The Worldly Marketer
January 2016 edition

Happy 2016 to you!

As we begin a brand new year, I'd like to wish you a 2016 filled with  happiness, peace and prosperity. May it be a year of exciting new opportunities for you.

I'd also like to thank you very sincerely for your interest in The Worldly Marketer.  As an entrepreneur, I know that time is your most precious commodity. There's a lot of content out there for you to choose from, so I truly appreciate your attention  and I will never take it for granted.

My New Year's resolutions? To keep learning about international and global marketing topics, which are constantly evolving. To keep sharing as much useful content with you as I possibly can. To start experimenting with new ways of delivering that content. And to make sure I'm  listening to you, my Verbaccino community, so that I can work to serve you better.

If you're not on my mailing list yet, now is the perfect time to join.  Sign up here so I can keep you in the Verbaccino loop!

Are there any particular  topics you'd like me to research and discuss this year? Please don't hesitate to send me an email.

Here's to a new year of Worldly possibilities!

Cheers,

Founder & Principal at Verbaccino
 

From the Blog:

Top 10 Languages
for Global eCommerce
(Besides English)

Worldwide eCommerce revenues totalled over $1.6 trillion USD in 2015 - and they're expected to exceed that number in 2016. But if you're still doing business in English only, you are missing out. Today, nine out of ten Internet users live outside of North America - and most of them speak little or no English. That's why more and more eMarketers are taking a multilingual approach in order to stay competitive. Which languages provide the best ROI for online businesses? Here's a "Top 10" list to help you go global.


Social Tip
of the Month

January Tip:
Different cultures 
use different calendars.

January 1st marks the beginning of a new calendar year. At least for anyone who follows the Gregorian calendar.

It's important to realize that in many other cultures, other calendars are used alongside - or instead of - the Gregorian calendar.

The Julian calendar is still used by Orthodox churches to determine the dates of religious holidays. That's why most people in Eastern Europe and Russia celebrate Christmas on January 7th.

In other parts of the world, other calendars are traditionally used: the Chinese calendar, the Islamic calendar, the Hebrew calendar, the Persian calendar, the Ethiopian calendar, the Indian national calendar, the Bengali calendar, the Korean calendar, the Minguo calendar, the Thai solar calendar, the Burmese calendar, the Buddhist calendar and various Hindu calendars, etc. - they each celebrate the beginning of a new year on a different day and schedule.

Make sure you know when to wish your international customers a happy New Year. You can keep informed of who will be celebrating what and when by downloading  Verbaccino's #HolidayHeadsUp calendar every month.

International & Global Marketing News

Trade Ready has published an article by Verbaccino Founder, Kathrin Bussmann. Have Content, Will Travel: Marketing to Today's Global Customers talks about how to approach content marketing for international audiences in this digital, mobile, social age. Read the article here.

In this interview, Clint Poole, VP Marketing at Lionbridge, shares his predictions for global marketing trends in 2016 - including the continued integration of digital channels, the use of personalization technologies and techniques, the growth of global campaigns, and a general increase in marketing budgets. As he points out, "global consumers are in firm control and more empowered than ever" thanks to the rise of mobile technologies and improved Internet access. "So marketers need to spend more time trying to get to know the global consumer. They must focus on customer intimacy and on truly understanding how, why, and when consumers interact with brands." Read the full article here.

China already generates the largest revenues by far when it comes to global eCommerce. A new report by the Boston Consulting Group predicts that a young generation of affluent, web-savvy consumers will keep the Chinese market firmly in the lead as worldwide eCommerce sales continue to grow in 2016 and beyond. This post from the Alizila blog looks at what China's shifting demographics mean for foreign brands looking to compete in that market. Read it here.

Looking for  more current articles  on international business and global marketing issues? Visit the  Verbaccino Flipboard  magazine! New articles are added regularly, so check back often.

#Holiday HeadsUp
for January 2016

Did you know that in Japan, there are very particular customs to celebrate the New Year?

Or that January 2nd is a statutory holiday in most European countries?

In many traditionally Western-Christian countries, the feast of the Epiphany (also know as Three Kings Day) on January 6th is a public holiday.

In Russia, January 1-8 is a non-working holiday. As in other traditionally Orthodox countries, people celebrate  Christmas on January 7th. And they ring in the " Old New Year" on January 14th.

In mid-January, people in South-East Asia celebrate the winter harvest festival: Lohri,  Pongal or  Makar Sakranti - depending on the region.

January 26th is the National Day of Australia and also Republic Day in  India.

And International Holocaust Remembrance Day is on January 27th.

Those are just some of the special dates coming up this month.


You can download this calendar as a PDF document  by clicking on the link, above,  and selecting "Save Page As".

Get more details about any holiday or observance on the calendar
by clicking on the specific entry.

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