Latin-data Case Study - Gala Conference 2013
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This presentation will present the case study of Latin-data, a communication and marketing agency that developed into a specialized LSP after being selected by SAP as the lead provider for translation into Latin American Spanish. Latin-data leveraged its expertise as a communications and marketing agency and chased opportunities, turning knowledge into business. This case study will examine the conditions and decisions that led to the company’s evolution and explore how other companies can find new markets and clients in Latin America.
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Latin-data Case Study - Gala Conference 2013
- 1. Illegal Alien (IN THE LOCALIZATION WORLD) Or turning knowledge into business
- 2. www.latin-data.com fernando.daloia@latin-data.com @fgdaloia @Latin_data #MarcomL10N #SpanishLA_L10N www.facebook.com/Latindata.MarComL10N
- 3. Illegal Alien 1. Once upon a time… 2. Getting ready for a long journey New land on sight 3. Watching the new world 4. Landing and speaking Spanish Talking with “earthlings” 5. Back to the future 6. Finding the way into the future 7. Searching for new horizons 8. The keys to the “new world” 9. The discoveries
- 4. ONCE UPON A TIME… …in a faraway land called Argentina… • How and why was born • The beginning: END-TO-END support in Marketing and Communications • Reaching a new (unknown) world: providing translations as a (very small) part of our services
- 5. GETTING READY FOR A LONG TRIP… Knowing the client for support in MarCom • Stage 1: content generation – Who they are and what they do • Stage 2: event support – How it is presented (design and branding guidelines) • Stage 3: local support in marketing (Argentina) – Stages 1 + 2 • Stage 4: regional campaigns (Spanish+Portuguese) – Translations + Stage 3
- 6. NEW LAND ON SIGHT... Knowing what we needed to know • The more we knew,... – …the more we needed to know. – …the more we needed to know “how to say it”. – …the more we needed to know “who to talk to” and “where they were”.
- 7. WATCHING THE NEW WORLD... “Mixing” translations and MarCom: that was the key • Translation professionals know about translations • Communications professionals know about communications • Marketing professionals know about marketing Are companies willing to pay for that added value? Who pays? Where does the money come from?
- 8. BACK TO THE FUTURE… Or how to play in the Big Leagues… • SAP Language Services (SLS) chose Latin-data as a leading provider of translations and localizations into Latin American Spanish
- 9. BACK TO THE FUTURE… Localization: Discovering a truly “new world”
- 10. BACK TO THE FUTURE… Localization: Discovering a truly “new world” Engineering DTP Idiom Copyediting Standards MLV Reviewer TEP Translation Management System Post editing ELIA Content Management System Formatting QA Catalyst LISA Machine Translation LSP
- 11. LANDING AND SPEAKING SPANISH Spanish? Which Spanish? • 500 million people speak Spanish • 2nd most widely-spoken language worldwide • 2nd language most widely-used in global communications • 10% of global population will speak Spanish • The US will have the biggest Spanish speaking community (even larger than Mexico’s)
- 12. LANDING AND SPEAKING SPANISH Spanish? Which Spanish? • Contents for Latin-American countries – English – European Spanish (Spain) – “Neutral” Spanish (or Colombian Spanish) • Different countries = different languages • Latin America = one “mother” language with several “kids”
- 13. LANDING AND SPEAKING SPANISH
- 14. LANDING AND SPEAKING SPANISH Spanish? Which Spanish? • What we (try to) say vs. what is understood • We can “neutralize”: – Avoid local terms (Argentine, Colombian, Mexican) – Avoid using “tú” or “vos” • We can “localize”: – Local “correspondents” – Analyze local reality and historic context
- 15. LANDING AND SPEAKING SPANISH Spanish? Which Spanish? • Why MarCom as a differentiator? – We are trained to see the context – We handle the language of marketing – We know the client in depth – We know the words that can have negative impact – We know Spanish is not just one language…
- 16. TALKING WITH THE EARTHLINGS… The formula for success in Translations… Translation + Editing + Proofreading Localization? DEFINITELY NOT
- 17. TALKING WITH THE EARTHLINGS… The formula for success in SAP MarCom… SAP Naming + SAP Branding + SAP Local Tone of Voice Localization? DEFINITELY NOT
- 18. TALKING WITH THE EARTHLINGS… The formula for success in SAP MarCom Translations… Translation + Editing + Proofreading +SAP Naming + SAP Branding + SAP Local Tone of Voice Localization? DEFINITELY YES
- 19. BACK TO THE PRESENT… • Latin America is a (BIG) MARKET • Local campaigns = local budgets • Localization <> LSPs = New Market!
