GLOBAL MESSAGE ACROSS THE GAP

Making sure your marketing strategy safely crosses linguistic and cultural barriers by adequately adapting advertising content to local speak and customs.

No two types of material are the same when it comes to translation, and different approaches need to be taken to ensure that content, tone, and style are accurately rendered. This is especially true when it comes to marketing and advertising—while there may be a certain 1:1 equivalency in technical terminology (cholesterol will stay Cholesterin in German and cholésterol in French), all bets are off as soon as language gets creative. So if you have packaging to translate for worldwide distribution, chances are the list of ingredients is pretty straightforward, but the text portion describing and advertising your product could turn into Pandora’s box.

Your carefully conceived and developed marketing content should never come out of this proverbial box distorted, clumsy, or plain wrong. Every word in the original text was chosen carefully, the syntax built subtly but solid. What you need now are linguists who can do the same in each target language, who do magic with words while staying loyal to yours, and who know how to navigate all potential cultural pitfalls.

Geography

It may seem obvious, but geography should actually be your first concern when assigning the right team of translators. It is crucial to discuss with your language services company of choice what the exact target markets are—a translation “into Spanish”, for instance, will greatly differ if performed for the Latin American market or for Spain. Not only are there linguistic differences, especially in the colloquial language often used for marketing purposes, but cultural sensitivities vary as well. Sometimes two or more translations into Spanish are necessary to reach your target audience, depending on which countries you are distributing your product or services in, and they must be performed by experienced, native linguists.

Philosophy

As noted above, there is a different approach and philosophy to working on creative materials vs. technical texts. Translators who specialize in this kind of material are strong writers, unafraid of letting go of structures and metaphors contained in the original that need to be recreated or replaced in order to accurately convey what is being said, and how. Not every translator masters this paradox. Those who do must know target and source languages inside out and be tuned into subtleties of style and tone. The act of translation becomes an act of reinvention, at the end of which stands a text that mirrors the original in rhythm, imagery, and content but reads as if created from scratch for the intended audience.

Fluency

Readability is crucial for the appeal of any marketing and advertising piece. If a text doesn’t flow right, we will easily abandon it or even be turned off by it. This of course will affect our perception of the product or services it relates to. Be it a tagline, slogan, ad, packaging or other promotional material, its purpose is to lure the audience into wanting to know more. If the line or text is no longer catchy or witty in translation, its entire effect is lost. Stylistic tools are of highest order, although the linguist must sometimes carefully weigh if it may not be better to replace a rhyme with an alliteration or the other way around—again, the paradox lies in remaining true to the original while making the adaptation fit into its own linguistic and cultural context. Every language has its own musicality and every audience is tuned into different melodies.

Vocabulary

Whatever the melody or music of a text may be, it is still made up of words, and choosing the right words is crucial not only to sound and fluency but also to content and tone. The way you address your audience, the industry-specific terminology, the common ground you strike or new ground you break with the target customers must ring true in every single translation. And this of course will vary from market to market, and it is the responsibility of the respective linguist to know and research the adequate wording. The challenge is to “package” it in a way that makes it attractive and follows the idea of the original as closely as possible in consideration of the different idiosyncrasies of each culture.

Accuracy

The translations can only be as accurate as they are befitting for their respective market. This means that we cannot simply look at individual words or phrases and determine if they are “right” or “wrong”. You may say translating ‘sugar’ with ‘salt’ will always be wrong—but even that does not necessarily apply, for instance if it involves a metaphor or saying. One of the greatest mistakes that can be made in the adaptation of creative texts is the literal translation of an idiom or figure of speech, which can easily be an oversight. The English “thorn in someone’s side” is a “thorn in someone’s eye” in German, and if a German speaker told an English speaker something is “for the cat”, he or she would not necessarily know that it’s simply a waste of time. If your marketing or advertising piece is rich in imagery and colloquialisms, be prepared that it will need to be adapted to suit the conventions and sensitivities of the target audiences. The notion of accuracy must always take into account the bigger picture.

Sensitivity

Cultural and linguistic sensitivity is ultimately the key to successful adaptations of any kind of promotional materials. In order to bring your global message across to every single target market, the linguists must be familiar with what’s deemed appropriate and what isn’t, what’s funny and what isn’t, what sounds good and what doesn’t and so on. Their in-depth knowledge of target and source culture combined with their skill and expertise of recognizing and choosing the right words, stylistic tools and expressions to render your text in the most adequate and appealing way will ensure nothing gets lost in translation, and gaps will be masterfully bridged.

