Hello, my name is Rachel Sutton and I am currently on placement here at Happy Creative. I have been asked to do a blog post and as my degree is in International Business and Marketing this post will look at the importance of ensuring you recognise cultural differences and language translations within marketing.
I went on holiday recently and was shocked to find that the big brands we see on a day-to-day basis were lining the streets of Spain. Even the small local supermarket had more in common with Tesco than what you would imagine a Spanish supermarket to look like. The shelves were lined with a large selection of Cadburys chocolate and Walkers crisps, even the Spanish alternative Lays was nowhere in sight. With so many businesses now operating on a global scale it is easy to forget that cultural barriers are still an important factor to consider when operating globally and ignoring them could lead to painful humiliation and a loss of sales.
One marketing campaign that did not go to plan belonged to Pepsi. The original slogan to the product was “Pepsi brings you back to life” so when they launched the product in China, they simply translated the slogan but it was perceived very differently. In China this slogan actually meant “Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave” which did not sit well with the Chinese as they take honouring their ancestors very seriously.
General Motors made a similar mistake when launching the Chevy Nova in South America as they did not realise that ‘nova’ means ‘it does not go’ and that slogan does not really suit a car. General Motors then had to change the name of the car in order for sales to commence.
A Swedish manufacturer of vacuum cleaner, Electrolux, launched their product range in the USA, headed by the slogan; ‘nothing sucks like an Electrolux’ and as this slogan had worked in other English speaking countries they figured it would have the same effect in America. Although the word ‘suck’ in America has a different meaning from that of other countries and so the campaign did not have the desired effect.
In China, Coca-Cola was first read as “Kekoukela” and depending in the local dialect could either mean, “Bite the Wax Tadpole” or “Female Horse Stuffed with Wax”. Coca-Cola then had to scroll through 40,000 Chinese characters to find a phonetic equivalent, which was “Kokoukole’ meaning ‘Happiness in the Mouth”. This could have been avoided if research had been carried out and had been proofed by locals in China.
These companies have since learnt from their mistakes and now understand the importance of understanding different cultures. Here are 4 useful tips, which offer guidance in this area and will prevent you from making the same mistakes.
- Assuming every culture is the same
This does seem an obvious point but more often that not companies forget even the smallest differences can have a huge impact on how the campaign is received. For example we would probably assume that China and Japan are similar countries but if you mentioned this to a Chinese or Japanese person they will completely disagree with you. The same goes for a Chinese company assuming the UK and USA are similar.
- Not thinking locally
As seen with the above point, each country needs to be considered individually, not always in terms of the product as standardised products can work but in terms of the marketing campaign. As demonstrated with the examples above a slogan can have a completely different meaning in different countries. Also colours, shapes and even logos all differ locally, for example, the colour red in South Africa means mourning whereas in Russia it is linked to beauty.
- Using unreliable translators
Google translator is not a reliable source when it comes to translating. I have received so many emails from China that must have been constructed through an internet translator and they make no sense what so ever. In your lunch hour try translating something into another language and then translate it back again, the results are hilarious!
When it comes to translating a piece of text into another language, try using a search marketer who will be able to proof your work and offer feedback or if you know someone from the desired country of translation ask them as they will have knowledge of localized words.
- Not researching the market properly
This also sounds like an obvious point but you will be surprised as to how easily this can be pushed aside. The research doesn’t need to be complex, simply asking a group of locals to proof the campaign will suffice as feedback can then be offered before the product is launched and so avoiding any embarrassments.
Rachel Sutton is a junior account executive at Happy Creative, a full service marketing agency based in Blackpool, Lancashire. To learn more or contact us please go to www.happy-creative.co.uk or follow us @happy_creative
