Talking about localisation…

In a global context, one can wonder how brands manage to remain relevant to their local consumers. From Coca-Cola to Pixar, these four examples shine a light on specific brand strategies that tackle the issue head on.

A pocketful of Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola redesigned its bottle to better suit the needs of Indian consumers. Officially known as the “Affordable Small Sparkling Package” – or “ASSP” – this smaller bottle increases the product’s shelf life by ensuring that the drink stays carbonated for longer. This is particularly useful to the Indian market, as rural areas often desire smaller, more affordable products, but struggle to keep them fresh as transportation can involve long stretches of distance and time. So far, the new design is experiencing success in the eight Indian states where it is being sold, and the company plans to expand the launch to the rest of India in 2017.

Culturally aware in Canada

In order to make the Chinese community in Canada feel at home during this past Lunar New Year, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes released a celebratory special edition Chinese New Year package, which included a festively stylized Cornelius the Rooster decorated in the traditional red and gold of the holiday, along with culturally-inspired graphics, traditional Chinese New Year well wishes written in Simplified Chinese, and fun facts about the Year of the Rooster. The limited edition pack also featured instructions on how to create a “zhezhi” rooster. Zhezhi is the Chinese art of paper folding, which was originally used for ceremonial purposes.

Unilever is going local

Unilever is coming up with innovative ways to reach rural consumers in emerging markets. Two examples of note: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) trains local women as rural, door-to-door sales agents for their communities. It’s been so successful that the company has launched similar programs in other countries. In Pakistan, Unilever trained the local women as beauticians, allowing them to offer beauty services out of their homes – in conjunction with these beauty treatments, the women sell Unilever products to their customers and earn commission, as well as incentives.

Not everyone hates broccoli!

Adapting films for international audiences is not as easy as it may seem. When Pixar adapts its films for foreign audiences, visuals are often amended in order to help the film resonate with international audiences. In Inside Out, for example, Riley, one of the characters, is forced to eat some much-hated broccoli. In Japan, where broccoli is widely enjoyed, the vegetable was replaced by a bell pepper instead.