Localising a product is much more than replacing one language with another. It includes adapting how people pay, how they interact with the product, the cultural differences at play, and the words and images that work for each region.
If a product ignores these different layers, it can feel not just foreign but also broken and poorly designed. And the more trust a product or a platform requires, the more it needs to adapt.
Our team of experts, led by Lola Henderson, has had many opportunities to see this in Australia. Every product, from streaming services and fintech tools to entertainment platforms like Skrill casinos Australia, must become a trusted local product if it’s to succeed in a competitive market like ours.
We wanted to see how global platforms are dealing with these challenges. Here’s what we found, split into several groups (payments, UX, language, and behavior).
Localising Payments Infrastructure
Australia is different from many other markets in that it uses less cash. Cash payments account for only 13% of all retail transactions. Most payments are done by contactless cards or mobile wallets such as Apple Pay. It’s an increasingly non-cash society, meaning global platforms also have to adapt to the local digital infrastructure.
They not only have to enable these transactions, but also make them fast and effortless. Any platform whose payment process is clunky or based solely on traditional payment cards is already way behind its competition.
In Australia, it’s key to have a solid e-wallet infrastructure, as users don’t just want an easy way to pay, but something they are used to and trust. Also, they want to see prices in AUD, as confusion over currency deters people from making the final step and purchasing a service.
And, as a country of Afterpay, we have one of the highest BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) market penetration rates in the world, making it an important element for relevant industries to include. While we’re focusing on our region, we have to note it’s not the same anywhere. In Germany, for example, direct bank transfers are still more popular than card payments.
User Experience: East vs. West
What we consider good UX design is not universal. It’s much more culture-dependent than it may seem. We found really interesting UX differences between the East and the West that show our approach to visual space, context, and colour. For example, people in the cultural West are more used to minimalistic design, lots of negative space, clean interfaces, and a single call to action.
In China, for example, all the negative space could be seen as a waste. What feels cluttered in the West would be seen as efficient in China. In China, people are more used to using super-apps like WeChat, which cover everything from e-commerce to social media. This makes navigation different, using more links and CTAs.
Of course, Japan, South Korea, and other markets have different preferences, but it’s important to know just how different the typical online shopping or browsing experience can look across cultures.
Language and Cultural References
Localisation goes beyond translation to adjust to tone, the expected level of formality, humor, and cultural references. UX copy is more conversational and informal in markets like Australia, with CTAs likely to sound warm or friendly. But in a market like Japan, this could be unprofessional or even unserious.
The next layer is about idioms and cultural messaging. Brands that translate their marketing campaigns without careful local review can completely miss the message or even sound inappropriate. This is where human, culturally aware translation and localisation play a crucial role. Machine translation can make campaigns and copy sound confusing or poorly executed.
Digital Behaviour and Regulations
Finally, different markets have different development paths. These paths are shaped by infrastructure, device use, and cultural norms, affecting how products are designed. Australia mostly skews mobile, but it has a traditional app structure with separate, single-purpose apps.
In many parts of Asia, super apps combine everything, from messaging to food delivery, ride-hailing services, and payments. To succeed in these markets, platforms have to adjust to the existing super-app infrastructure, or they risk becoming outdated.
The same thing happens with QR codes. While they’re more of a secondary payment tool in the West, in the East, they are deeply embedded in daily life. Cash is much rarer. So companies that switch from one market to another have to know how to design their payment system, or they risk losing their audience.
This also applies to what people are used to in terms of regulation and transparency. For example, Australian law requires you to disclose everything clearly, from fees to refund terms. Failing to localise your copy can be more than just a localisation error. It can easily become a legal issue, too.
Trust needs to be built carefully, with Australian users especially valuing local contact details, AUD pricing, recognisable payment logos, and a clear signalling of local regulatory compliance. Regardless of the market, localisation has to be taken seriously, or the expansion into a new country can reflect poorly on the brand.
Localisation at Every Stage
What we learned from our exploration of different markets is that the process of localisation has to be multi-layered. Mistakes that might seem subtle can have severe consequences in practice.
In short, localisation has to happen at every stage, from payment infrastructure to language and culture, as well as UX and the way people use their devices. Our team will continue to cover different trends and how companies that we review perform in these areas to bring you the best in every league.
