How a translation service can help grow your business1. THAT’S WHY THEY CALL IT THE WORLDWIDE WEB! English, Spanish and Chinese represent only 30% of the world’s spoken languages by population. These three languages, however, make up 60% of Internet users. In the world today there are more than 1.65 billion Internet users, and this number is growing. You already have your website in English. By providing your website’s content in Spanish and Chinese you have the potential to reach nearly ONE BILLION Internet users. And bear in mind that in the past few years Arabic, Russian and Portuguese online audiences have increased dramatically. 2. BEWARE OF DO-IT-YOURSELF PROJECTS. Just because someone speaks a foreign language does not make that person a translator. The Costa Rican native who works in your mailroom is probably not the best choice to translate your advertising and packaging needs for the South American market. By the same token, many companies with overseas offices – to spare expense – will use local employees to do their translations. These are not professional translators and rarely have sufficient familiarity with American English. Professional translators have a clear, in-depth and fluent grasp of at least two languages: a mother tongue and a foreign language. Translation is a skill requiring the ability to write well and understand linguistic subtleties. Accurate translations cannot be achieved without a knowledge of the cultural differences behind the language. 3. IF THEY CAN’T READ IT THEY WON’T BUY IT. From an e-commerce survey: more than 50% of non-English speakers only buy from web-sites where information is in their own language. People with little or no English skills were six times more likely not to buy from English only sites. And nearly 60% said that information written in their own language was more important than low price when making a buying decision. The same holds true for packaging, instruction manuals, etc. that are in English only. 4. COMPUTERS AREN’T THAT SMART. If you need to only get the gist of something written in a foreign language you can run it through Google or Yahoo translation software. But anything that is to be printed or posted on the Internet has to be translated by professional translators. Language is too subtle and fluid, with many words having multiple meanings. Machine translation software does not understand this. An example: the first sentence of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (“Four score and seven years…”) can, of course, be translated into French by computer assisted translation. But if this French version is then translated back into English using a machine, here is the result: “Four points and there are seven years our fathers produced on this continent, a new nation, designed in freedom, and devoted to the proposal that all the men equal are created.” Is this the impression you want to create for your prospect or client? 5. WHERE DO WE START? You’ve decided you want to expand your business beyond local or regional markets and dive into international waters. Although cost is always a consideration when allocating the marketing budget, the issue of money is not really a concern when it comes to the use of translations. The major stumbling block is not knowing where or how to begin the process. This is where the professional translation agency becomes your invaluable ally. Based on your goals, the agency can advise you on what really needs to be translated; what version of a language to use (French for Canada or Paris? Portuguese for Brazil or Lisbon?); the agency will also select a translator with special knowledge and skills that match your company’s expertise, making sure your message is culturally correct. To ensure that your entry into the global market will meet with success, Download this page as a PDF - click this link Courtesy of Bay Translations; “Going Global Is Easy With Us” |
