For years, brands have obsessed over personalization—as if knowing a user’s name, past purchases, or buying habits was enough to build loyalty. But today’s consumers expect a level beyond the personalization of the past. They don’t just want relevance; they expect proactive, intentional experiences that create intimacy, remove friction, and guide them seamlessly to decisions.
And yet, as brands scale globally, they’re playing with an outdated playbook: thinking global, acting local. Adapting to cultural nuances is table stakes—but it’s no longer enough. Today’s consumers don’t just want brands to "get" their culture, they want brands to "get" them. The real challenge is not just making a brand relevant in a market, but making it feel one-to-one for each customer—at scale. And the stakes couldn’t be higher—over 66% of consumers say they’re likely to switch brands if they feel like just a number instead of an individual.
Technology has made this possible. AI, predictive analytics, and real-time data allow brands to move beyond regional tweaks and into true user-centricity. But AI alone isn’t enough. The most successful brands are pairing data-driven insights with deep human research to uncover not just what users do but why they do it. This blend of automation and human understanding is what transforms personalization from an algorithmic output into a truly resonant experience.
This presents a tricky balancing act—how do you maintain a consistent, recognizable global identity while adapting not just to cultural nuances, but also to rising user expectations for a truly personal experience? As the landscape shifts beneath our feet, building scalable digital products and services requires moving past local adaptation to comprehensive and deep cultural insights that allow for the creation of scalable global products that meet user demands.
When approaching international markets, brands often grapple with the tension between preserving their core brand identity and adapting their offerings to meet customer expectations around the world. We know that brands that localize their offerings see increased customer loyalty. But without strategies grounded in real human insights, brands risk creating experiences that feel generic—even when they’ve adapted to cultural contexts.
Delivering a globally consistent yet personalized experience must happen at every stage of the customer journey, from initial awareness to ongoing engagement. While adapting visual identity, colors, and marketing messaging to the local market is a vital step, these adaptations are now table stakes for global brands. They now must take it a step further, adapting their product experiences and feature sets to meet individual needs.
User research with local customers gives you critical insights to go beyond surface-level adaptations and prevent missteps based on team assumptions. It offers insights into how people from different cultures interpret and interact with your brand.
Guarantee success and mitigate risk with data-informed global insights. Global research helps you:
It’s vital to understand how different cultures interpret and understand your brand’s core values. But beyond cultural alignment, brands must also understand how individuals within those cultures emotionally engage with those values. Research can help you pinpoint where your brand’s values naturally align—or potentially clash—with local norms. What may be compelling to one set of users may not have the same effect in another market. For example, a commitment to sustainability might resonate strongly in markets where eco-friendliness is valued but could be met with skepticism in other regions where there are other, more relevant economic priorities.
Loyalty programs are a brand experience that often needs to be culturally tuned to resonate with local customers and further personalized to different customer segments within a market. In Japan, for example, points-based systems that can be redeemed for limited-edition items have special appeal—an approach that acknowledges a cultural love of collectibles. An example of this is Tully’s Coffee’s loyalty program in Japan, where customers can earn points and limited-edition stamps that can be exchanged for merchandise, seasonal items, and collectibles. By weaving local customs into rewards, brands deepen relationships and foster long-term loyalty across diverse markets.
Beyond cultural values, there’s also the question of market realities. A feature that works seamlessly in one region may be irrelevant or even frustrating in another. For example, in regions where mobile data is costly or unreliable, apps that offer offline functionality or lightweight versions (like Facebook Lite or Spotify’s offline mode) might help you gain stronger traction. Payment preferences also vary widely—while credit cards dominate in the U.S., mobile wallets like Alipay and Paytm are essential in China and India. These adaptations ensure that a product is usable in a market, but they don’t yet make it personal.
The real opportunity lies beyond regional adaptation—moving toward individual personalization within each market. Smart brands don’t just adjust their offerings at a country level; they take the time to understand the diverse needs of users within those regions. Consider how Netflix personalizes its content recommendations not just by country, but by tracking individual viewing habits and preferences, ensuring a streaming experience that feels relevant to each user.
When designing global products, tailoring features, not just brand identity, to align with local user behavior can lead to greater adoption and satisfaction. A compelling example of a feature adaptation is Uber Flex, an innovative pricing model Uber began testing last year in several cities in India, as well as certain markets in Lebanon, Kenya, and Latin America. Under this program, users could bid on a particular fare for their ride and drivers could then choose to accept or decline the fare. This feature was successful not just because it fit cultural norms, but because it was shaped by deep observational research into how riders and drivers negotiate and make decisions in their daily lives. Technology can help optimize experiences like this, but user research reveals and validates why a feature change like this matters in certain markets.
Global research can reveal hidden or untapped opportunities to differentiate your brand in specific markets. By combining behavioral insights with cultural knowledge, brands can adapt positioning, messaging, and product offerings, in ways that feel locally and personally meaningful. For example, Airbnb's expansion into China involved adopting the local name "Aibiying," meaning "welcome each other with love.” This move aimed to resonate with Chinese consumers by reflecting local linguistic and cultural nuances. When these brand refinements are informed by real user perspectives, they become more than cosmetic—they become connective.
Brands that resonate don’t just avoid mistakes and pitfalls—they demonstrate cultural fluency. Research helps identify cultural sensitivities and norms that ensure your brand launches with deep cultural context.
Messaging, symbols, colors, phrases, or features are all elements that could be misinterpreted in certain regions to the detriment of your brand and product. Elements like religious symbolism, popular idioms, or even certain imagery may carry unexpected connotations. For example, the “thumbs up” icon, widely recognized as a positive gesture in Western cultures, may carry different connotations in the Middle East, where it can be perceived as offensive. Bright yellow might evoke feelings of positivity and warmth in one culture, but be associated with caution or even negativity in another.
UX research helps you identify and address these parts of your brand. By proactively tailoring design and messaging, you build trust, respect local values, and create a smoother user experience across diverse cultural contexts.
The most successful global brands will be those that blend technology with cultural intelligence—pairing AI-driven personalization with deep behavioral insights to create experiences that feel both globally unified and locally appropriate. But achieving this balance requires more than technology—it demands a commitment to understanding real people. The brands that lead will be the ones that go beyond surface-level localization, investing to uncover the motivations, emotions, and behaviors that shape decision-making.