Translation for Everyone!

 

Some of you have heard the news already. We have another announcement to make! Things just keep getting better and better and we’re so excited to share with you that we have added a satellite office right in the heart of downtown Miami! We’re happy to have yet another way to meet our client’s needs. Our new office is at One Biscayne Tower, 2 South Biscayne Blvd., Suite 3760.

A client was telling me recently that she was feeling apprehensive about translating her marketing materials into Spanish. She knew she needed to do it and she had seen how much doing so had done for her competition, but she just didn’t know how to decide how much to translate, or what exactly to translate… and it was keeping her from doing it at all.

The trick, I told her, is to rely on the expertise of her language services provider (in this case, us!) to evaluate the needs, terms, audience, and even consider the benefits of key terms and glossary development option. Once some key terms have been agreed upon, it is the translator’s job to find the right balance of localized and globalized translation for your materials as per your business priorities.  A broader appeal approach is usually what we recommend, but there are times when that balance needs to be adjusted and that’s part of what we do at Galindo Publicidad.

A multilingual marketing campaign is a powerful communications business tool that should keep your brand and product lines consistent across the globe in any language. This is where your translation service earns their fee; it takes experts to be mindful of this balance for you. And your documents are not cemented; this kind of communication is a living, breathing, malleable thing that must change as our world changes. Check this article on Secrets of SEO Success in Other Languages http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/secrets-of-seo-success-in-other-languages-15072

I think our client was feeling much better once we agreed upon the right approach for her. We were laughing at how smooth and easy it really was to set the right course, and I’m glad we could provide just the right service for her. To discuss ways to get your project going contact us at info@translationsandmore.com and get a fast and easy quote for your company!

All best,

 

Martha

 

 

 

 

 

The US Hispanic “Pitch”

It may be baseball season, but you might have a more important ‘pitch’ on your mind. You know that the Hispanic consumer group is the fastest growing market in the United States. In 2011 US Hispanics numbered 52 million (up from 50.5 million in 2010).  It is the fastest growing segment of the consumer market and has increased 3.1% since 2010. So, you’ve made the excellent business decision to market directly to this community by translating your marketing materials into Spanish. But how do you begin?

Glad you asked, because this is where we can help you!  There are some very practical guidelines to keep in mind when hiring a translation company:

• Do your homework – you need a translation company with staff that understands the culture as well as the language – remember, over 20 different countries are considered Hispanic; who are you trying to reach? Be careful not to lump all Hispanics together, there are cultural differences that affect buying habits.
• Understand the motivation of this customer; don’t assume it is the same as your English-speaking customer! For instance, family is the nexus of Hispanic culture, and this directly impacts the what, how, when, and why of their purchasing.
• Take into consideration the demographics: age, education, income, gender, even ancestry play a part in defining the Latin consumer.
• Hire a translator that knows the phrasing Hispanics know, the words that are already familiar to this community.  The ones that ring clear as a bell and hit home.

Check out this great article, it really speaks to the points I am emphasizing (and probably articulates them much better than I do!). The article cites some significant statistics from the 2010 Census:

• Sixty-six percent of Hispanics in the U.S. are of Mexican descent.
• The median age of Hispanics is 27.4, compared to the U.S. average age of 36.8.
• Hispanics have an average of four children per household, while non-Hispanic households have an average of two.
• Hispanics made up 16 percent of the U.S. population in 2010. By 2050, it is projected that 30 percent of the population will be Hispanic.

My reliable teams at Galindo Publicidad are literally “hand picked”. They are qualified specialists and experts in the language translation business. We make it our business to stay current with the cultural milieu of the Hispanic consumer, from wherever they may come. We know that it only takes one wrong word to throw off an entire marketing campaign. Conversely, we understand the correct and best phrasing to get your message out in a clean, clear, and dynamic way.

We want to be your translation company for the years to come, we really do. But, if you do have a great relationship with another Language Services Provider, nurture it, ask the right questions, and make sure they keep delivering and ‘get’ the important things I mentioned above.

