Consider this: a staggering 88.5% of the Netherlands' gross domestic product (GDP) comes from exports, with Belgium at 84.2%, and Denmark at 68%. These robust export figures underscore a fundamental truth: for many businesses in our region, international expansion isn’t an optional add-on — it is the lifeblood of their economies.
For marketing agencies, these aren't just abstract figures either — they represent a clear opportunity. International growth is the engine for sustained success, an ability to tap into new customer bases for their clients, and a vital pathway to diversify revenue streams. This is especially important when we consider aspects like trade tariffs and an increasingly volatile global landscape.
In 2025, the international growth playbook for agencies is built on hard data, deep cultural understanding, and a commitment to building in-house expertise.
Expanding into a foreign market is a long-term commitment — don’t expect overnight success. It takes time to establish a brand, create a loyal customer base, and build a strong foundation.
Companies, and the agencies that help them, that succeed in international expansion invest the time and resources necessary to build strong foundations, knowing that results may not be immediate.
And those strong foundations begin not with a hunch, but with hard data. When domestic growth plateaus, the world beyond your borders beckons. But knowing where to start your exploration can be a challenge.
Dtch Digitals is a Dutch agency that has been around since 1973 and has embraced tools like Google's Market Finder to move beyond guesswork and identify international markets brimming with potential for their clients.
“One of our clients, a cutlery brand, had great success in the Netherlands, and they were considering expanding to the U.K.,” explains Bram Lucas, operations and innovation director at Dtch Digitals. “Market Finder showed us that Germany, surprisingly, offered a much larger market for them, with lower entry costs. It was a real 'aha!' moment that completely changed their strategy.”
By using Market Finder, the agency was able to discover that monthly searches for the 'cutlery' segment in Germany are 3million a month higher compared to the U.K.. Plus advertising competitiveness in that same segment is much lower:
Data analysis helps pinpoint opportunities that might have been overlooked through conventional wisdom, “gut instinct”, or geographical proximity alone. Uncovering markets with rapid growth potential or a less saturated competitive environment, as well as economic indicators like GDP per capita, can signal the purchasing power of consumers.
Good data insights can also help you understand which of your clients have headroom for growth. Especially when this data utilises the power of AI. “We were looking for a fast and efficient way to map the international growth potential of our clients,” continues Lucas. “We discovered that organisations selling software or SaaS products are easily scalable internationally because they have few logistical barriers to international expansion.”
Subsequently, the agency used Google’s Gemini to quickly identify which of its clients met this condition and were able to advise on international growth opportunities specifically to this segment.
Entering a new international market requires more than language translation. It requires a deep understanding of local nuances, and the ease of doing business in different markets, such as regulatory hurdles or logistical complexities.
"Another client, a Dutch supplier of health supplements, aimed to really make waves in the U.S.,” says Lucas. “To establish a strong presence there, we advised them to feature Mastercard and Visa as their top payment options, and chose UPS as their local logistics partner. They ensured these labels were highly visible throughout the entire buyer journey and these seemingly small tweaks made a huge difference in conversion rate.”
Other things to think about include trust markers local consumers look for on a website — e.g. customer reviews and case studies — preferred customer service channels (such as chat, email, or phone), and even things like local attitudes towards ‘sale’ items.
One example we have seen is that when expanding into Germany, clients see an uplift in conversion rate from the moment they establish a German office with a local phone number. This improves trust and confidence from German consumers.
If this is a bridge too far, start with using trust symbols which are generally known and accepted. In Germany this might be a Trusted Shops security badge.
Agencies who want to go above and beyond to become leaders for international growth also need to build the right internal capabilities.
Dtch Digitals recognised that they had an opportunity to be seen as an agency leader in international growth for their clients. This starts with designating a dedicated international growth program manager who champions the initiative and takes accountability for its success within the agency.
Dtch Digitals proactively invested in building internal expertise, developing a comprehensive international growth playbook, and implementing a tool built in-house to efficiently assess the international expansion potential of their clients.
“Think of it as a guide that holds our account managers' hands to quickly understand the international growth potential for our clients,” explains Lucas. “We pull together existing campaign data and market insights from all the resources out there into the tool. From this, the client gets immediate, clear insights into opportunities and actionable steps they can take to grow in their current international markets or to even venture into new ones.”
These actionable insights can come in many forms, and with the right team and resources, your agency can help clients act quickly. “For one client, we discovered huge headroom in their current international markets," says Lucas. From the data they could see in the U.K. the market size was 4X bigger, average order value was 33% higher, and costs were 20% lower than in the domestic country, the Netherlands. These insights exposed huge untapped potential in the U.K.”.
By embracing data-driven insights, committing to deep localisation, and cultivating internal expertise, agencies can unlock exciting new possibilities for both their own growth and the success of their clients in the international arena.