- 20. BACK TO THE PRESENT… • Awareness needed – 2012: 1st GALA regional event in Buenos Aires – 2013: awareness campaigning – 2013-2015: regional promotion – 2013-2020: New regional GALA events?
- 21. FINDING THE WAY… 1st Attempt Internal MarCom MarCom Translator SAP PM Review Review
- 22. FINDING THE WAY… 2nd Attempt Internal MarCom & MarCom MarCom PM Translator SAP SAP Review Review Review
- 23. FINDING THE WAY… 3rd Attempt TRAINING IT PM SAP Translator (Translator) MarCom
- 24. FINDING THE WAY… Reaching the final methodology TRAINING IT PM Local Translator validation QA SAP (Translator) MarCom IT WORKS!
- 25. FINDING THE WAY… Finally! SAP Marcom localization has a method for Latin America! 2009 % Incidents over the total qty of projects 5.10 % 2010 (-80%) 1.05 % 2011 (-65%) 0.55 % 2012 (-97%) 0.02%
- 26. SEARCHING FOR NEW HORIZONS… What if the client is PFIZER? TRAINING Pharma PM Local Translator validation QA Pfizer (Translator) MarCom IT WORKS!
- 27. SEARCHING FOR NEW HORIZONS… What if the client is GM? TRAINING Automotive PM Local Translator validation QA GM (Translator) MarCom IT WORKS!
- 28. SEARCHING FOR NEW HORIZONS… IT WORKS!
- 29. SEARCHING FOR NEW HORIZONS… What if it is another multicultural region? TRAINING XXXXX PM Local Translator validation QA XXXXX (Translator) MarCom IT SHOULD WORK!
- 30. LOOKING FOR NEW HORIZONS… Russian? Which Russian? • Russia • Kazakhstan Moldovan Kazakhstanian Russian • Belarus • Ukraine Neutral • Moldova Russian? Estonian • Latvia Ukranian • Estonia Belarusian Latvian
- 31. LOOKING FOR NEW HORIZONS… English? Which English?
- 32. LOOKING FOR NEW HORIZONS… IT SHOULD WORK!
- 33. THE KEYS OF THE NEW WORLD… How to do the best MarCom localization KNOW YOUR CLIENT Learn about your client’s products and/or services, branding and naming rules TRAIN THE TRANSLATORS Exchange knowledge (client + MarCom specialists) TRANSCREATE Translate, adapt, recreate a message to be appropriate, clear and effective to a given target LOCALIZE Manage local validation (linguists and/or MarCom specialists) and build a customized QA
- 34. THE DISCOVERIES LatAm is a big opportunity Spanish Speaking Population*: 375 Million •Mexico: (30%) •Cuba: (3%) Others: (16%) •Ecuador: (4%) •Guatemala: (4%) •Chile: (5%) •Venezuela: (8%) •Colombia:(12%) •Peru: (8%) •Argentina: (11%) * Projection 07/2013
- 35. THE DISCOVERIES LatAm is a big opportunity Growth rates projected for 2013 7.0% Peru 6.0% Chile Bolivia 5.0% Colombia Others Brasil Mexico 4.0% Argentina Venezuela 3.0% USA 2.0% 1.0% Europe 0.0% * Sources: UNECLAC, OECD, IMF & Consensus Economics
- 36. THE DISCOVERIES LatAm is a big opportunity Spanish Speaking Population*: 375 Million Growth rates projected for 2013 7.0% Peru •Cuba: (3%) •Mexico: (30%) 6.0% Chile Bolivia Others: (16%) 5.0% Colombia •Ecuador: (4%) Others Brasil Mexico Argentina •Guatemala: 4.0% Venezuela (4%) 3.0% •Chile: (5%) USA 2.0% •Venezuela: 1.0% Europe •Colombia:(12 (8%) %) •Argentina: 0.0% •Peru: (8%) (11%) * Sources: UNECLAC, OECD, IMF & Consensus Economics * Projection 07/2013 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES & LOCALIZATION NEEDS
- 37. THE DISCOVERIES Spanish is not only one language Spanish European Spanish LatAm Spanish Neutral LA Spanish AR MX CO PE VE CL EC UY PY SA HO PA CU DO CR NI HA PR
- 38. THE DISCOVERIES US Hispanic market also is a big opportunity 2010 2000 U.S. Census Spanish speaking population map
- 39. THE DISCOVERIES Transcreation avoids commoditization Localization is a huge added value for Marcom services Following standards, you can have your own method Sharing knowledge is the BIG secret for new businesses The last common challenge: defend rates
- 40. THE DISCOVERIES “Being an Illegal Alien is not so bad… (in the localization industry)” This is just not THE NEW BEGINING…. THE END….
