News and Tips for a Multilingual World, November 2005

Images of Globalization

In this article, we will use images to visually represent the issues involved with globalization. These images do not tell everything about the countries they come from, but by surprising and amusing us they strongly suggest that there is more to product globalization than translation of words. When creating product names, brands, labels and other marketing messages for foreign markets, it is critical to ensure meaningful translations along with localization of concepts and knowledge of cultural icons and preferences.

The power of global branding is such that the brands transcend the language barriers. But equally important is an accurate translation or one risks communicating the opposite of what is intended.

Familiar toothpaste brands in Israel
Familiar brands of toothpaste available in Israel

Courtesy of www.portigal.com

Found on shower gel in a Chinese hotel
Found on shower gel in a Chinese hotel

Scan of a Chinese bath gel packaging

Consumer products and specifically grocery items show us how local flavors and cultural icons are skillfully mixed with global branding.

Familiar brands in a Mexican supermarket
Familiar brand with local flavors in a Mexican supermarket. In the Mexican market, Chile Poblano and Tortilla soup are popular (above corn based).

Courtesy of www.lisawhiteman.com

Chocolate bar in Brazil
While traveling to Brazil, should you buy this for your cat or yourself ? .... Chocolate candy in shape of a cat's tongue.

Courtesy of www.portigal.com

Knowing local practices helps produce an accurate representation of country-specific values. Children's toys and games are among a wide range of products that require culturally accurate symbols, colors. Imagine Scrabble or Monopoly for China ...

French police motorcycle
French police motorcycle with a blue color scheme like the actual French Police Academy.

Courtesy of www.playmobil.com

German police motorcycle
German police motorcycle with a green color scheme.

Courtesy of www.playmobil.com

 

What's new on our bookshelves?

  • "The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century" by Thomas L. Friedman,

  • "The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners Think Differently... and Why" by Richard Anisette
  • "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference" by Malcolm Glad well

  • "Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong: Why We Love France but Not the French" by Jean-Benoit Nadeau, Julie Barlow.

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    SURVEY

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  • Global marketing strategy and how the Internet fits into that plan
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  • Multilingual search engine
  • Please check below or email us at seminar@mtmlinguasoft.com to let us know how we can organize an informational seminar for your department and/or yourself.

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    RESOURCES FOR FOREIGN TRADE

    ISO Standards Glossary

    Anyone involved in foreign trade is affected by the International Standards Organization's classification system. The ISO has a set of international standards that can be used in any type of business and are accepted around the world as proof that a business can provide assured quality. There are thousands of ISO standards, and if you want to look up an ISO classification fast, the best place to do it is the ISO Standards Glossary www.standardsglossary.com). Simply click on an ISO number at the home page, and you'll see what products are covered by that number.

     

    Free Market Reports

    The analysts of Export Navigator have identified and regularly check 10,000 free market reports on the Internet. They guarantee that the market reports retrieved by the search engine:

  • are relevant to the industry you searched,
  • have been published by reliable sources,
  • do not require any registration or password,
  • are not older than 2 years.
  • You may search the database of market reports by entering a product and a country. For example, you can search "automobile" and "China".