Mark Lancaster, chairman and chief executive of web solutions firm.
SDL International, explains to Hubeena Nadeem the importance of a
multilingual approach to marketing and business on the internet.
It may seem obvious, but SDL International's Mark Lancaster can't
emphasise enough how important it is to translate marketing strategies
correctly when launching campaigns in new countries.
Falling into the language trap, as he describes it, is a common mistake
in the internet world, and that goes for both corporate marketing
slogans and web site content.
"For companies to trade successfully on an international scale, they
must translate their web sites into several languages and take local
cultures and customs into account," he warns. "By assuming that only
straightforward translations are required, companies fail to acknowledge
that global communication is a key factor in customer relationship
management."
If this advice is ignored, there could be disastrous consequences for
the firm involved. Numerous blue-chip brands have fallen foul of the
language trap. Beer brand Budweiser, for example, encountered problems
when its UK ad slogan for Bud Lite - 'Delicious, less filling' -
translated into Spanish as 'Filling, less delicious'.
Fast-food giant Kentucky Fried Chicken's UK catch phrase 'finger lickin'
good' suffered an even more unfortunate fate when it was translated for
the Chinese market - the message became 'eat your fingers off'. In
Belgium, General Motors created a stir when its intended strapline 'body
by Fisher' was translated into Flemish as 'corpse by Fisher'.
Lancaster stresses that a major part of marketing products abroad is the
incorporation of culture.
"In Japan, for example, informal chat is frowned upon," he explains.
"Also, illustrations of women instructing men would never be shown. This
is because Japanese culture will always portray a man in a more senior
position than a woman.
If these and other differences are not taken into account, the risk of
offending potential customers runs very high."
You might expect that any marketer or brand manager worth their salt
would consider the pitfalls of translating slogans before any damage
could be done. But Lancaster points out that mistakes are often made as
a result of time shortages, especially where the web is concerned.
"Typically, companies have a really tight timescale, and this means
mistakes are likely to be made. Translation should be included as part
of the overall product and marketing brief and not a last-minute
add-on," he warns.
But forsaking the hassles of translation and presenting a strapline only
in English is not the solution, Lancaster adds.
He points out that much of the world does not speak English as a first
language, and that people obviously prefer to see content directed
towards them in their native tongue.
"According to Merrill Lynch, companies need to translate their web sites
into at least five languages to reach 70 per cent of Europe's audience,"
he says. "It is absolutely critical to get local and cultural needs
right, whatever the medium, as a damaged online brand will affect the
offline brand. Offline issues such as multilingual call centres also
need to be addressed. Offline and online strategies must complement each
other."
Lancaster advises companies to plan their international strategies
carefully before implementation. "Research the potential of online
markets before launching into them and ensure appropriate distribution
networks are set up," he says.
But he does believe that businesses are beginning to take multilingual
content seriously. For instance, in the run up to the 2002 World Cup,
the official web site for the football tournament (www.fifaworldcup.com)
has for the first time translated its content into five different
languages, instead of the usual two. The site can now be read in
English, Spanish, French, Japanese and Korean, which shows that the site
has acknowledged that not everyone communicates in English.
Lancaster finds it surprising that FIFA didn't go one step further in
its translation, for an event that is one of the largest on the world
stage and attracts interest from virtually every corner of the globe.
Given that China has just qualified for the tournament for the first
time in its history, he believes the site's content should also have
been translated into Chinese - one of the most widely used languages in
the world - in addition to the languages of the host countries Japan and
Korea.
Lancaster hopes that other organisations will follow FIFA and online
partner Yahoo!'s example in the future and ensure that web site content
is provided in several languages. He adds that wherever you want to do
business around the world, you need to be able to speak in your trading
partner's language.
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