- 41. THANK YOU!!! Q&A? www.latin-data.com fernando.daloia@latin-data.com @fgdaloia - @Latin-data #MarcomL10N www.facebook.com/Latindata.MarComL10N #SpanishLA_L10N
Editor's Notes
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- Once upon a time (CLICK) in a faraway land called Argentina, there was an unknown marketing and communications agency... Latin-data (CLICK) was born as a single person venture after a few years of me working in the media, and later as the Manager of a company specialized in searching and analyzing print and online media (GlobalNews), where I was challenged to coordinate and launch operations in Brazil, Mexico and Spain as well as to train business partners and local experts in 9 countries in Latin America. Then, I worked for a company that monitored audiovisual media. The integration of knowledge and areas of interest of marketing and communications, as well as knowing how to handle corporate image fuelled the creation of Latin-data as “external end-to-end support” for companies all sizes.(CLICK) We focused on the “end-to-end” side of things: we have always provided end-to-end services and saved our clients the hassle of dealing with several vendors. Our team was in charge of finding, supervising and following up all the vendors participating in the process (creative writers, editors and designers; printing house; architects; call centers; etc.). We had that aim in mind and were dealing with clients with global presence; therefore, (CLICK) the need to “translate” and “adapt” different content was added to the process. For example, local or regional direct marketing campaigns, corporate events that already had a slogan or key messages, or global institutional communications meant to target the Argentine or Latin American audience. However, translations were a minor part of the services we rendered. We didn't know it at the time, but we were “localizing” messages for different purposes and different companies.
- And again without knowing it, we were getting ready for a long journey...(CLICK) Our initial strategy for growth was always based on knowing our clients deeply: what they did, how they did it, what they sold, which messages they used, what the values and principles that supported the brand, which corporate guidelines were along those lines and how they wanted to communicate them. We went through a process with four stages: (CLICK)Stage 1: Knowing the client empowered us to generate content (mainly corporate communication) that could strengthen the idea of who our clients were and what they did. And so we did… (CLICK)Stage 2: Then, knowing the brand, the application manuals and corporate guidelines, we could offer support for local or regional events. Not only did we know what they did and how they did it, but we also learned how they wanted to present it... And so we did… (CLICK)Stage 3: Almost as a natural consequence, we started to offer end-to-end support in marketing and communications for what most companies called the “southern region”. It had Argentina as the main country, but it also included Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and, in some cases, Bolivia. This is how Latin-data could become a vendor specialized in local and regional marketing campaigns, supporting all areas: content and creativity, up to graphic production, mail and electronic distribution, or support for events… And so we did… (CLICK)Stage 4: Finally, loyal to our philosophy and to attend our clients' requirements and needs (especially SAP's), we decided to expand to regional campaigns including what could be called “neutral” Spanish for Latin America and Brazilian Portuguese as well. Translation was once again present in our service offer, but still as a minor part in our portfolio. However, we thought it was another service with a lot of potential that we could develop… And so we did…
- (CLICK) As a consequence of the demands from our clients rather than a specific strategy, we had to know exactly what we needed to know about them so that we could offer consistent, solid services that were aligned with their corporate strategies and look for the most convenient way to address their audience. In conclusion, (CLICK) we realized that, the more we knew about our clients, (CLICK) the more we needed to know. It was no longer enough to know the brand, the products they sold or their differentiators againsttheir competitors. What we needed to understand and transmitto our teams was the real message the company wanted to convey (CLICK), how they wanted to reach their target, which values they intended to communicate and which linguistic resources will have to be used. But it wasn't all about linguistics or limited to grammar and spelling rules. Likewise it was not enough to know the tone of voice or how close the client intended to sound to its target audience.Even when the first regional campaigns were targeted to Spanish-speaking countries, we understood that, although in certain areas it is possible to “neutralize” our Spanish (CLICK), we had to know who we were talking to and where they were located to keep the original spirit of many messages. So, as part of a campaign planning stage, we started asking our clients for the databases with the profiles and locations of the targets. We used this information to conclude whether it was necessary to generate similar texts but with certain specific, local touches which would keep the effect of the original campaign or, otherwise, we could use neutral language for all the countries.
