By David 
If you’re looking to go global for business, you will need to learn about the language and culture for each market. Even in countries that use the same language as your own, expressions, slang and regionalisms will be quite different. You can get an idea of this when speaking to someone in a different part of your own country. For instance, people in Boston speak very differently than people in Georgia or Texas. While they are speaking the same language technically, their accents are regional as well as their experiences and expressions. One reason to study different cultures is to learn how to communicate clearly, and how to find keywords that have the correct meaning.
Doing Business Across Language Barriers
If you are accustomed to traveling, you are familiar with culture shock. While traveling to another region is entertaining and interesting, it’s always great to come home and sleep in your own bed. Doing business with customers in other countries has similar issues. Communication works best when you are there in person in order to overcome language or regional barriers. However, much of business is done via the internet and the closest you get to your client may be during a live online chat.
To help with translation, you can use a program such as Translate.com for direct language to language translation. However, keep in mind that even the best translation programs may misorder words or misinterpret them. If you are planning to create content for social media marketing, use clear language without cultural references. Once you have a script for your content, it is helpful to have a native speaker review it before you publish.
Another bridge needing to be crossed in many cases is GTS Translation services, or documentation translation. Many companies use automation for this task, but as said in the previous paragraph, this can lead to mismatched or misinterpreted meanings. Using a quality company, that uses human translation is generally the better way to go.
Benefits of Using Translate.com
Translate.com will indicate any words or phrases that can’t be translated. That’s a great way to learn when you are using a metaphor or regionalism that doesn’t translate from one language to another. It is a good way to translate the bulk of your content. But if you don’t speak the language yourself, hire a person to read your translation out loud to confirm that it makes sense in the secondary language. Getting caught in a cultural faux pas is the wrong way to get introduced to a client in a new country.
Social Media Usage Abroad
Don’t forget to check how much social media is used in the country you are ready to market to. While much of the United States and Western Europe is saturated with internet service, there are still many places in the world that have limited or no internet.
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Digital Editor