By Hannah Brown, Head of Content at e-Residency
In this week’s edition of Cross-Cultural Communication we meet Hannah Brown from Estonia’s e-Residency. Hannah shares how her small but dedicated team localizes content for a global audience, builds an international community, and navigates everyday challenges—from bridging language gaps to handling regulatory changes. She also offers a glimpse at what’s ahead for this groundbreaking digital residency program and provides a “utopian” strategy for replicating Estonia’s e-Residency Program.
Introducing Hannah and Estonia’s e-Residency Program
Hannah Brown is the Head of Content at e-Residency, a government program in Estonia that provides a digital identity to non-Estonian entrepreneurs. In her role, she helps enable individuals from anywhere in the world to start and manage an Estonian company remotely. Although the e-Residency team is small—just over twenty people—its mission is massive: to raise global awareness of Estonia’s digital-forward services. Hannah’s focus on clear, effective communication ensures the program continues to reach and support entrepreneurs worldwide.
And with that introduction, we hand over to Hannah to tell e-Residency’s Cross-Cultural Communication story.
Why Localization Matters at e-Residency
E-Residency recently celebrated its 10 year anniversary. Over that period, localization has played an increasing role in our communication strategy. It has been a balancing act though for two big reasons. Firstly, the e-Residency application process is only available in English or Estonian. Secondly, e-residents can only use Estonia’s e-services in English, Estonian, or Russian. This has always created a bit of tension for us marketing the program: if we translated all our content into multiple languages, people might expect to do the entire application in their own language, which isn’t possible.
Despite that gap, we recognized that if we wanted to be truly market-centric, we had to localize. We started by experimenting with landing pages in various languages (e.g. Ukrainian, Turkish, Brazilian Portugese). Then, about three years ago, we translated our entire main website (and much of our blog and Knowledge Base) into Spanish and later German. This year we are testing new markets and localization will likely be a core part of our marketing strategy.
Localizing for Results
When we launched the Spanish version of our site, we saw a jump in applications from Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries—places like Argentina, Chile, and Mexico. We didn’t initially have pickup locations there, but the translated information motivated people to apply. Now that we’re opening more pickup points in Latin America, we’ll continue to offer new content and resources in the Spanish version of e-Residency .
With German localization, the impact was less dramatic. Part of that might be because many Germans speak English well and have been applying for years. Or perhaps having all the tax details in German made people realize just how detailed the process is. That’s speculation, but it might be a factor!
Of course, translating content is only one part of the puzzle; the next hurdle is communicating complex regulatory changes effectively.
Communicating Regulatory Changes
Whenever there are regulatory changes—like new tax laws or changes to application fees—we typically communicate in English. Ideally, we’d do that in multiple languages, but sometimes constraints (including resources) can limit us.
Still, we’re making efforts. For instance, my Spanish speaking colleague ran a Spanish-language webinar, in which he covered updated tax laws and fees, and invited several service providers to share practical details. Another colleague resides full-time in Berlin, and speaks regularly at events, conferences, and community meetups in German about e-Residency, business in Estonia, and taxation topics. We’ll continue exploring ways to provide these types of updates in other languages, but it’s definitely a work in progress.
Even the best-laid plans can be misunderstood if language barriers exist. So how do we handle cultural misunderstandings—and where can AI help?
Cultural Misunderstandings and AI Tools
We haven’t had any major cultural misunderstandings that come to mind, though our support team often receives questions in various languages. They’ll translate them first and then reply in English (to ensure accurate, consistent information).
We’re slowly incorporating AI into our communication process. I’ve personally trained an OpenAI ChatGPT on our messaging, values, and tone of voice so our team can quickly generate things like event descriptions, blog post outlines, and social media content. Interestingly, my Spanish-speaking colleague uses it in Spanish and finds it effective. We haven’t specifically used AI for translation, but it’s exciting to see how these tools evolve.
Building a Diverse Multi-Cultural e-Residency Team
We’ve always been mindful about hiring people who can help us tap into key regions. We’re currently recruiting a new business development colleague who must speak at least one of the languages of our new target markets. That’s a direct reflection of the markets we want to explore.
In our marketing team of four, we rely on an external agency for translations and copy in languages we don’t speak, with much appreciated support from our multilingual colleagues. For example, last year we launched ad campaigns in Spanish and German, with specific messaging tailored to Spain and Germany respectively, in addition to a global English campaign. This helps us reach people in their native language, but it takes a bit longer to make sure the messaging is correct and relevant.