- So when we decided to look for the best strategy to offer end-to-end solutions, we understood we had three standalone specialized fields that supplement one another. (CLICK) And the key was “to mix” them up.It is true that the field of knowledge of all professionals are very clearly differentiated… (CLICK)Translation professionals know about translations(CLICK)Communications professionals know about communications(CLICK)Marketing professionals know about…. marketing (CLICK)Now the big question was how to “mix” the three fields of knowledge into a single process at the lowest possible cost and the best quality.The new land looked interesting, but left us with a challenge we hadn't imagined… and the other big questions were (CLICK) Are companies willing to pay for a service with such added value? (CLICK) ¿Who pays for it? (CLICK) ¿Where is it paid?
- Back then one of our main clients was SAP. (CLICK)We generated corporate content and direct marketing campaigns for several countries in Latin America.We also provided the translation of some campaigns, corporate and sales brochures, or websites originated in English into Spanish and Portuguese.One day, in mid-2008, we were visited by a representative of SAP Language Services. First I wondered if that was the name of the planet she came from… It was revealed to us that –in fact- there was another world we knew nothing about… How did we feel? (CLICK) It was like getting into the De Lorean with Marty McFly and travelling to the future… or starting playing in the big leagues.That's how, Barbara Mancini, Resources Manager with SLS, introduced us into the world of localizations. She is an Italian living in Germany. We had an interview in person in Spanish and we talked in English over the phone… Was that what localization was about? I didn't know, but it sounded interesting.The truth is that after the interview she told us we would be contacted (CLICK) to start the process of becoming leading providers of MarCom translations for SAP into Latin American Spanish…
- But we couldn't sleep on our laurels… (CLICK)SAP chose us as leading providers of MarCom localizations…We knew a lot about SAP, also about marketing and communications, we did translations… but… locali-what? (CLICK) We were starting to know a new world...In order to understand where we were "landing”, we started researching… We couldn't afford to reach a new world and not know “how they speak” there… We knocked on GALA's doors (CLICK), which seemed one of the main entrances into the localization world… (CLICK) SAP showed us the way. And GALA opened the door for us…
- And there we learned a lot of new terms and elements… (CLICK) Engineering, (CLICK) Content Management System, (CLICK) LISA, (CLICK) Standards, (CLICK) Catalyst, (CLICK) Copyediting, (CLICK) DTP, (CLICK) Formatting, (CLICK) LSP, (CLICK) Reviewer, (CLICK) Translation Management System, (CLICK) MLV, (CLICK) Idiom, (CLICK) Machine Translation, (CLICK) EULA, (CLICK) TEP, (CLICK) QA, (CLICK), Post editing (CLICK)… now, all of them in English because –between you and me and the deep blue sea- it looks like in the localization world they only speak English….
