From Tokyo to Toronto: Localizing Your Social Media Like a Pro

Information in this blog post has been obtained from HootSuite, HubSpot, and Social Media Today.

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Let’s say you just launched a social media campaign that’s killing it in the U.S. The likes are pouring in, people are sharing your posts, and your brand’s getting tons of love. So you figure, why not run the same campaign in Japan? But… nothing happens. No buzz, no clicks, just silence.

It’s not that your content is bad. It’s just not clicking.

Why? Because what works in one culture doesn’t always work in another. Social media isn't one-size-fits-all; it changes with the audience. If you want to reach people worldwide, you’ve got to think beyond words. You’ve got to understand the culture, the tone, even the little things like imagery and emoji use. In this post, we’re breaking down how global brands tailor their strategies for different cultures and why going local is the key to going global.

The Case for Localized Marketing

The internet makes it incredibly easy to reach people all over the world. But just because someone can see your post doesn’t mean it’ll resonate. Global reach is easy. Global relevance? That takes strategy.

Localization is more than translating your captions or slapping a different currency symbol on your price tag. It's about crafting a brand experience that feels native to each region. That means considering local humor, colors, imagery, buying habits, and even emoji preferences. Yes, the brain might work in one country, but it seems bizarre or even offensive in another.

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Every touchpoint (ads, websites, emails, customer service chats) should reflect the culture you’re trying to connect with. When you localize effectively, you’re not just selling a product but building a relationship.

Personalization Across the Customer Journey

Localization matters at every stage of the customer lifecycle. Let’s walk through it:

• Discovery: First Impressions Count

  • This is when a potential customer first sees your brand. If your content doesn't feel familiar or relevant, you’ve lost them before they’ve even clicked.

  • Localization here means using local influencers, culturally relevant visuals, and language that fits the region. For example, a brand trying to break into the Brazilian market might run Instagram ads featuring local slang, trending music, or popular cultural references. A U.S.-style ad with subtle sarcasm might fall completely flat in Japan, where formality and directness are often more respected in advertising.

    
    

• Education: Help Them Understand You (In Their Language)

  • Once someone’s interested, they want to know more. Blog posts, FAQs, product pages—all of these need to be both translated and contextualized. A direct translation might miss the emotional tone or cultural nuance.

  • That’s where human translators come in. Machine translation tools are fine for basic info, but human localization ensures the message still feels natural and trustworthy for high-value, high-traffic content.

    
    

• Purchase: Make It Easy to Say Yes

  • Even if a customer loves your product, the final decision is logistics. They'll bounce if they don’t see their local payment method or can’t read your checkout page.

  • Localized purchase experiences mean offering:

    • Local currencies and tax calculations

    • Popular regional payment options (like convenience store payment in Japan or UPI in India)

    • Clear, translated checkout flows

  • The smoother the process, the higher the conversion rate.

    

    This image was AI-generated

• Post-Purchase: Keep the Relationship Going

  • You made the sale, now don’t drop the ball. A thank-you email that uses culturally appropriate language, timing that respects their time zone, and local support options can turn a one-time buyer into a loyal customer.

  • Even your help center should be localized. Imagine needing support and reading awkwardly translated answers—it makes the customer feel like an afterthought.

    
    

• Advocacy: Let Your Customers Speak Your Language

  • Social proof is powerful—but only when it feels personal. A glowing review in English won’t carry the same weight for a customer in Spain as a native-language testimonial with local context would.

  • Encourage customers to leave reviews in their language, highlight region-specific success stories, and include culturally familiar visuals when showcasing user-generated content.

Building for Global Scale (From the Start)

The best global brands build with localization in mind from day one.

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That means:

• Templatizing your website so it’s easier to adapt to different regions.

• Creating scripts for videos that can be easily translated and subtitled.

• Designing with flexibility in mind—like leaving room for longer translations (did you know Finnish translations can take up 60% more space than English text?).

Localization is so much easier when it’s built into your content strategy—not tacked on as an afterthought.

Social Media Isn’t Universal—And That’s the Point

Different platforms behave differently based on region. That applies to everything from format preferences to best posting times.

• On Instagram, carousels dominate engagement.

• TikTok thrives on creative, native-style videos.

• LinkedIn favors professional photo-driven posts over links.

  
  

Timing matters too. Data from early 2025 shows government social media posts perform best:

• Between 6 and 8 PM on Instagram and Facebook

• Midday on TikTok (Monday) and Friday evenings

• Wednesdays at 5–8 PM on LinkedIn

  
  

Also, more isn’t always better. Facebook pages that posted twice a week saw more engagement than those posting daily. It’s not about spamming—it's about showing up with relevant, localized, and high-quality content.

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For reference, here are the current average engagement rates by platform (Mikolajczyk):

• Instagram: 3.5%

• LinkedIn: 2.7%

• TikTok: 1.6%

• X (formerly Twitter): 1.7%

Let that data drive your strategy, not just what’s trending in your home country.

Don’t Forget Local SEO

Want people to find your content? Then, local SEO needs to be part of your strategy.

Local SEO ensures your brand ranks in regional searches, not just globally.

Here’s how:

• Use localized landing pages with city or country names.

• Add schema markup so Google knows who and where you are.

• Optimize your Google Business profile with local info and photos.

• Build local backlinks from regional blogs, news outlets, or organizations.

There’s a powerful overlap between social engagement and SEO, too. The more your content gets shared and talked about locally, the more search engines trust and boost it.

Localization = Real Connection

You could have the best product in the world, but if you don’t speak the customer’s language (literally and culturally), they’re not going to connect with you. Effective global strategy isn’t just about scaling up. It’s about zooming in.

Brands that succeed internationally are the ones that combine universal brand values with local authenticity. They take the time to understand what makes each audience unique and reflect that back in every piece of content, post, and click. So don’t just go global.

Grow global—by going local. To learn more about global marketing, check out my blog post "The Global Shift: How Social Media Trends Abroad Are Redefining Marketing in 2025."

Disclaimer: ChatGPT was used to assist in creating this blog post.

References

Cohn, A. (2020, June 7). What is Localized Content [+When to Use It]. Blog.hubspot.com. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/localized-content

OpenAI. (2025). ChatGPT (April 23 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat

Mikolajczyk, K. (2024, September 18). Government social media benchmarks: Q3 2024 research. Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard. https://blog.hootsuite.com/government-social-media-benchmarks/

Walker-Ford, M. (2023, May 22). How to Rank a Website Locally: 29 Local SEO Tips to Improve Google Rankings [Infographic]. Social Media Today. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/rank-website-locally-seo-tips-improve-google-rankings/650956/