Launching & growing your brand in Asia Pacific
For many US based companies, entering the Asia Pacific market is akin to revisiting their start-up days with super lean teams, limited budgets, high growth expectations and aggressive sales targets.
However having launched numerous B2B SaaS companies in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region I often see local efforts stall at the starting gate due to a lack of local intelligence, one-size-fits-all marketing strategies, lack of local content and out of country execution.
In my experience the key to launching and scaling in any market and most especially in APAC (whose countries share very little in common other than their geographic proximity) is partnering with a specialist agency who understands the nuances of the local markets and who can create a go-to-market strategy that will get your brand message across in a way that resonates with the target audience and create a sustainable pipeline.
One of the first questions that US-based companies always ask is; is what are the common pitfalls companies experience when entering APAC.
Here is my take on what it takes to enter and grow in the region successfully.
Strategy
Start with a strategy tailored to the nuances of the market you are entering and aligned to the goals and objectives you are trying to achieve in that market.
Introducing a product or service to any of the countries that make up the APAC region requires a unique marketing strategy, based on the locale’s cultural, linguistic, behavioural and economic specifics.
Regardless of how successful your US marketing strategy is, the reality is that it is unlikely to translate in its entirety into markets that typically run 18+ months behind the US.
Creating country-specific strategies that support your local ambitions is best done as a collaborative effort between your in-country management team, your in-country agency and HQ to ensure there is strong alignment between marketing, sales and channel.
Audience
Knowing your audience is absolutely fundamental to lead generation and sales success; but who that audience is may not always be the same from one market to another.
Taking the time to map your traditional audience profiles, including those of channel partners to their in-region equivalents and investing in building out opted-in databases is key to laying the right foundations from which to launch lead generation efforts.
In order to keep the effort manageable, we typically start by asking sales teams to create a top 100 target list - including a mix of low hanging fruit and strategic accounts they intend to sell to over the next 12 months.
Taking this approach means everyone’s focus is concentrated on targeting companies and titles that represent the best potential sales fit for your in region sales teams - no more scattered, ad hoc marketing activities aimed at everyone and no one from the CEO down.
Content
In a region typified by a variety of linguistic, cultural and economic differences, content that presents your brand’s story within a local context makes a significant difference to how your message is perceived and how well digital campaigns convert.
The point of investing in local content is that it signals your commitment to that market, demonstrating you have invested in understanding and supporting it, and have the customers to prove it!
Execution
Even the best laid plans can go awry as a result of poorly executed tactics and in a region where business is often done on the strength of long term relationships rooted in mutual respect and trust, execution excellence is key.
In my experience nothing beats having an experienced in country team executing tactics seamlessly across all touchpoints.
The value of in country execution is its ability to maximise the ROI on each tactic firstly by avoiding potentially costly mistakes arising from partnering with the wrong third party vendors and secondly by working alongside your inside sales and sales teams to maximise the value of each incoming lead.
So why does it all matter?
First hand knowledge and expertise within your chosen markets is key to maximising the opportunity those markets represent for your company.
Hitting the ground running with a solid plan and execution capability ensures you hit your revenue targets quicker and more cost effectively.
Audrey Bogdanovic is the Founder and Managing Director of Mountainview Creative - a boutique marketing agency with global experience of launching, and scaling B2B SaaS companies in the APAC region.
Mountainview Creative has helped launch some of the fastest growing companies into the APAC region including Box, Optimizely, Usabilla and FinancialForce, reach out, we would love to have a chat about how we can help get your organisation off to a fast start too!