- Now, corporate communications and marketing campaigns have a clear message and a specific target… but global creative writers and content generators think, write and execute in English.Our mission is to translate and localize this message into Spanish. (CLICK) Into Spanish? Which Spanish?In its 2012 yearbook, Instituto Cervantes published a report on the Spanish language around the world, (CLICK) which confirmed that there are over 495 million Spanish speakers. It is the second most widely used language in the world (CLICK) as per number of speakers. It seconds (CLICK) English as the language for international communication. Within three generations, (CLICK) 10% of the world population will speak Spanish and the US (CLICK) will have the largest number of Spanish speakers on the planet. More than Mexico.But are wetalkingaboutthesame “Spanishlanguage”?
- For a long time Latin-Americans have consumed campaigns and messages from global companies targeted to our region (CLICK) directly in English or (CLICK) European Spanish. We could not identify ourselves completely with the message because it was clearly not targeted to us. We've also needed to process messages (and still do) (CLICK) in “neutral” Spanish, generally associated with Colombian Spanish, which in fact is not really 100% “Colombian”.The truth is that there are local shades, tones of voice, terminology and localisms that can drastically change the meaning of what we want to say. (CLICK) Why is it clear for everyone that people don't speak the same in France as in the Netherlands or in Romania or Germany? Basically because they have different languages. That's what happens in Latin America: (CLICK) even though the “mother” language is one, its "kids" words can have different meanings depending on the context, use and habits, social classes, jargon or slang. Ultimately they are almost like different languages…You may have seen this on YouTube, but this is a clear example of how hard it is to speak Spanish … (A VIDEO “QUÉ DIFÍCIL QUE ES HABLAR EL ESPAÑOL”)
- So, to localize content into Spanish, it is not enough to translate into Spanish. (CLICK) It is important to be aware of the difference between what we say (actually, what we are trying to say) and what the recipient understands.All our new friends speak Spanish, but sometimes they can't understand each other. What shall we do so that they understand us? (CLICK)Depending on the purpose of the message, it is possible for “neutral Spanish” to reach all Spanish speakers. We need to “sift” the translation (CLICK) so that no Argentine or Colombian or Mexican terminology is used. One of the challenges we most frequently face is to find a way to translate a message (CLICK) without using “tú” (common to almost all the region) or “vos” (equivalent to "tú" mainly used in Argentina, and less frequently in Uruguay and Costa Rica). But, if the campaigns are locally oriented, (CLICK) it is very probable that some local language and terminology are called for. (CLICK) And for that, we had to resort to local “correspondents”. (CLICK) Moreover, we have to bear in mind some other aspects, such as local reality and historical moment. A tragedy happened in Argentina a few years back (2004). It was a night club, where there were more people than it was allowed. Someone lit up a flare in a rock concert. The ceiling caught fire and it spread all over the place. 194 people died; mostly teenage young, but also a 10-month old baby and several children between 4 and 10.Unfortunately, something similar happened a few months ago in Santa María, a town near Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, where 234 people died. In this context, any marketing campaign or advertising spot with images, videos or references to flares had a highly negative emotional impact. Actually, sales of this type of cake fireworks dropped for a long time.
- So, (CLICK) why knowing MarCom may be a differentiator when localizing content?Because we are trained (CLICK) to see the context, because we handle (CLICK)the language of marketing, because our first task is (CLICK) to know the client, their needs, their branding guidelines and key messages to transmit, but also (CLICK) the words or messages that can have an impact that is negative or contrary to the desired one. And because we know (CLICK) Spanish is not just one language…
- So, when we started (CLICK) talking with the earthlings, and we finally decide to land in this new world led by GALA and SAP, we learned some “secrets” which paved our way. (CLICK) The formula to success in Translations is…(CLICK) Translation+ (CLICK) Editing + (CLICK) Proofreading… but, (CLICK) is this (CLICK) “localization”… (CLICK) Definitely not
- (CLICK) The formula for success in SAP MarCom is…(CLICK) Knowledge about SAP Naming rules(CLICK) Knowledge about SAP Branding guidelines(CLICK) Knowledge about SAP Local tone of voices required for different campaignsBut… (CLICK) is this “localization”?... (CLICK) Definitely not…
- Then, which is the formula (CLICK) for success in SAP MarCom Translations?Let’s see…If you (CLICK) Translate, (CLICK) Edit, (CLICK) Proofread, (CLICK) apply SAP Naming rules, (CLICK) apply SAP Branding guidelines, (CLICK) and apply the required SAP local tone of voice with the appropriate terminology, syntax and grammar to reach the communicative goals…. (CLICK) Is this “localization”?(CLICK) Definitely yes!!!! Of course, to complete the localization process,you have to take in account the IT tools and trends needed to apply this process also to audiovisual content, websites, social media, training and technical documentation, among others.
