Many French brands treat Israel as a conventional export market: translate the website, offer delivery and launch ads. The usual result is traffic, few sales and a test budget spent without clear insights.
A successful launch is closer to a series of controlled tests. Here is the order to run them in.
What to validate before spending your first euro on ads
-
Is there already demand? Check Hebrew and English search volumes in Google Keyword Planner, and competitors’ ads in the Meta Ad Library
-
Is your advantage still compelling at the final price? Israeli VAT has been 18% since 1 January 2025. Factor in shipping, returns and any customs duties
-
Does your business model rely on a customs rule? The VAT exemption threshold for personal imports rose from $75 to $150 in December 2025, then returned to $75 on 2 June 2026. Cross-border pricing built around this threshold is vulnerable
-
Can you serve the customer? Actual delivery times, Hebrew-speaking customer support and returns management
Adapt the offer before translating the website
“Made in France” is a selling point, not an offer. It matters when you make it tangible: expertise, ingredients or materials, and a comparison with locally available alternatives.
What we most often revise:
-
bundle sizes and the free-delivery threshold,
-
card instalments (tashlumim), which customers expect for larger purchases,
-
a returns policy written in Hebrew and visible before purchase
Launch in successive audience groups, not all at once
-
Warm audiences. French speakers living in Israel and existing French customers who have moved there. Fast, low-cost learning, but a limited market
-
The Hebrew-speaking audience. Hebrew-first creatives, a localised landing page and local social proof
-
Expansion. English speakers, new categories and marketplaces
The common mistake is judging the country’s potential from the first group, or approaching the second with creatives designed for France.
Which role should each channel play?
-
Meta Ads creates demand and quickly tests messaging angles and offers. With a smaller audience than in France, consolidating campaigns matters even more
-
Google Search captures existing demand. Initially limited when the brand is unknown, but valuable for category searches
-
Shopping and Performance Max become relevant once the product feed is localised and priced in shekels. Israel is among the countries supported by Merchant Center
-
Influencer marketing builds local social proof faster, provided you treat each piece of content as an ad creative to test
Measure what matters from day one
Meta Pixel and Conversions API, Google enhanced conversions, and separate UTM parameters for each language and audience group.
Also track what the dashboards miss: return rates, customer-support requests and CAC by audience group. Set decision checkpoints, for example every four weeks, instead of reacting day by day.
Further reading
Sources
-
Sovos — Israel: VAT Rate Increase to 18% from January 1, 2025 (December 2024)
https://sovos.com/regulatory-updates/vat/israel-vat-rate-increase-to-18-from-january-1-2025/ -
The Times of Israel — ‘It can be cheap here’: Smotrich raises VAT exemption on overseas orders to $150 (December 2025)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/it-can-be-cheap-here-smotrich-raises-vat-exemption-on-overseas-orders-to-150/ -
ICL Global — VAT Exemption Threshold for Personal Imports to Israel Updated (June 2026)
https://www.iclglobal.com/news_update/vat-exemption-threshold-for-personal-imports-to-israel-updated/ -
Google Merchant Center Help — How to fix: Country where you sell products not supported (supported country list)
https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/12472394?hl=en
