Brand loyalty is not as high as it used to be in Canada.
Do not let that put you off the market though – it is actually a great opportunity!
It means that Canadians are very happy to try out new products from brands they have never bought from before – which is great news for new brands entering the market.
If you want your brand to succeed in Canada, you need to tailor your marketing activities to the Canadian culture.
Let’s look at three ways you should adapt your marketing strategy for Canada.
1. Canada is less aggressively success-oriented than America
Yes, being successful is important, but so is having a good quality of life and having a good work-life balance.
Happiness and wellbeing are valued.
When marketing in Canada, you may therefore want to use a mix of messaging, mentioning how your products or services can help boost both success and wellbeing.
2. Canada is a strongly individualist society
This means that if your home market is a collectivist society, you will need to change your marketing messaging quite substantially.
In individualist societies, people see themselves as individuals, rather than as part of a group.
They are expected to look after themselves and their immediate family only, to prioritise their own personal wellbeing, and to support themselves rather than expect support from wider society.
When targeting people in Canada, you should therefore emphasise how your product or service can personally benefit them as an individual.
3. Let’s talk about language
Canada is a bilingual country with two official languages: English and French.
However, the distribution of these languages across Canada is not equal.
English is the dominant language in most of the country, with French only having a substantial presence in Quebec.
You therefore only need to include French in your Canadian marketing efforts if you are targeting Quebec.
Just remember, when creating your content, make sure to localise for Canadian English and Canadian French.
I hope this blog post has given you a useful introduction to how you need to adapt your marketing strategy for the Canadian culture. For more in-depth information, read Webcertain’s online consumer behaviour report here.
This 219-page report gives concise, up-to-date overviews of the cultures of 38 countries worldwide.
- Learn how each country scores for Hofstede’s cultural dimensions.
- Discover what this means in terms of marketing.
- Get additional insights directly from our experience helping global brands.
Elin Box
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