The crowd is your ace: Playing FMCG’s internationalization game

Business Horizons. 2026. Article In Press, Journal Pre-proof.

Текич А., Nguen C. M.

Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) firms face intense pressure to internationalize, yet the traditional playbook—lengthy R&D cycles, costly market research, and standardized campaigns—often struggles to deliver local relevance at speed. This article argues that crowdsourcing—digitally mediated, large-scale consumer participation—can complement established internationalization tools by mobilizing local knowledge and community endorsement to mitigate key aspects of the liability of foreignness. We develop a 2×2 framework that links internationalization stage (market entry vs. market strengthening) with strategic objective (innovation vs. brand engagement), yielding four actionable plays—Co-Create to Land, Buzz to Break In, Refresh to Compete, and Engage to Endure—illustrated with international FMCG cases drawn from publicly available secondary sources. We outline how well-designed participation can support faster demand sensing, stronger cultural fit and legitimacy, and sharper assortment decisions through limited drops and scale-or-retire rules. At the same time, we identify recurrent pitfalls—accusations of unpaid creative labor, moderation failures and campaign hijacks, and cultural or representational missteps—and argue that governance is not an afterthought but a precondition for value capture. The article offers practical guidance on selecting the right play at the right time to reduce risk, accelerate adaptation, and build more durable competitiveness across markets.

Ключевые слова: FMCG, crowdsourcing, internationalization