Oban International

03/09/2026

Sometimes, expanding into a new market can look deceptively simple 🌍 There’s a large population, a growing category, manageable competition and a product that’s already working well elsewhere, so the opportunity can seem fairly obvious.

It’s only when you get into the detail that some of the complications start to emerge. Customers may be more price-sensitive than expected, local competitors may have distribution well covered, marketplaces may be more important than anticipated, and returns and fulfilment can make a noticeable difference to the economics 💸

AI brings another complication. It can make research and localisation much faster, but it can also make it easier to move ahead with assumptions that haven’t been properly tested.

Our latest article looks at the less obvious costs of expanding internationally, from local competition and customer trust to localisation, AI-shaped search, operational readiness and the practical realities of selling abroad.

Read more here 👉 https://buff.ly/VXJjrS6

Expanding into a new market involves more than finding demand. Discover nine hidden costs businesses need to consider before entering a new market.

27/08/2026

📣 Google recently changed how Target CPA and Target ROAS campaigns behave when they're limited by budget.

The practical consequence? Campaigns that have been consistently beating their targets may start moving closer to them 🎯

That raises a bigger question: is the target in your Google Ads account really the outcome you want?

Our latest article looks at what Google's change means for advertisers, why a higher CPA isn't necessarily worse performance, and why this matters even more when you're managing campaigns across different markets.

Read the full article: https://buff.ly/fWZDzZC

Our take on the latest Google Ads bidding update: what it means for Target CPA and ROAS, and why advertisers should rethink their targets.

20/08/2026

There is a global AI race underway 🚀 The US and China are far ahead of everyone else, with a huge lead in investment, computing power, research and frontier models.

But who comes next, and what does it mean to win? 🏆️

For Britain, the question is particularly interesting. The UK has world-class universities, Google DeepMind, a strong technology sector and significant AI investment, but faces growing challenges around power, data centres and physical infrastructure.

Elsewhere, countries are building different advantages 🌍 France has nuclear power, South Korea and Taiwan dominate critical parts of the chip supply chain, Singapore has exceptional adoption, India has scale and the Gulf is investing heavily in infrastructure.

Our latest article looks at how these different approaches are shaping the global AI economy, and where Britain fits into it.

Read the full article: https://buff.ly/ITzS5co

The US and China dominate AI, but countries including Britain, France, Singapore, India and South Korea are building different advantages.

19/08/2026

We've made the shortlist at the 2026 M&M Global Awards! 🎉

Our work for Big Bus Tours has been recognised in the Best Campaign for Tourism & Travel category.

A big well done to our brilliant team for all their hard work - fingers crossed for another win! 🤞

13/08/2026

We have better technology than ever. So why does so much of the internet feel harder to use, more intrusive and less useful? 😒

That question sits behind our latest article, based on the next instalment of Viewpoints, Oban’s forthcoming booklet exploring what has gone wrong with today’s internet, how technology is changing digital experiences, and what organisations can do to build something better.

💬 We asked members of the Oban team where they think digital marketing is heading, and a few themes came through strongly: the pressure to optimise everything, the impact of AI on creativity, and the difficulty of measuring what really matters.

Read the article here: https://buff.ly/y5sME3M

The internet has never been more powerful. We explore how AI and optimisation are changing online experiences, and what brands can do better.

12/08/2026

We’ve won a Bronze Stevie Award at the 2026 International Business Awards! 🎉

Our work with Big Bus Tours has been recognised in the Achievement in Travel / Tourism / Destination category

A huge congratulations to our brilliant team for all their hard work 🌍🚌
. .

Learn more about Oban's award-winning work here: https://buff.ly/e09pyRy

06/08/2026

For years, multilingual e-commerce focused on translating websites and optimising keywords.

But today, products need to be understood consistently by customers, search engines and AI systems in every market you serve. That means thinking beyond translation to local language, local intent and local context 💭

In our latest article, we explore the concept of the semantic gap - the difference between how brands describe products, how customers search for them and how AI interprets those signals 💡

We also share a practical six-step framework to help international retailers improve visibility across global markets ✅

Read the full article here: https://buff.ly/jHL1dNY

Learn how global e-commerce brands can bridge the gap between different languages and how AI search engines understand products.

05/08/2026

We're finalists at the 2026 Global Search Awards! 🎉

Our work has been shortlisted in three categories:

🏆 Best Integrated Campaign (Large) — AXA Global Healthcare
🏆 Best Global PPC Campaign (Large) — Big Bus Tours
🏆 Best Use of Search – Travel / Leisure (PPC – Large) — Big Bus Tours

We’re incredibly proud of our team for all their hard work producing excellent results for our clients. Keep your fingers crossed for us! 🤞

30/07/2026

The biggest mistake brands make in New Zealand? Treating it as a smaller Australia ❌️

In reality, it’s a high-expectation market where trust is built through local relevance, clear delivery promises and frictionless ex*****on ✅

Read our New Zealand country profile to learn more: https://obaninternational.com/country-profiles/new-zealand/

27/07/2026

ICYMI: August is on the horizon, and it might actually be your best window for getting ahead ☀️

Fewer distractions. More space for strategy. Better conditions for fixing the stuff that never makes it onto the Q4 to-do list ✅

We wrote about why B2B teams shouldn’t write August off, and what to focus on instead.

Catch up now:

Don’t let August drift by. It’s a useful time to get ahead on SEO, AI search readiness, and the strategic work you never get round to.