How do you approach user experience or UX for different markets? This presentation sets out six key principles of cross-cultural UX design. Useful reading for UX and web designers, as well as international marketers and international businesses looking to understand UX across borders.

1. Six tips for
cross-cultural UX
August 2021
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Oban International:
Six tips for cross-cultural UX
Who is this presentation for?
International marketers looking for
information on how to approach cross-
cultural UX.
What does this presentation contain?
Useful, practical, easy-to-read cross-
cultural UX tips written specifically for
international businesses.

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Tip 1: Don’t assume that countries
which are near each other, are like each other
• It is easy to assume that neighbouring countries are culturally
similar—and in many ways that can be true. But when it comes to
cross-cultural UX, understanding the differences between cultures
(even if they are geographically close) is essential to creating a high
performing website.
• For example, ‘Europe’ is often treated by website designers as a
single entity when in reality, each country has its own UX
preferences and norms:
• France and the UK are close neighbours – but French websites typically show
prominent pricing, large photos and clear calls to action, whereas UK websites
tend to be more minimalist.
• By contrast, countries which are geographically far apart can have
surprisingly similar UX preferences.
Rather than focusing
on geography, a
cultural framework like
Hofstede’s theory of
cultural dimensions
is a better way to
understand and group
countries

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Tip 2: Research local user interface patterns
• In certain cultures, specific design
patterns are accepted as universal. For
example, thanks to Facebook and Gmail,
the hamburger and kebab icons have
become ubiquitous for revealing navigation
links and further menu options.
• However, outside the West, users may be
confused by them.

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Tip 2: Research local user interface patterns
• Research by Dan Grover, former product manager at Tencent, showed that in the most popular
Chinese apps (including WeChat and Weibo) hamburger or kebab symbols do not exist:
• Instead, a “discover” button, usually represented by a compass icon, is used for the not-quite-essential extras.
• Chinese users see apps as an ecosystem rather than a single functioning product.
• To Chinese users, the action of “discovering” sparks intrigue and curiosity—which is more valuable than a
straightforward “here-are-more-options” functionality.
• The same was true in India when Amazon launched its services there:
• In 2018, Amazon could not understand why customers in India were not using the search feature for products to buy on
the homepage of the mobile site.
• It transpired that the magnifying glass icon was not something people associated with search in India. It made no sense
in an Indian context as users thought the icon represented a ping-pong paddle.
• As a solution, Amazon kept the magnifying glass but added a search field with a Hindi text label to let people know this
was where they could initiate a search.

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Tip 3: Identify the market’s
primary devices and connectivity
• If the target audience for a product is wealthy tech employees based in California,
it’s reasonable to assume that most users have the latest iPhone—making it easy
to design for that device. However, when designing for a new market, it is important
to avoid assumptions and start with research.
• Make sure you understand the device usage in that market, specifically for your
sector and your target audience:
• In some markets, some target audiences might not use smart phones, or they may have low
connection speeds – which will affect design.
• Designs need to be formatted for the right screen sizes and load in a way that suits the target
market’s minimum connection speeds.
• By identifying a market’s primary devices and connectivity stats, a design team can produce an
effective design for its intended environment.

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Tip 4: Conduct user research
• User research can give you insights which complement quantitative data – such as
users’ needs, expectations, and explanation of their behaviours. These are things that
you cannot get by looking at conversion rates alone. The best way to conduct user
research is in-person, but if this is not possible, there are plenty of tools to conduct
remote user research.
• User research will uncover cultural norms around displaying and consuming
information. For example:
• Chinese websites tend to be much busier than many Western websites – a good example being JD’s
homepage.
• This is because Chinese users place more emphasis on browsing than focusing so, as a result, Chinese
websites tend to be divided into multiple independent spaces, in contrast to Western websites which tend
to be focused on a single focal point on each page.
• Chinese users are used to consuming more information within a single screen – as a result, website
content appears more dense, with smaller images and more links.

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Tip 5: Use both qualitative and
quantitative data to understand users
Both quantitative and qualitive research methods can
provide insight into local users’ behaviour. For example:
Usability
tests
Interviews Analytics
data
Heatmaps User session
recordings
Academic
research

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• Testing helps you to understand which elements of your
website design are affecting your success. You can run A/B
tests on different aspects of your digital marketing campaigns -
different messages, imagery, layouts and more – to see which
elements provide better results.
• When you perform an A/B test, choose one element to test at a time so
you can read the results. For example: If you are testing a landing page,
you might start with testing the headline to see which version performs
best.
• However, if you want to test multiple changes at once, you should try
A/B(n) or multivariate testing (MVT) to test various combinations of your
changes. For example, you may want to test what combinations of your
different headlines and calls-to-action perform best.
Tip 5: Use both qualitative and
quantitative data to understand users

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Tip 6: Localise marketing copy
• It is always best to use a Local In-Market Expert to understand the linguistic
nuances of your target market. Relying on machine translation risks making
businesses and products appear careless or even questionable, and there is a
significant difference in performance between translated copy and localised
copy.
• Even within languages, there are big differences in how they are used across
markets. For example, the use of English varies across English-speaking
markets:
• Britons say ‘sweets’, Americans say ‘candy’, and Australians say ‘lollies’
• What is known as a ‘truck’ in American and Australian English is called a ‘lorry’ in the
UK
• What might be called a ‘vacation rental’ in the US might be called a ‘holiday let’ in the
UK
• In the US, ‘soccer’ is what is known as ‘football’ in other English-speaking countries

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Six tips for cross-cultural UX – summary:
1. Don’t assume that countries which are near each other,
are like each other
2. Research local user interface patterns
3. Identify the market’s primary devices and connectivity
4. Conduct user research
5. Use both qualitative and quantitative data to understand
users
6. Localise marketing and web copy

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The right UX partner can help
• Although the task of cross-cultural UX can seem
daunting, the right partner can help make it
manageable. To find out how Oban’s network of Local
In-Market Experts – LIMEs – can create competitive
advantage for your business, please get in touch.
• Connect with Oban International on social media by
clicking on the icons below:
About Oban International
Oban International is the leading digital marketing
agency for international growth.
By identifying our clients'​ biggest opportunities for global
expansion - and ensuring they avoid costly mistakes - we
help ambitious brands hit tough global targets.
Since 2002, we have worked with a wide variety of
businesses to develop market strategies, optimise
performance in existing markets and launch into new
ones.
Our core team of digital experts, based in our Brighton
UK HQ, work with insights from our unique network of
LIMEs (Local In-Market Experts). Together, they plan and
deliver powerful digital strategies and campaigns in any
market on the planet.