As ever,

Martha

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Keeping Up with Translation and some Technology!

We have some great announcements!

We care about our clients and always try to stay informed about what’s happening with your target audiences. I felt so honored to be among the 150 Hispanic leaders at The White House this September for a briefing on Hispanic Affairs. This was in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. Among the topics covered were international trade, work, education, health, and immigration reform. I came away with some great ideas on how to better serve you!

Through the enormous power of partnership and alliance, successful communication can change our world. We believe there is, even in a tough economy, an emergence of global thinking and sharing. and we work hard to develop strong strategic partnerships. Partnerships that bid and fulfill projects all over the nation.  The need for translation just keeps growing and there will never be a better time than now to position your organization to a multilingual, global market. I’ll tell you more about some of these projects next time.

There is so much to tell you this time! Many of you have asked for this, and we did it for you—we now have Paypal on our website, making it easy and fast to get your projects going. http://www.translationsandmore.com/quote.html

 And we have added a QR code (those funny-looking black and white squares you’ve seen popping up lately) to our blog. It’s very cool—you can scan information about us and how we can serve you—by saving it to your smart phone you can read it at your leisure!

We can help you get started with your translation needs so you can compete in an ever-growing multilingual world. Call us, click to us, or leave us a message and see how translating your materials can be one of the smartest decisions you could ever make.

PS—Come to the Galindo Publicidad quote page to get an estimate for your project. Oh, and in case you have not downloaded it yet, there is a free app that scans QR codes; you can get it here: http://www.appbrain.com/app/barcode-scanner/com.google.zxing.client.android

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Captioning: Are You Reading This?

 

 

For some time you, our clients, friends, and supporters, have read our blogs about translation, and how much the simple practice of translating your marketing materials into other languages can help grow your business. But there is yet another way to add value to your marketing dollars, both in your native language and the niche language of your potential new customers. And that is Captioning.

Every now and then, a fresh and exciting way to do the business of selling our business comes up, and  captioning fits that description for me. Businesses are already learning that captioning opens a whole new arena of ways to reach audiences of any economic strata. Using captioning is the vanguard of marketing to come; marketing that is inclusive of everyone.  And that, in any language, spells out success!

Imagine the added numbers of consumers you could reach simply by close captioning your native-tongue and already-translated pieces. Many people are unaware of just how significant the market, and the current push for, closed captioning has become. There are people all over the world, who speak too many languages to list, that are advocating for more extensive and expansive closed captioning. It is a very interesting, on trend topic.

How can captioning in any language  be used to help your marketing efforts? Do you use commercials? Infomercials, webinars, Youtube?

A few examples include: captioning on all TV shows; even if there are no hearing impaired in a household, captioning can offer the option for one person to watch a program without disturbing another. And of course if there are hearing-impaired in the household, and you advertise on TV, then your message, through closed captioning, is reaching so much further!

Closed captioned TV commercials also help the hearing public learn more about products and services on the market by allowing those words absorption through sight in addition to sound.

Here is an article for further reading that gives some very persuasive reasons for why closed captioning is so in vogue on Youtube: http://www.reelseo.com/youtube-closed-captions-seo/

As I write this, the FCC is receiving more requests every day, advocating for broader legislation requiring captioning on more venues. Soon captioning may just be the law. Why not jump over your competition now? Reach out. Contact us for more information about how easy it is to caption or subtitle  your infomercials and commercials, webinars and Youtubes, in any and many languages!

Happy Holidays to You All,

Martha

Tell us, have you had an experience when closed captioning where you didn’t expect to find it made your experience a richer one? We love hearing your thoughts, comments, and experiences.

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TGIF? Or Is It TGIW?

At the end of a stressful work week people in the U.S. often say, “TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday).” In other countries the phrase probably is something equivalent to: “TGIW (Thank God It’s Wednesday)”. That’s because the work week ends on Wednesday in Saudi Arabia, for example, not Friday.