- Slowly, after the first shock knowing the future, we had to go back to present… We had already taken our first step into the new world. We started managing Marcom projects for SAP Language Services. But we also realized that there was another market niche (CLICK) in this world beyond corporate needs: Local trading strategies, campaigns and messages came up.The little big detail is that, at least in Latin America, (CLICK) most campaigns are being localized inorganically at the subsidiaries with local budgets and this is not always through professional LSPs. (CLICK) This is the most interesting market the regional agencies have.But, first we needed to launch a strong positioning and awareness campaign for the industry.
- (CLICK) The first GALA regional event held in Buenos Aires last November was the kickoff in this sense and helped to show companies of all sizes that, when we speak about localizations, what is cheap ends up costing a fortune… Therefore, in 2013, Latin-data together with our business partner Market Cross will launch a regional communications campaign to raise awareness regarding the importance of the industry. (CLICK) We are also members of Translated in Argentina, a cluster of individual, specialized Spanish translation bureaus from Argentina offering services as a trade mark of the best quality translations and localizations into Latin American Spanish. The members have a big commitment to teach what the localization industry means and how it helps companies to successfully accomplish their marketing, communications and external trade strategies and goals. And, of course, the key is to have more regional events supported by international organizations like GALA.
- Back to our case, in order to put the “formula for success” into practice, four years ago we had to build a process that, as a marketing and communications agency, we didn't have…(CLICK) Our first attempt was (CLICK) to appoint a PM from the Marcom area, who received the projects and sent them out (CLICK) to be translated into neutral Spanish. Then, a communicator (CLICK) with technical knowledge into SAP reviewed it and sent it over to another person, eventually the same PM, (CLICK) who checked whether SAP's branding and naming guidelines had been applied. The process was safe, but too slow for the deadlines marketing projects usually have.
- So, we went for our second attempt (CLICK) to optimize the service: we started cross-training the members (CLICK) of the marketing and communications team at the last step or selecting profiles (CLICK) that knew the client (what they do, what they sell, the solutions, the services, etc.) and the applicable branding guidelines (what to translate, what not to, how some concepts are defined).So, the project went from (CLICK) the PM to the (CLICK) translator and then to a more efficient instance (CLICK) of review. However, there was another weakness, which was the level of knowledge (or its lack for that matter) the PM (CLICK) had of the tools used for the localization projects (CAT Tools, glossaries, newsgroups, DTP, etc.). So, the review processes were longer because the PM couldn't solve himselfwhat came up in most of the correction and review processes.
- So we went for (CLICK) our third attempt. We wondered what would happen if we gathered most knowledge and expertise in two people. We planned three types of training sessions (CLICK) for PMs and translators: (CLICK) Guidelines on technology and management software (CLICK) Guidelines that are specifically oriented to SAP, its products and services (CLICK) Basic principles, terminology, communication strategies and elements of a marketing campaignIn each case, (CLICK) we recycled and reused the knowledge and expertise of each member of the team to share with colleagues from other areas.
- We were very close of finding the final methodology. (CLICK)We reach the final step: when necessary, we added another instance (CLICK) of validation with our “correspondents” or local specialists in communications in several countries to get a really local message and have another instance of review.Finally, (CLICK) we added basic procedures of Quality Assurance to monitor processes and validate the level of knowledge acquired, and the translation delivered.And you know what…? (CLICK) IT WORKS!!!!
