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But is the highest level of competence necessary? Why not use that
salesman in Brazil who volunteered to translate? Why? The same reason
you don't use a kid studying accounting or law. You don't want to
put your company's reputation at risk. You don't want to be penny-wise
and pound-foolish and risk having your message misinterpreted. The
cost of failure is too high to risk taking a chance. Let’s assume
your existing customer base is permeated with individuals for whom
your assembly instructions are incomprehensible, your safety advisories
useless, and your operating instructions inoperable. If they eat
it, drink it, or build it, if they use it in hazardous conditions
or if there is a hazard inherent in it, if you want to sell them
more than one and you want them to be satisfied - you need customer
service translation services.
Is your product or service useful only to speakers
of English? Probably not. In which case you undoubtedly develop
your marketing and advertising strategies in all the languages of
your major potential markets. And they reflect not only the language,
but also the culture of the foreign language market. Right? That's
why you need culturally sensitive translation services. Did
you know, for example, that some US companies have avoided using
the number 41 on equipment to be sold in Mexico because of the
cultural connotation to such number?
Every large market can be broken down into smaller
categories whose unique characteristics enable you to develop features
or advertising that appeals strongly to their needs.
It is important to approach these categories on their own terms,
to speak their special language within a language. Advertising for
skateboarders is not the same as advertising for grandmothers, whether
they are in Uruguay or Utah. To reach market niches you need
translation services that can effectively reflect those niches.
Also, very often the key to opening foreign markets
is working effectively with foreign governments and their regulatory
bureaucracies. The maze of regulations, procedures and practices
of any bureaucracy, even those with which you are familiar, is a
daunting task. To do it in a foreign language could be cruel and
unusual punishment. You need translations services familiar with
and capable of working within such an environment. You need a reliable
service with a network of translators who hold expertise in patent
translations, legal contracts, norms and more.
Global marketing and international manufacturing
are no longer the exclusive province of very large companies. Today
the world is essentially available to any company with the imagination
to go out and engage it. Technology has made it possible to collaborate
and communicate with employees and business associates regardless
of their location. The key to unlocking the potential of the
world is translation that reflects local customs, niche preferences,
business practices and end user needs. See research below...
If you can not read it, you can not buy it.
Beginning to get the picture? Whether you are talking
to employees, customers, or bureaucrats you need the best translation
services you can buy.
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