Global Reach, Local Touch Marketing

Very few technology companies are restricting themselves to just a single geography and the term globalisation is a common term understood by most. But whilst there are increased opportunities associated with expanding your geographic footprint, there are also increased complexities with marketing and communication activities across borders.
The challenge for any marketing professional who has a multi-geographical remit is to maximize the best use of resources available across all markets, remove duplication and unnecessary overheads, ensure message consistency and yet maintain impact at the local level. There are also significant organisation benefits if the marketer is able to promote cross border learning and sharing of best practice amongst sales and marketing professionals in local markets.
There are basically two models that companies can adopt - a centralized or a localized model and yes a third option or a hybrid approach.
The central model
This is usually the early model for companies that have recently decided to step beyond their domestic markets or have generic products and services and where only a minimal amount of decision making is devolved to the local level. The main disadvantages of this approach arise from paying insufficient attention to the knowledge held by local teams, the differing cultures and style of work and the perceptions of the company in a particular territory. The central model also stifles cross border knowledge share.
The local model
The local model represents the complete opposite where there is little or no co-ordination between different territories. This may be deliberate - to give business units in each country as much autonomy as possible such as in the case where very local products and services are represented. Each country may then establish its own marketing and PR activities. The local model, with no organised co-ordination, has a number of disadvantages. Multinational companies have multinational customers who now expect to deal with the same organisation, regardless of location. The greatest danger of the local model is inconsistent messaging across the territories in which a company operates, leading to a dilution of core values and positioning. A lack of co-ordination leading to inconsistent messages for an organisation cannot only damage the brand in that territory, but the organisation as a whole. Furthermore, the overheads and administration costs are duplicated many times over in each country, leaving fewer resources for actually implementing campaigns and achieving desired results. It can become a costly exercise if you add up all the elements, yet there will undoubtedly be those at the local level who argue for an entirely local model. What they are in fact doing in many instances (apart from companies who have very different highly localised products in different markets), is arguing against a truly centralized approach. Enter the hybrid approach
The hybrid model
The hybrid model offers the optimum balance and takes the best features from the local and central models to create a framework which combines organised and deliberate central co-ordination alongside greater input and autonomy at a local level to programs that are both effective at a national and supra-national level.
In the hybrid model the centre is responsible for ensuring that the strategic elements of a program, such as key objectives and messages are consistent and appropriate for each country as well as acting as a conduit for information and best practice share. Typically when dealing across borders there are some local markets that may be less sophisticated in terms of adoption of your goods and services than others. The centre can assist here by creating reusable programs and assets which can then be tailored to local use. They can also cherry pick best practices from local markets and offer these as suggestions of fruitful campaigns for other markets. The centre has a significant opportunity to play here in conjunction with local functions in each country, and will work collaboratively to develop plans for the company on a cross border basis, with tailored programs developed for each country. The central hub will further reduce duplication and overheads by managing budgets, campaign evaluation and reporting to HQ.