- Since we started to formally use this process, we have had optimal results. (CLICK) At the same time we were adjusting our internal processes to meeting our clients’ needs and quality requirements. The decrease in “avoidable” errors was remarkable. (CLICK -> 2009) During the first 8 months of 2010 (CLICK), we reduced drastically the “incidents” rate (delivery errors, formatting issues, uses of inadequate terminology, extended deadlines) by almost 80%, from 5.10 % in 2009 to 1.05 %In August 2011, (CLICK) one year later, the rate was about 0.55% over a total quantity of 273 projects.In 2012, we had only six situations (CLICK) of avoidable errors in 325 projects (0.02%). We could say that, finally, we had found what we were looking for… (CLICK) SAP Marcom localization has a method for Latin America!!
- It was time of searching for new horizons… After verifying that the method worked, we wanted to assess our ability to replicate it and make it scalable to other areas. The main challenge was to keep the same essence, the concept that knowing our customers deeply was the foundation for high quality Marcom contents translations or localization services.Then, we wonder… (CLICK) What if the client is Pfizer, e.g.?We found that we could use the same “drawing” (CLICK) but “paint it” in a different color. What does it mean?(CLICK) We should train our team in industry-specific knowledge(CLICK) We should gather all the information they could need about the client, their products and services, the branding and naming guidelines, and the communication strategies and tones of voice requested(CLICK) We should follow the same training stages and updates regarding marketing and communications elements, concepts and knowledge(CLICK) After local validation and QA related processes… (CLICK) It works!!!!
- And…what if the client is (CLICK) General Motors?With the same logics, we paint everything (CLICK) with the automotive industry color and GM knowledge… (CLICK) and it works!!!
- Definitely, no matter which industry your client belongs to, (CLICK) the big secret is to know them, what they sell and how they do it and all the things mentioned before… And you know what?... (CLICK) IT WORKS!!!!
- But, we are very curious aliens… After that, we wondered… (CLICK) what if we talk about another similar multicultural region with the same root language?Let’s see. If you apply the same criteria as to training and focus knowledge transfer on the industry and on the clients’ insights and branding guidelines (as well as, of course, marketing communication elements), you could follow the process assuming that the BIG difference will be building the “neutral” language variant that applies to most countries and finding the right (even the best) local validators (CLICK) in case you could need local (not regional) versions, and obviously, the QA process.Everything appears as if… (CLICK) IT SHOULD WORK!
- We are going to make the analogy with another region. An example: In many countries (CLICK) Russian is the official or –at least- the mainly spoken language. In Latin America, we don’t know so much about Russian language variants (maybe Russians could do this better, with more reliableand accurate data than we could…). (CLICK) But which Russian are we talking about? Supposedly not only Russia, but Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia and Estonia, have Russian as the main language.Would it be possible to find a kind of neutral Russian (CLICK), as well as we have found a neutral Spanish?Would it be possible to have local language and/or communications specialists in each country to validate the translations in case it is necessary?Would it be possible to train the main resources to reach the best neutral Russian?If so, we would be successful in applying our methodology
- Perhaps, we could start also analyzing India (CLICK) and its derived languages (Hindi, Urdu) or its “cousin” Persian or go through Arabic languages (CLICK) and find some similarities between language variants for Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya with their local peculiarities.And being overly meticulous… what about variants of English between England and the US or Australia?.. .Or (CLICK) –even worse- between the different States within the US? (CLICK) English? Which English?
- So, we could arrive to a primary hypothesis: if you have variants of a spoken language in a region like in Russia (CLICK), Belarus, Ukraine and others, or inside the same country like in (CLICK) India, you could probably create a “neutral” version of that language or group of languages to reach a larger amount of people without losing the essence in the key message. Then, you could train your resources in the specific matter and you could have local experts to help you with the local terms and tone of voice. In that case, you will be using again this method (CLICK).Obviously, not everything is so easy… you will have to work hard on your own business… First of all, you have the most important homework: to carry out thoughtful research to deeply know the peculiarities of your target language or group of target languages to see how feasible this is.Not only for logical reasons but also for experiences and linguistic approaches, we can shout our optimistic slogan… (CLICK) …IT SHOULD WORK!!!Now, it is your turn to transfer this hypothesis into real and concrete data…
- In summary:We wanted to share with you all our experience about how we turned knowledge into business.We discovered a new world. And we had to work hard to discover the keys of “living” in this new world doing what we knew better: localizing Marketing Communications contents. (CLICK)But, how to do the best MarCom localizations? (CLICK)Know your client: Learn about your client’s products and services, branding guidelines and naming rules (CLICK)Train the translators: you have to exchange knowledge among specialists, both in the client-side aspects as well as in MarCom topics and transfer them to your translation teams (CLICK)Transcreate: you should try to reach in the same process the necessary mix to Translate, Adapt or Recreate a message to be Appropriate, Clear and Effective to a given target (CLICK)Localize: manage local validation with linguistic or MarCom specialists to give the local tone of voice. Then, build a customized QA process to accurate the better results.
