February 12, 2010: Published on 1to1Media by Language Weaver
With Valentine's Day coming up, hints at romance and love are lining every store front. Love, after all, is a universal language seen everywhere around the globe. It's a language that doesn't change. But how do companies create and share that emotion with their customers?
Just like in any great relationship, there should be mutual accountability and trust between a company and its customers -- nevertheless, a relationship without symmetry is short lived. To make sure marketing messages resonate universally and companies maintain positive brand reputation globally, here are a few tips for building a strong relationship and trust with global customers:
For a company with a diverse customer base that has many language requirements, communicating to a diverse audience is as complex as it seems. Each region has cultural and language requirements that have to be considered to ensure that the company's brand voice and brand promise are protected worldwide. Simply broadcasting a monolingual message across the Internet to many regions of the world provides great reach instantly -- the risk is that there will be misguided expectations that the communication is equally effective in every region.
While more complex, marketers should maintain communication in a customer or prospect's preferred language. If the goal is to do business in South America, marketing messages and product information should be translated into Portuguese and Spanish and should be properly localized for the region. Effective communication across cultures and language is important for building trust and symmetry with global customers.
When customers decides to purchase a product and enter into a relationship with a company, they also expect that their needs will be met when they require additional information about the product, or if they have problems using a particular feature. Many companies translate all of the pre-sales content into several languages to support market entry and growth, but once a customer is on board, they have to navigate in English if they want product support or more technical information.
Not only is this frustrating for customers, but it can also prevent them from fully utilizing many of the product's features and capabilities. This leads to a slowdown in repeat business, fewer referrals, and more work for marketers. Companies should make it a priority to translate support information, such as knowledge bases, forums, and FAQs into the languages of their customers. This enables customers to find information they are looking for without picking up the phone to get the information.
Customers spend their hard earned money on products and services. In exchange for this loyalty, companies should strive to deliver information in a customer's preferred language. Doing so can lead to happier customers, more sales and better return on marketing dollars.
When it comes to translation and protecting the message and brand across regions of the world, there are different options to drive down costs while improving customer satisfaction. There are some places to invest in human translation, and other places where automation can be used to cost-effectively manage global messaging across languages. Some information, like advertising copy, high-profile Web content, and key messages should be sent to human translators for translation because the information contains a lot of nuance and is intended to influence decisions. Other content, such as knowledgebase articles, FAQs, forums, product alerts, and other information that is related to specific tasks a customer wants to perform, can be effectively translated with trusted automated translation software. Translation can get expensive, and at an average price of 21 cents per word for human translation, it is impossible to rely on this option for all of the support, product and service content required to enable self-service and customer success. By evaluating the needs of customers, marketers can determine the best translation method for different types of content.
When it comes to marketing, there are many options to build trust with customers. For companies with a diverse customer base, it is important to communicate effectively, feature accountability, and review translation options. These items will go a long way with global customers and will promote mutual accountability and lasting relationships.
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