Business And Language Translation: Top Ten Tips - By: Jamie Simpson

For businesses thinking of going global, it is important to note that people who speak English as their first language are below 30% of online users. Not that the value of English is any less when it comes to international communications, it is just that languages like Chinese, Russian, and Spanish are gaining importance. When a website is localized into the top ten most important languages, a business has the capacity to reach 80% of the global purchasing power through the net. Concentrating on the top three languages; English, Chinese and Japanese means a business can have access to 50% of online users.

Starting a localized online marketing campaign can be complicated. Phrases or images that are enticing in one culture may be insulting or not have the same impact in another. Following are ten helpful hints for making cross cultural campaigns successful.

1. Have the original material studied by someone in the local market for pictures, phrases or concepts that might not work.

2. Allow sufficient budget and time as the same timelines and costs do not work when translating technical or business material. As text content tends to be open to interpretation, headlines, taglines and copy require several revisions to get the desired result. Also, try to use a single translator to maintain consistency of style.

3. Know the target audience before sending text to a translator. Determining if the project is global or regional will allow for better focusing. If, for instance, the project is only for Latin American countries a specific regional translation may be more appropriate, but if it is for a global audience then "global" Spanish may be better suited.

4. Decide which style or tone is to be adopted and whether it should be formal or informal.

5. Inform the translator of what objective the text should achieve, as well as the style desired.

6. Review a sample early to make sure the work is on the desired track. A team should be in place to review the sample from the start of the project, as reworking the style requires time and the sooner an error is corrected the better.

7. Allow sufficient time for feedback from reviewers. Language is subjective and reactions may be strong, so time will be needed for analysis of reviews, harmonization and implementation.

8. Where possible, make use of universal symbols. European countries especially have standard and International Organization of Standardization (ISO) approved symbols for things like recycle, shelf life, or ironing. This allows for better comprehension and a saving of space.

9. Slogans and taglines are very difficult to localize and it takes a lot of time and care. Additional time and attention should be provided for this. Getting one slogan to work in all markets is tricky, and that is why a single global slogan is rare. McDonald's didn't come up with theirs until 2003 and it was run in English only in most countries.

10. Keep space limitations in mind as some languages require more space compared to English. Packaging or the instruction & information page may need revision for localization.

If you follow these tips, you should be able to get the most out of language translation.

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