Research released from a new global study confirms that localization is the most effective way to reach an increasingly global and digital audience.
Data from Nimdzi Insights, a leading research and consulting firm in the localization industry, suggests that online buyer behavior is deeply tied to a user’s native language(Nimdzi).
The study, which included 9,209 consumers worldwide, was conducted in 66 languages in 74 countries and suggests that online shoppers are strongly connected to their native language when making decisions online. As e-commerce grows, the findings are even more pertinent today.
A number of reports put global e-commerce revenue for 2019 at USD 3.6 trillion, which represents an annual growth of around 18%. In 2020, it is expected to pass the USD 4 trillion threshold.
Today, most organizations building their localization programs know what their core (traditional) markets for localization are. These often include: English; French, Italian, German, Spanish (referred to as FIGS); Portuguese & Brazilian Portuguese, Russian; Chinese, Japanese, Korean (CCJK); and local variants thereof.
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Nimdzi’s research has shown that localizing into the languages mentioned above will grant access to roughly 90% of worldwide online sales potential.
The recent study confirms these findings and highlights the importance of language in the decision-making process. Companies with mature localization programs develop a global-first approach when going to market for this very reason.
“We decided to call the report Project Underwear,” states Gabriel Karandyšovský, Head Researcher of the study. “The term underwear effect was coined by Nimdzi’s co-founder Renato Beninatto to describe situations where consumers are making their buying decisions during their (almost) most private moments, with their mobile phone in hand wearing nothing but their underwear. And what does cling to a person even more closely than his or her undergarments? Why, their language, of course.”
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