Creating an effective Arabic digital marketing strategy is vital if you wish to succeed in the Middle East. Reaching your intended audience and ensuring your message is understood by customers who may be unfamiliar with your brand, product or service, is essential.
Translating your website into Arabic is the first step to success in a Middle Eastern market, but this should not be where your Arabic marketing strategy ends.
The following information will benefit any firm looking to move into an Arabic market, suggesting strategies for improving your ROI on digital marketing and ensuring your campaign is successful.
1. Localise your Website and Digital Marketing Campaigns
As stated above, translating your website into Arabic is first step towards assimilating your website into your new market, but to really maximise the benefit from this it is best to use localisation services in conjunction with translation.
For those of you who may be unfamiliar with professional translation services, localisation is an advanced form of translation which considers other factors, alongside language, that vary for particular audiences.
The following list highlights some of the adaptions made when utilising localisation:
• Dialect – this is particularly relevant in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region where there are numerous Arabic dialects. Ensuring you select the right dialect for your audience is essential as Arabic dialects are vastly different from one another.
• Images – localisation takes account of images, symbols, emojis, and so on which all vary in connotation based on factors such as, religion, language, race, and location. Getting it wrong can cause offence to potential customers and damage brand faith.
• Date format – in the UK we use 12/11/2020 to mean the 12th day of the 11th month, however, in Arabic speaking countries, this same date would be shown as 11/12/2020. Localisation adjusts formats so they are correct for a particular audience and region.
• Weights and Measures – different regions and countries use different weight units and localisation will take this into account.
• Currency – online purchasers look to buy products in their country’s currency. This familiarity increase customer satisfaction and trust, leading to more sales.
• Language – localisation also considers aspects of language, outside of the normal word-for-word translation such as, humour, colloquial or slang phrases, everyday speech, idioms, and so on. This gives a much more targeted approach to the language used in marketing content and ensures it is relevant and as expected for potential customers.
Choose a Language Services Provider (LSP) who is experienced with the language and culture you require, and that uses native-speaking linguists for translations. This way, you can be sure the localisation will be professional, accurate and relevant.
Remember, it is best to use localisation services for your website, social media posts and marketing campaigns, so that brand integrity is improved and a consistent approach is achieved.
2. Do your Research
Market research is vital in a new region. You need to know your competitors and understand your audience to be sure that you are marketing your product or service in the best way.
It is also important not to make sweeping generalisations about your target audience, especially in regions as large and diverse as the Middle East.
There are 26 countries that list Arabic as their native language, ranging from the United Arab Emirates to Morocco, and Algeria to Palestine, so making sure your research covers specifics linked to your chosen region is essential.
If you need assistance with specifics linked to a particular Arabic region, ask your LSP for help, or contact the team at Creative Word (we are experts in the Arabic language and culture) and we’ll be happy to help.
3. Monitor your Success
It is all well and good translating and localising your marketing campaigns and website, but if you can’t track your conversion rate for specific areas, you may end up wasting money.
Dividing the Arabic region into smaller, separate markets makes sense as it allows for a specific approach and response in individual areas.
Use your analytics to give a clearer picture of your success in a particular Arabic region and compare to other regions.
Asking questions such as, what is different in the more successful campaigns and was this the same across the all regions? What positive feedback did customers give and can this be applied in other regions?
Social media sites should also be tackled in the same way (and localised for different Arabic audiences) and then monitored for results.
For expert advice on Arabic localisation, or help with your Arabic marketing strategy, please contact us here.
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