Global Marketing News – 24th November 2015
YouTube facilitates better international video reach
YouTube has introduced several new options to allow users to translate their videos into different languages.
The new tools will allow video titles, descriptions and subtitles to be translated, aiding content discovery to international audiences who otherwise would not find content due to language barriers.
Users can either do the translation themselves, get a Google-approved vendor to do the translation for them, or do it through crowdsourcing.
With the crowdsourcing option, YouTube would display multiple answers to help select the most accurate translations and improve translation quality over time.
With over 60% of video views typically coming from outside a video’s country of origin, the international appeal of video content is clear, and YouTube hopes that by providing translations it will help increase international discovery and viewership even further.
Traditional shops in China fight against ecommerce
Traditional shops in China are having to change their tactics to retain shoppers as ecommerce rises in popularity in the country.
Ecommerce generated 12.3 trillion Yuan in China last year, equivalent to almost 2 trillion US dollars, but traditional physical shops also saw a rise of 7.7% in sales during the same period.
In order to attract and retain more customers, Chinese shopping malls are having to become social hubs, with restaurants, entertainment complexes and terraces for people to sit down becoming more and more commonplace.
Shopping malls are spreading fast across China, with the real estate company JLL predicting that, over the next 3 years, 40 million square metres of shopping malls will be built across the country.
Belgian ecommerce dominated by cross-border sales
The Belgian ecommerce space is a hive of cross-border activity, according to research from BeCommerce.
Looking at online purchases made by Belgians in the last year, 72% of sales were from foreign ecommerce sites, with Amazon, 3 Suisses and Bol, from the US, France and the Netherlands respectively, being the top 3 ecommerce destinations.
Things were also looking good for Belgian online retailers pursuing an international strategy. Belgian online stores are particularly popular amongst online shoppers in the Netherlands, France, the UK, the US and Canada.
Belgians have spent 2.6 billion Euros on online stores in the last year, more than double the 1.1 billion Euros they spent online the previous year.
Most popular smartphone activities in Thailand revealed
Research by DI Marketing has revealed the most popular activities amongst smartphone users in Thailand.
Social networking came top of the list, with 82% of respondents saying they accessed social networks using their smartphones.
Making phone calls came second at 76%, followed by taking photos and using chat apps which were activities cited by over 70% of respondents.
Listening to music, watching videos, playing games and checking emails were also activities done by more than half of respondents.
Mobile commerce was still relatively rare in the country, however, with just 17% saying they used their smartphones to buy products online and only 45% researching products on their smartphones.
Digital currency Bitwalking pays users for movement
And finally, a new digital currency called Bitwalking is to launch in the UK, Japan, Kenya and Malawi.
Bitwalking will track users’ footsteps via a smartphone or smart-wristband and pay them 1 Bitwalking dollar for every 10,000 steps, equivalent to roughly 5 miles.
1 Bitwalking dollar will be equivalent to 1 US dollar.
Users will be able to spend the digital currency on certain online shops, and there are plans to allow users to trade the digital currency for cash as well.
One of Bitwalking’s founders commented on the aim of the digital currency, saying: “For some it will be a free cup of coffee a week perhaps offered by local businesses to encourage people to explore their local shops. For others it could be a game changer, transforming their lives by enabling them to earn and trade in the same way with the rest of the world. And all while encouraging us to protect the planet and stay healthy.”
Webcertain’s global marketing news bulletins are daily 5-minute videos, providing marketers with the latest international digital marketing news in an easy-to-digest format.
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Cal O'Connell
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