• Skip to Content
  • Skip to Main Navigation
  • Skip to Information Links
  • Skip to Site Search
  • Skip to Footer
  • Skip to Accessibility Information
  • Home Page

Information Links

Haymarket Marketing Communications:

  • PRWeek
  • Campaign US
  • MM+M
  • 30-Day Trial
  • Register
  • Sign in
  • Search
  • Menu
  • US|
  • UK|
  • Middle East|
  • Asia

PR Week Global

  • Menu
  • Search

Main Navigation

Menu

Main Navigation

  • US|
  • UK|
  • Middle East|
  • Asia
  • News
      News
    • Breakfast Briefing
    • Agency
    • Consumer
    • Corporate
    • Public Affairs
    • Technology
    • Healthcare
    • Case Studies
    • Media
    • Videos
    • Events and Awards
    Show
  • In-depth
      In-depth
    • Cannes 2021
    • Women of Distinction
    • Bellwether Survey 2021
    • Hall of Fame
    • Agency Business Report
    • 40 Under 40
    • Salary Survey
    • Health Influencer 30
    • Power List
    • Best Places to Work
    • Places to Be 2022
    • Newsmakers
    • Custom Events
    • Career Guide
    Show
  • People in PR
      People in PR
    • Pets in PR
    • CEO Focus
    • CMO Focus
    • Opinion
    • Around the office
    • Coffee Break
    • Lockdown Life
    • Don Spetner
    • Steve Barrett on PR
    • Femme Forward
    • Pride in PR
    Show
  • Resources
      Resources
    • Ebooks
    • Digital Editions
    • Cannes 2021
    • Campaign Case Studies
    • Dashboard
    • Podcasts
    • Bellwether Survey 2022
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • Agency Business Report
    • Places to Be 2022
    • Contact Directory
    • Jobs
    • Renew
    • Salary Survey
    • Subscribe
    Show
  • Events
      Events
    • PRWeek Global Awards
    • Brand Film Awards
    • PRWeek US Awards
    • Women of Distinction
    • PRWeek Connect
    • PRDecoded
    • PRWeek 40 Under 40
    • PRWeek Purpose Awards
    • Healthcare & Pharma Comms Awards
    • Webcasts
    • Hall of Fame
    • Custom Events
    Show
  • Jobs
  • Directory
  • Breakfast Briefing
  • Agency
  • Consumer
  • Corporate
  • Public Affairs
  • Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Case Studies
  • Media
  • Videos
  • Events and Awards

  • Trending :
  • Pride in PR
  • Agency Business Report
  • Cannes 2022
  • Brand Film Awards
  • PRWeek Global Awards

Partner content

In partnership with

Havas PR

Forget going global: localism is where it's at

Localism - the mashing together of local focus and global awareness - has echoes of that old activist mantra "Think global, act local," but with a 21st-century twist.

by Marian Salzman, Havas PR / November 05, 2015

Tweet
Share
Forget going global: localism is where it's at

For a long time, the thing to do was "Go global."

It wasn’t that hard, and got increasingly easier, with the evolution of technology and the availability of goods and services from pretty much anywhere. Compared with previous generations, we are all more globally connected and aware, and more affected by global events.

In the end, we didn’t have to "go global" as we became globalists by default.

But then, we as citizens were instructed (and as marketers were instructing) to act, buy, eat, and even love locally (hey, there, Tinder) while thinking globally. Such talk began really burbling up toward the end of the recession, when more of us had a little money in our pockets but were still feeling protective of it and wanted to spend it thoughtfully.

As the exhilaration of being able to tap into limitless virtual connections wears off simultaneously, more of us have felt a very real desire for flesh-and-blood sensory experiences that connect us to places.

A lot of what we learned from our immersion in the world beyond our reach is coming home to feed our local yearnings. Consumers have come to appreciate products that derive from a specific place with its own standout character and quirks.

It’s what the French call terroir – the tangible sense of a place with its own distinctive conditions, taste, and story. It’s a premium branding point for products imported from special places abroad, like Parma ham and Champagne, but it’s also becoming increasingly desirable if that somewhere is local and familiar and wears its origins with pride.

