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( votes)Increased smartphone ownership, internet connectivity, and overall globalization have made it easy for people to access the whole world easily and fast. Business organizations have bigger horizons to achieve now. The world is now like a big village where everyone can market products and services to anyone, anywhere.
National barriers aren’t as restrictive now as they were a decade back. The global business landscape is now friendlier to aggressive entrepreneurs. And at long last, thanks to the increased availability of affordable translation services, language is no longer a stumbling block in business.
If you wish to reach out to the world and explore new markets, all you will need is an effective localization strategy and any language barriers will be lifted for you. Say, for example, you want to expand in China and take a share of the country’s impressively growing economy.
You will need to hire a reputable translation company to localize your content and help you penetrate the market easily and effectively. Doing business in China- or in the Far East- is not as difficult a task as it used to be. Small businesses from the west stand a fairly good chance to grow in China, Indonesia, and even India.
When hiring services for business expansion, however, it is imperative that you understand where your target audience resides. You also must know what localization services entail, otherwise, you won’t get value for your money. This post explores business localization and everything you need to know about it as a small business owner or manager.
There is more to localization than just changing words from one language to another
As much as translation services change texts and sentences from your language to your target audience’s language, that isn’t the primary goal of translation and localization. Your small business has goals to achieve, a message to pass, and a brand reputation to build and protect. All three must be clear in your translated documents as they are in your original content. The translator must maintain your intent and style.
Language is dynamic
It is important not to assume that all translation services will capture the sense of your message and pass it to your target group in an understandable manner. Because language is dynamic, a sentence that made sense to a community a decade ago may not have the same effect now. A word that didn’t exist last year amongst a group of people could now be “a thing.”
Also, one language can have hundreds of dialects, which means that your localization process needs to be controlled and executed in a manner that will make the most sense to the right people.
English is not always enough
Most small businesses make the mistake of standardizing their brands in the English language with the assumption that the biggest population of the world speaks English. Part of the reason why they do this is to cut costs. What you might not know is that audiences in non-Anglophone markets will quickly leave your site for a competitor website if it’s only in English, whether or not they can read English.
The whole idea behind localization is to speak to the heart of the target customer; in his mother tongue. Languages such as Mandarin, Hindi, Spanish, French, and Arabic are almost as equally important as English for any company seeking to penetrate the global market.
Don’t confuse translation with localization
The translation is a small part of the localization process. Localization goes beyond language and adapts the content to the social conventions of the target market. It inspires customer trust by creating a connection between the product and the people.
Localization is key to better market penetration
If you are looking to expand in China, you will need to localize your content in order to penetrate the Chinese market and stand a chance of competing effectively with big international brands. And speaking of competition, you will also need the services of a China recruitment agency to help you hire the best talents from the highly-competitive Chinese labor market.
Most foreign consumers prefer to buy from companies that not only have websites in their mother tongue but that also hire employees who speak their own language.
Conclusion
If you have decided to localize your web content, services, or products, it is important that you find the best localization company to partner with you in the process. Your localization success is only as successful as your localization partner. Also, note that localization is expensive and time-consuming, but that is not to mean that you can bypass it. It is all worth every dime and effort in the long run.