- So, this could be called our “discoveries” in the new world we had to get into…First of all, clearly, LatAm is a big opportunity: bear in mind that there is a hugeSpanish speaking population, it means, a market niche of 375 million people projected for July 2013 without counting the Hispanic population in the US.
- Theeconomyisgrowingdespitethe global crisis in thelastyears…AccordingtotheUnitedNationsEconomicComisionforLatinAmerica and Caribbean, the IMF, the OECD and theespecializedconsultingfirmConsensusEconomics, in 2013 theregionisgoingtogrowthanaverage of 4,3% againsttheestimated 2% for USA orthemodest 0,4% forEurope. Thisrates are onlyovercomefor China (8,2% expected), India (5,9%) and Africa (5,8%)
- So, taking in accountonlythesetwoindicators (couldtalkaboutseveral similar others), we can saythat (CLICK) ifyouhave a hugemarket (CLICK), in a growingeconomy (CLICK), youshouldhave (CLICK) more businessopportunities and, as a consequence, (CLICK) more localizationneeds.
- We saw that Spanish is not only one language:At least you have two big branches: (CLICK)European Spanish, and (CLICK) Latin American Spanish. And from here, it was born (CLICK) the Neutral Spanish… But if you want to really localize a message for a given country… (CLICK) you will found around 20 different types of Spanish…
- According to the census made in the US in 2000, there were 36.3 million Spanish speakers without counting the population in Puerto RicoYou can see in the map the largest concentrations of Spanish speakers in dark blue. Data from the same source from 2010 show that 50,4 million people spoke Spanish in their homes, , which equals 16,7% of the overall population of the US. At the same time it represents a total growth of a 43% in the total Spanish speaking population over 5 years old living in the US… Take your own conclusions…
- And our five stars discovering this world are the following:1.- Marketing translations require a more careful and different treatment than traditional translation does. (CLICK) You should hire not only professional translators but agencies which have the skills and the qualified resources. That’s why with MarCom skills and client’s deep knowledge, there is no way translations are considered a commodity.2.-For Marketing and Communications agencies, (CLICK) theknowledge of Localizationindustryallowstoadd a hugevaluetotheirservices3.- Youonlyhavetofollowindustrystandards (CLICK) and Marcomprinciplestakingintoaccountyourownbusinessprocessestobuildyourownlocalizationmethod4.- Ifyou use theappropriateresourceswiththeappropriateknowledgetostrengtheneachother, (CLICK) youcould –as wedid- turnyourknowledgeinto a new amazingbusiness. Whynottotrainyour MT post editors in specificmatters? Why do nottoteachtoyour DTP specialistsaboutthefundamentals of Marketing orwhateverspecialfieldyouhandle?5.- Companies all over the world make fortunes through the right use of marketing. But, why do they invest thousands or millions of dollars into generating the key messages and their marketing campaigns in a given language and do not consider translations and localization as an investment, almost as important as the initial one?? (CLICK)That’s why you –as a specialized translator- or you –as a professional LSP with specialized resources- or us, the “aliens” coming from specialized agencies, all of us face the MOST IMPORTANT AND BIGGEST LAST CHALLENGE: to evangelize about the reasons for having a higher rate for Marcom translations or recreations. If we don’t defend our prices anybody is going to do it.
- At theend of theday, itwasnot so badtobeinganillegalalien in thelocalizationindustry. Moreover, isabsolutelyamazingto be part of this new world…So, thisisnot THE END forus…Thisisjust THE NEW BEGINING…