These were among the observations that led Havas PR North America, the agency where I am CEO, to field a survey of Americans about their feelings of connectedness. We found that because the wider world is largely perceived as going to hell in a hand basket, many of us are hunkering down. The majority of respondents identify themselves as "a hometown person" (53%), prefer to shop locally if possible (65%), and even prefer to have sex locally; 75% said they prefer great sex in their own bed to great sex in a hotel bed.

As more of us curate a local life and begin to prize all things small (startups) and tiny (houses), I can’t help but wonder if it’s in response to the big, messy world that we’re all so much more aware of than before – Afghanistan, Iraq, al-Qaida, the Islamic State, Syria, Russia, the Greek debt crisis, the fading hope of the BRICs and so much more.

An increasing number of people tune in intently to what is local to them, wherever they might be. Our agency is calling this localism – the mashing together of local focus and global awareness. It has echoes of that old activist mantra "Think global, act local," but with a 21st-century twist.

I’ve long been part of the herky-jerky discussion about this mindset, proclaiming "Local is the new global" as long ago as 2007. But Havas PR is walking the walk when it comes to localism with more purpose than ever. And that’s why our Pittsburgh office flourishes and why we have chosen to build offices in Phoenix and Providence that have really taken off – including winning the Rhode Island tourism account, the ultimate local marketing dream assignment. We’re living this trend.

Localism is more than just the way we feel about where we live and the global village:It’s about what makes us feel happy and safe. It’s the new American mindset (and increasingly the mentality in many other countries, too). In a chaotic world that feels out of our control, this is a good thing. Local is more manageable and controllable, and more of us are deciding that our best hope for making a difference is to act locally.

Marian Salzman is CEO of Havas PR North America and chair of the Havas PR Global Collective.

  • Global
  • Havas PR North America
Tweet
Share

Have you registered with us yet?

Register now to enjoy more articles and free email bulletins

Register
Already registered?
Sign in

Resources

  • Pride in PR

  • Brand Film Awards

  • Healthcare & Pharma Communications Awards

  • Agency Business Report

  • Bellwether Survey

  • Women of Distinction

  • PRWeek US Awards

  • Salary Survey

  • Dashboard 25

  • Best Places to Work

  • Hall of Fame

  • Health Influencer 30

  • Purpose Awards

  • PRDecoded

  • 40 Under 40

  • The Power List

  • Webinars

  • Find a Job

  • Podcasts

  • Subscribe to PRWeek

Resources

Up next:

TikTok said it is focusing on the rollout of its U.K. TikTok Shop platform.

TikTok disputes report it is 'abandoning' live shopping expansion in Europe

Breakfast Briefing: 5 things for PR pros to know on Tuesday morning

Breakfast Briefing: 5 things for PR pros to know on Tuesday morning

Brunswick hires Cabinet Office’s chief data officer

Brunswick hires Cabinet Office’s chief data officer

The 2021 New York City Marathon moves through Brooklyn. (Photo credit: Getty Images).

Civic to pace media relations, corp comms for New York Road Runners

PSA: Elmo gets vaxxed

PSA: Elmo gets vaxxed

Integrations run generally six months from identifying the opportunity.

Mediabrands, R&CPMK launch tool to integrate brands with premium content

Breakfast Briefing: 5 things for PR pros to know on Friday morning

Breakfast Briefing: 5 things for PR pros to know on Friday morning

(cbarnesphotography/Getty Images)

RadioShack wreaks havoc on Twitter

(L to R) Anol Bhattacharya, CEO of GetIT; Heather Kernahan, global CEO of Hotwire; Brent Scrimshaw, CEO of Enero Group; and Matt Quirie, CEO of ROI DNA

Hotwire makes double acquisition worth $37.5m

Bastian: 'Things won't change overnight, but we're on a path towards a steady recovery.' (Photo credit: Getty Images).

Delta CEO apologizes for delays, cancellations amid strong travel demand


JOIN, SHARE, LIKE, FOLLOW US ON:

  • f
  • t
  • I
  • l
  • yt
About PRWeek
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Advertise
Subscribe
  • Subscribe to PRWeek
  • Newsletters
  • FAQ
Global
  • PRWeek UK
  • Campaign Asia
Haymarket © Haymarket Media Group Ltd. | Terms & Conditions | Cookie Notice | Privacy Notice
IPSO