Fostering e-Residency’s Worldwide Community
Before COVID, we held a lot of in-person events in different countries, often organized by local e-residents who really wanted to build community. We gave them small budgets for venues, drinks, or snacks. Then COVID hit, and we shifted to webinars—some of which we conducted partly or entirely in local languages.
Now, we’re getting back to in-person events but keeping some online elements. For instance, in Spain we recently supported a series of meetups hosted by service providers and active e-residents. In Germany, we have a colleague who frequently attends events and partners with a local co-working space. Each country is different; Spain and Germany happen to have more frequent gatherings than some others. Our event calendar is filled with activities.
One of the biggest events on the calendar in Tallinn is Latitude59, which has become something like an annual ‘pilgrimage’ for e-residents in May every year. Many e-residents come, and we host a fun and informative ‘Study Trip’ around the city, visiting startups, accelerators, and coworking spaces. Events like that are very popular, and we hope to grow this event even more this year.
Harnessing the Power of Spokespeople
One key to building community is our “Spokespeople Program.” We identify e-residents who are engaged and successful in their fields—people who enjoy sharing their knowledge and connecting with others. Some become “envoys,” while others become “community leaders.”
- Envoys typically join us at conferences or speak on our behalf for media opportunities.
- Community leaders organize events where other e-residents can meet, learn, and network.
They all receive training about e-Residency’s messaging, values, and even the program’s more challenging points (banking and taxes). We also offer media training that includes on-camera practice with real journalists, which helps them field difficult questions in a diplomatic yet transparent way.
Measuring Impact and Gathering Feedback
We pay attention to feedback through webinars, community events, and especially our Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys. While those surveys are currently only in English, we do segment results by country. Banking and taxes consistently top the list of concerns.
That’s pushed us to expand our “marketplace” of service providers who assist with company formation, accounting, and tax guidance. Now, more of these providers speak multiple languages, which helps e-residents operate seamlessly, even if they can’t navigate Estonian or English e-services on their own.
Estonia’s Global Reputation
E-Residency often provides people with their first impression of Estonia. For me personally, before moving here, I remember thinking, “Is this all too good to be true?” But having lived in Estonia for five years, I’ve experienced the government’s digital services firsthand, and it really does work.
I believe that resonates with our e-residents too. Once they start their Estonian businesses and see how seamless the digital systems are, they tend to become brand advocates, proudly sharing that they’re e-residents on social media. This creates a kind of “soft power” for Estonia—where thousands of entrepreneurs around the world feel a genuine connection to this small, tech-forward country.
Injecting Estonia’s Cultural Flavor
People sometimes ask if we weave Estonian culture or stereotypes into our marketing. We have used this approach in our video content, by showcasing the Estonian language and delightful delicacies. We also include articles about Estonian cultural topics on our blog and in our monthly newsletter from time to time. We also have some fun and humorous ideas to test – we’ll see where that goes… But we’re definitely open to fun ways of letting Estonia’s unique culture shine through.
A Model for Other Digital Residency Programs—e-Residency’s Utopia
If other countries are considering similar digital residency initiatives, I think the ideal—or “utopian”—scenario would be to have all government services available in multiple languages. That would let people handle every step in their native language, eliminating confusion. However, that’s quite ambitious. Realistically, beginning with English or another widely spoken language is a smart approach. It’s exactly what we did at e-Residency—Estonians speak English well, so this allowed us to start simply.
From there, it’s crucial to adopt a market-focused strategy. If a country really wants to bring in new entrepreneurs from specific regions, localization efforts will have to reflect those target markets. For instance, Ukraine recently introduced its own digital residency, but it’s limited to certain countries. Given the diverse linguistic landscape, they’ll likely need to offer support beyond just Ukrainian or English if they want to truly serve those new audiences.
Ultimately, for a digital residency program to succeed, communication and localization need to extend beyond just advertising or an initial website. It’s about ensuring that once people dive into the “nuts and bolts” of government systems—like tax registration or banking—they can navigate it without language barriers. That kind of comprehensive approach is what really sets e-Residency apart and could serve as a model for others.
Future Communication & Localization Plans
This year is the last of our current growth strategy (2022–2025). Right now, we’re drawing up a new strategy that will take us further. From what I can see so far, we’re likely to double down on a market-by-market approach, which means localization will become even more important. We’ll just have to balance how many pages or articles we translate for each new market so that people understand what they’re getting into without expecting an entirely local-language application process.
In short, whether we’re doing events in Barcelona, launching new pickup points in Buenos Aires, or hosting creative industries webinars online, our primary goal remains the same: making sure entrepreneurs worldwide can discover and benefit from Estonia’s digital-first approach to business.
