type of person, belief, or situation. On a broad spectrum, a brand’s message to everyone should be, “This is for you, but if it’s not your thing, that is okay too.”
With the United States being the melting pot of many diverse and beautiful cultures, it is vital to practice cultural sensitivity and awareness in all cases, never mind the country. Each state is different from the other, and there are multiple cultural groups within those states.
As a straightforward example, let’s say your company sells ramen noodles. According to Localize, the Japanese view slurping your noodles as a polite way to express that you are enjoying them, while the West sees slurping as rude. In this case, you might have a very different Instagram reel for each country, with slurping and non-slurping influencers!
Keep In Mind
Cultural sensitivity plays a crucial role when working in a market that is not your own. Knowing what values are essential to that new community market and what is culturally and, perhaps, economically relevant to the space you want to work in will help you connect faster and more authentically.
Cultural sensitivity is more important every single day. Many of us have experienced that awkward feeling when we see an advertisement that ‘addresses’ certain cultures ‘directly’ but does it completely wrong, thinking it will resonate with their audience, but instead making them laugh and alienating them. Some multicultural TV commercials are amusing because their messaging is either wrong or misdelivered. When speaking about or to different cultures, it is paramount to dig in and find out about their qualities. By talking to people from the area into which you would like to break, you minimize the chances of your marketing becoming the punch line (or worse, the scandal).
We need to make sure that our brand narratives are well-crafted because there are messages, symbols, and even simple words that have significantly different meanings across cultures. Researching and engaging with people in your target market can increase the ability to connect and resonate with the audience more clearly and successfully.
If you would like to learn how you can use PR to clarify your brand message, book a call with us today!
Victorious PR is an award-winning PR firm that believes in having full collaboration with our clients, in which they can express and create their brand messaging alongside branding, PR, and writing experts. We are the go-to agents and PR specialists for top-tier entrepreneurs and business people seeking personal and professional branding in healthcare, cryptocurrency, real estate, and many other areas.
As a top PR agency in Las Vegas, we support our clients in obtaining top-tier press that ranks on Google, with high domain ratings and loyal audiences. Our methods ensure that our clients get the utmost visibility, credibility, and authority from our campaigns. Many clients, and our very own CEO, Victoria Kennedy, have become TEDx speakers, been featured on television, and appeared on 5-star podcasts with 25 or more episodes.
We are proud members of the Rolling Stone Cultural Council and the Forbes Agency Council. We have also won multiple accolades, including Best PR Firms in Las Vegas by Expertise, Top Las Vegas Public Relations Firms by Clutch, and Top PR Companies by Mirror Review. We look forward to working with you or answering your queries about public relations!
