In a hyper-connected world with differing cultures, AYDEA believes brands can become a familiar anchor and create a sense of belonging through storytelling.
Shifting consumer preferences and behavior will drive the need for increasingly local narratives that allow people to discover and reconnect with their heritage and values.
Cultural capital and regional heritage have become increasingly commoditized.
We help brands gain an edge over global competition and adapt to “glocalization” by creating meaningful connections and facilitating dialogues with local market participants. This enables you to resonate with local cultural values and audiences while investing in local communities and causes.
By leveraging cultural DNA and brand equity while integrating and aligning with local values, brands can cultivate new experiences that are relatable and accessible to local audiences. Soft power is key to fostering multi-cultural understanding and bringing people together across borders – and markets.
Every brand has an “essence” that embodies a company’s goals, philosophy, and values. It is our passion to help our clients capture and communicate their brand’s essence in unfamiliar markets. By formulating strategies to communicate with local audiences in a way that fits with local values, beliefs, and lifestyles, we help foster brand awareness and loyalty.
We believe there is great opportunity for small businesses, craftsmen, and global brands alike to capture value by targeting niche markets in uncharted frontiers, and at the core of these opportunities is effective cultural communication and understanding. As consumers continue to place increasing importance on a brand’s purpose, vision and values, we believe that managing cross-cultural communication will too become an important facet of a brand’s strategic development.
Ayaka is a bilingual (English & Japanese) multicultural marketing strategist. Ayaka’s passion is helping brands communicate in unfamiliar territories through digital communication. As a Tokyo native who moved to the American Midwest, US at the age of 14, Ayaka first-handedly experienced cross-cultural challenges, and now she thrives on cultural exploration. After living in some of the world’s most vibrant cities- including London, Geneva, Paris, Shanghai, San Francisco, Boston and New York City, she leverages her diverse background to help brands expand globally and connect with target audiences a local touch. Before starting her own practice, Ayaka worked as a Director of Strategy Consulting at a consulting & creative agency based in San Francisco, CA. She has also worked at Rakuten HQ (in Tokyo), the largest e-commerce platform in Japan, where she consulted over 150 Japanese businesses with their B2C marketing and growth strategies and digital commerce operations. As a dynamic and goal-focused professional, she utilizes a unique combination of creativity, passion for branding, international experience and teamwork to design and execute solutions that create customer value.
Ayaka often gives talks, seminars and workshops on cross-cultural communication, marketing and branding strategy for international audiences.