For years, production was the quiet end of the marketing process — the part where strategy became output. But as digital has exploded, so have the number of formats, specs and channels a campaign
needs to fill. Production has become one of the most complex — and consequential — parts of the whole operation.
And nowhere is that complexity more obvious than in localization.
Campaigns no longer roll out market by market. They land everywhere, simultaneously, across channels and formats that barely existed a few years ago. AI is, of course, partly responsible, making it
faster than ever to create and distribute huge volumes of content. But fast and effective aren’t the same thing.
Where scale starts to take over
The first challenge is scale
itself. A recent campaign involved 1,540 assets to be delivered across multiple formats and markets. A single campaign can end up spanning everything from digital and social to packaging, video
and retail.
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Localization comes in too late
Localization should be brought in alongside strategy, content and media planning. But it doesn’t always work that way.
As speed becomes the norm — driven partly by AI — there’s less room for error, even as the complexity behind the scenes continues to grow. Localization teams must balance consistency, compliance
and cultural nuance, often across dozens of markets all at once.
Translation is the easy bit (sort of)
Localization isn’t a single element. It has a role to play across multiple
layers, working together. Language is just a little part of it. There’s also:
- Consistency: keeping a brand sounding like itself across every market.
- Tone: Because
what resonates with an Xbox user won’t necessarily land with a Windows user. - Regionalization: currency, time zones, product availability, just to name a few.
- Culturalization:
Imagery, references, and even tone of voice can have very different meanings around the world. - Inclusive language: Audiences expect to see themselves represented, and that looks
different depending on where they are. - And finally, compliance: Legal requirements, policies and local regulations are hugely important and need to be considered at every stage of the
process.
Put it all together, and you arrive at a truth that’s easy to say but hard to execute: localization isn’t about translating content. It’s about translating intent.
Speed creates its own risks
AI has a role to play in all of this, yes. It’s helping teams move faster, handling huge volumes of content and reducing some manual work.
Translation memory, automation and AI-assisted workflows all make it easier to scale campaigns across markets.
But AI can’t remove the complex nature of localization — it exposes it. Used
well, it’s a powerful tool. But it works best when it’s built on solid foundations, not used as a shortcut.
Rethinking localization
The brands that have a truly consistent
presence across markets aren’t the ones moving fastest. They’re the ones who thought about where they were going before they set off, combining the speed of technology with the judgement of humans so
that when a campaign lands, it actually lands.
