| The importance of advertising can hardly be | | | | advertising, would just be going down the drain. |
| overemphasised in the competitive environment we | | | | There are plenty of instances of translation bloopers |
| live in today. No matter what the field may be, whether | | | | caused by a lack of attention to linguistic nuances in |
| it is education, health care or the latest fashions, a large | | | | cross cultural advertising. Even large business houses |
| part of business success seems to hinge on | | | | have not been immune to linguistic quirks happening on |
| advertising wizardry. Geographical boundaries are fast | | | | account of faulty translation services and inapt |
| disappearing, allowing for exponential business growth | | | | localization of advertising content. Although the |
| across continents. In this scenario, language translation | | | | reporting of these advertising gaffes provides |
| services occupy a niche segment in the services | | | | amusement to the casual reader, the matter has |
| industry today. | | | | serious implications for those responsible for the |
| Surprisingly enough, when it comes to cross cultural | | | | marketing of the products. |
| advertising, the implications of effective translation | | | | When launching Coke in China, the advertisers used |
| services and localization of advertising content is not | | | | the name 'Ke-kou-ke-la' because it sounds Coca-Cola. |
| that well understood. Somewhere along the way, | | | | Only after thousands of hoardings had been printed |
| companies falter in choosing product names or | | | | was it discovered that "Ke-kou-ke-la" translated as |
| marketing slogans. The impact is felt much later and at | | | | "bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed with |
| great expense to the company, that the marketing | | | | wax" in Chinese dialects. Second time around things |
| spiel is not well received by the target audience owing | | | | worked out much better. After much re-work, the |
| to a simple slip up in the advertising effort. | | | | advertisers came up with "ko-kou-ko-le" which |
| A 1985 study consumer behavior covering diverse | | | | translates as "happiness in the mouth". |
| markets like the U.S., Quebec and Korea, highlighted | | | | In the U.S., most consumers are familiar with the Salem |
| that there are important differences in the reasons | | | | cigarettes slogan: "Salem - Feeling Free." When |
| why consumers in these countries buy similar products. | | | | translated to Japanese, the advertisement read as: |
| The reasons are steeped in the respective cultures. | | | | "When smoking Salem, you feel so refreshed that |
| The buying of wine, for example highlights the cultural | | | | your mind seems to be free and empty." |
| differences very well. In most countries of northern | | | | The instructions on U.S. made medical containers |
| Europe, wine is considered as a drink for special | | | | which read: "Take off top and push in bottom," was |
| occasions. In many South European countries, | | | | not so well received by the British, owing to the strong |
| however, it is an every day drink. To use the same | | | | sexual undertones the phrase signified. |
| marketing terminology for the same product in both | | | | These and many other mishaps that have occurred in |
| regions would be a marketing mistake. Language | | | | the world of advertisement, go to show how important |
| translation services, when used in the field of | | | | it is for providers of corporate translation services and |
| advertising, must take these factors into account. | | | | localization to pay attention to the linguistic preferences |
| Otherwise, it would mean that a lot of money spent in | | | | of target audiences from a cultural standpoint. |