Strategies for Thoughtful Global Expansion and Localization

What’s up everyone, today we have the pleasure of sitting down with Nataly Kelly, CMO at Zappi.

Summary: Global expansion is a wild process that connects brands to the unique vibe of each market, it’s not just creating a website or translating content. Every market brings its own needs, from how audiences navigate sites to what resonates visually and emotionally. Moving into international territories means showing up prepared, with a localization strategy that’s flexible and has a ton of local insight. Marketing Ops and RevOps both play a key role in localization as a strategic partner, organizing data and decision-making to fuel growth across departments.

About Nataly

• Nataly started her career as an interpreter at AT&T and later co-founded a research and consulting company which was acqui-hired by her biggest customer where she would serve as Director of Product Development
• She later held Chief Research Officer and VP of Market Development titles at a market research firm and a translation and localization company
• Nataly then made the mega move to HubSpot as VP of Marketing where she would spend nearly 8 years – involved in all aspects of full-funnel marketing globally, including International Ops and Localization
• She then moved to Rebrandly as Chief Growth Officer leading sales, marketing and product 
• Nataly’s also an author, she’s published 3 books and 1 coming out next year, she has a Newsletter called ‘Making Global Work’
• Today, Nataly’s moved into her 4th SaaS marketing leadership role as CMO at Zappi–the leading consumer insights platform 

Why LinkedIn Works for Building a Newsletter

Nataly decided on LinkedIn for her newsletter with one primary goal: reaching more people, fast. In marketing, there's always talk of “owning your audience,” but for Nataly, the built-in reach LinkedIn offers outweighed the usual risks. Sure, LinkedIn could shift its algorithm or start favoring video, but Nataly isn’t fazed. She believes adaptability is more valuable than control. “If LinkedIn ever moves entirely to video, I might reconsider,” she says. “But for now, it’s a writer’s platform, and I’m a writer.”

What really sold her, though, is LinkedIn’s “triple play” effect. Each time she publishes a newsletter, her audience doesn’t just see it once—they get three reminders. The content appears in their feed, triggers a platform notification, and even lands in their email inbox. This multi-touchpoint delivery isn’t just convenient; it significantly boosts her visibility. In a crowded digital space, those three nudges are powerful. And the best part? It doesn’t take any extra work on her end. For Nataly, this setup is gold: “If I can reach my audience in three different ways without doing three times the work, I’m in.”

On top of that, LinkedIn’s algorithm has started indexing her posts for keywords, so they pop up in search results long after she hits “publish.” Nataly likes this longevity. She’s seen her posts gather momentum over time, which reassures her that LinkedIn isn’t likely to abandon text-based content anytime soon. This layered exposure works in her favor, especially since she’s already built a solid following on LinkedIn. Her audience is naturally expanding, without any additional ad spend or email list management.

This approach ties back to a guiding principle Nataly picked up at HubSpot: follow the growth. When a channel shows traction, commit fully and ride the momentum. LinkedIn’s growth trajectory fits perfectly with her goals, allowing her to spend her time effectively—engaging with followers, creating relevant content, and letting the platform do the heavy lifting. “I see LinkedIn growing, and I’m here for the ride,” she says.

While email newsletters and other platforms might come into play in the future, right now, LinkedIn is her sweet spot. It’s a low-maintenance option that lets her connect with her community directly, on the platform where she’s already active. She’s writing for the sake of sharing knowledge, and LinkedIn offers a direct, hassle-free way to reach a broad audience without splitting her focus across multiple channels.

Key takeaway: For marketers aiming to maximize reach, LinkedIn’s multi-touchpoint setup and organic audience growth make it an ideal platform. When traction is the goal, LinkedIn’s notification, email, and feed distribution offer valuable, low-effort exposure—perfect for those who want to focus on content, not channel management.

Understanding the Nuances of Going Global

Nataly makes a clear distinction between "going global" and "going local," a distinction that goes beyond simply putting content online for everyone to see. Launching a website, or even setting up a LinkedIn profile, can technically connect a person to a global audience. But creating an intentional, local connection demands a specific approach, one that carefully considers language, cultural context, and user experience. For Nataly, globalization isn’t just about reaching people across borders—it’s about meeting those audiences where they are, with language and content that resonate.

Her insights stem from years of experience, including her work at HubSpot, where she developed a practical framework to explain these concepts to teams across the company. She found that simplifying these ideas into one-word definitions helped cut through the confusion. For example, “internationalization” is about adapting the technical side, like making code accessible to different languages and regions. This step ensures the foundational structure can support localized content, but it’s just the beginning.

Translation, Nataly explains, isn’t about directly swapping words. True translation involves adapting the message itself. For one audience, a particular phrase might evoke excitement; for another, it might fall flat or even offend. Nataly emphasizes that effective translation reaches beyond literal words to convey a message that feels native to each audience, maintaining intent, tone, and cultural relevance.

Localization goes further, adapting the entire user experience for specific markets. It's not just about making text comprehensible but ensuring every interaction—from navigation to design—feels intuitive for users in diverse regions. For instance, a website optimized for American users may assume all visitors speak English, but this model doesn’t apply universally. In countries like Canada, India, or across the EU, multi-language realities complicate navigation. This level of adaptation requires deep cultural and technical knowledge to avoid common pitfalls and create a seamless experience.

Globalization, however, is the ultimate adaptation, demanding a complete rethinking of the framework itself. Nataly notes that one of the biggest challenges is getting teams to shift from a single-market mindset to a truly global perspective. A platform initially designed for one language or culture may struggle when stretched to fit a multilingual or multicultural user base. Globalization requires a build-it-right-from-the-start approach, anticipating diverse user needs and ensuring the platform can expand without limitations.

Key takeaway: Successful globalization is about more than just reaching an international audience; it requires intentionally adapting every layer—from code to experience—to create content that resonates locally while remaining accessible globally.

Strategic Timing for Going Global

When HubSpot considered expanding internationally, it wasn’t about leaping into new markets; it was about waiting until the timing and resources aligned. Nataly recalls that CEO Brian Halligan was deliberate, even drafting a Harvard Business Review piece outlining Hu...