The concept of a work week is fairly recent in human history. In many countries a six or seven day work week was standard up until the 20th century. The two-day weekend — comprising Saturday and Sunday — became U.S. law in 1940.

Customs are different in other countries. Did you know that in Muslim countries, for example, the day of rest is usually Friday? If you want to do business internationally it’s important to know what the boundaries of the working week are, because you don’t want to plan work related events  on a day that your international partner, supplier, or client considers a day of rest.

Here are some general guidelines about the working week in various countries.

. Indonesia — the largest Muslim country in the world, considers the work week to be Monday through Friday.

. Saudi Arabia, Oman — Saturday through Wednesday.

. Iran — Saturday through Thursday.

. Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Algeria  — Sunday through Thursday.

 . Israel — Sunday through Thursday, or sometimes till Friday at noon.

. Lebanon — Monday through Friday, but government offices are open till noon on Friday.

In the European Union the standard work week is from Monday through Friday. Retail shops are usually open on Saturdays but closed on Sundays and evenings. Laws vary in specific countries: in France, only a very small number of shops are allowed to open on Sundays, such as bars, cafes, restaurants and bakeries, and some are only allowed to be open Sunday morning. There is a trend in many EU countries for more shops to be open on Sundays.

In Asia, the Monday through Friday work week has been adopted by most countries, although in India, the standard week for many private companies includes a half day on Saturday.

Being aware of the laws and customs about the work week in foreign countries is important for your success in business. It’s just as important as knowing customs such as when to shake hands, or how to address someone in a business setting. It’s all part of the research you need to do if you want to have a successful business relationship with people in other countries.

At Galindo Publicidad, we care about your overall international experience and success. As language issues experts we have a deep understanding of idiomatic and cultural expressions, local customs, regional history, norms, ethnic groups, and hundreds of nuanced factors that will help you achieve your goals in your international business relationships.

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Can Translations Help To Shorten Your Sales Cycle?

 

The answer is YES.

You just came back from a great trade show in Brazil. You’re pumped up, because you made tons of contacts, gave lots of sales pitches, and distributed a boatload of literature. This is great news, and you’re sure it’s going to mean more business for your company. Most of the people you dealt with spoke perfect English, and you have no doubt that your message got through to them.

But what about other people in their company? What about other decision makers, or even people further down the line who have input on the decision about whether to do business with you or not? Can you count on their English being as good?

And that sales literature you distributed — it was in English, right? What if it gets back to the office in Brasilia and the people who read it have a less than perfect grasp of English? What if there are misunderstandings that create problems after the sale, or even kill the sale outright simply because you didn’t have the foresight to get your literature translated before the trade show?

This happens a lot in international business transactions. English is a widely used language, and many businesspeople around the world can speak and understand it. However, that doesn’t mean that they understand it as well as their native language, or that they don’t have colleagues back in the home office who are much less proficient in English. Colleagues who have input on decisions involving your products or services.

The next time you schedule a trade show where there will be a lot of potential customers from non-English speaking countries, do this:

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• Plan in advance to get materials such as your presentation, collaterals, technical specifications, and business profile properly translated. This makes good business sense, because you won’t have any translation problems that could get in the way of making a sale.

When you do this, you shorten the sales cycle. Having your important documents (including a partial profile or sections of your Web site) already translated allows you to hit the ground running when you’re on a sales trip.

Here are some more points to remember about translations:

• Don’t allow the customer’s interest to cool down. If you have to come home from that trade show and then wait weeks to get important documents translated, the customer could lose interest.
• A good business translation takes time. Translators can work fast in an emergency, but if you give them a deadline that is too shortyou add risk factors and may not get the  quality translation you are expecting.
• The next time you plan a trade show or sales presentation trip, get quotes for translation services of your important literature.
• Budget the cost and time of translation services as part of your sales expenses.

It’s a decision that will help you shorten the sales cycle, and convert those prospects into customers.

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