Nanette Gobel

Pharma Misses the Mark with Hispanics

The Hispanic/Latino population in the U. S. is one of the quickest growing and Spanish is the second most-common language in the U.S after English. According to the 2009 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, Spanish is the primary language spoken at home by over 35.5 million people aged 5 or older. There are 45 million Hispanics who speak Spanish as a first or second language and there are 6 million Spanish students making it the world's second-largest Spanish-speaking community. The implications are that all major aspects of life are conducted in Spanish. The impact of language is significant in the health care arena where communication is the key to successful outcomes.

A recent national survey of physicians conducted by KCI Partners and the Jeffrey Group revealed that U.S. pharmaceutical companies communicate poorly with Hispanic/Latino audiences. The ratings showed the lowest possible scores with 33% of the physicians stating that only 7% communicate “very well” with Latino/Hispanic patients. On a scale of one to seven – with seven being the highest positive rating – 24% of doctors gave pharma a three for communication ability, and another 24% gave pharma a four. There are clearly some issues that could include lack of cultural knowledge combined with language barriers. By this scale, pharma appears to miss the mark.

The sheer numbers of Hispanic/Latino growth is indicative of health care needs increasing along with rising trends in diabetes and some cancers. Although the health care crisis continues to expand for this group due to lack of access and limited insurance, it remains questionable whether health care reform will impact this population. In the meantime, there are specific actions that can be employed to reduce disparity. First, pharma could invest in how to communicate better with Hispanic/Latino patients as this market will continue to grow. There are ways to communicate better. Culturally relevance and language are crucial. Second, communication between pharma and the Hispanic/Latino patient could make a difference in millions of lives. Pharma can still make the grade.

New Generations More Adept With Technology

Everyone knows that each generation has specific characteristics that involve all aspects of life including how they obtain health information. Generation X grew up with the development of computers and remains constant users of technology. The Internet Generation (also known as the Millennial Generation or Generation Y finds great ease and comfort in communicating via technology. Instant communication is a way of life and they are online 24/7 either emailing, text-messaging or enjoying online technology. Now here comes Generation Z who has only known technology their entire lives and has even become dependent on it since it is available in their own pocket. They are indeed the ‘immediate need’ generation. What does this say about the future of utilizing mobile apps for global health care needs?

A recent study by Euro RSCG tonic demonstrates percentages of common virtual users in the U.S. It seems that the most receptive individuals to online health care are those with chronic illnesses, more affluent and younger generations. About 50% of the respondents use mobile apps to run do it yourself (DIY) tests at home and monitor their own symptoms. These patients have much to gain by way of convenience and low cost. This high number of users will inevitably increase worldwide as more users realize these benefits. This is a win-win for physicians who can be more efficient due to time constraints and patients who will receive personalized care. Although the study focused on 1,000 U. S. online users, it is noteworthy to recall that Eastern cultures often follow Western culture patterns.

This change in health care usage is correlated to generational shifting. Already half of the new generations (X, Y & Z) are comfortable with virtual health visits compared to Baby Boomers at almost 40%. These newer generations from around the globe will drive remote health care even further. Their different mindset will make it more likely that they will increasingly use technology to serve their health care needs. This will transform global health care delivery. After all, this is the Internet Generation.

(MUR)

High Standards Remain Necessary in Language Translation

There is a lot to be said about technology and language. For example, the Chinese language is quickly gaining speed by the number of users in the world (second most spoken language in the world next to English as first and Spanish as third). Technology has come a long way and one can now look up words online in just about any language and you can even communicate albeit in a loose way. You can get the gist of the topic at hand, but not implicit information that makes a difference in one’s life. However, there is one exception in digital communication when it comes to technology translation. Health care communication needs to be precise. It is this accuracy that makes it valuable. It is just too important to have personal information be translated by technology in a verbatim way.

First, technology translation about health is private, individual and unique to the patient. It could be a difference of life vs. death, healthy living vs. poor habits or knowledge vs. ignorance. No one can negate the intimacy of communication between a health care provider and a patient where health care is concerned. Technology translation cannot possibly fulfill patient needs in a personalized way. Preciseness is necessary in this case.

There is no question that technology translation has much to offer all industries around the world. We are not quite there for communication about health care matters. Computers may be experts in word translation, but not effective human communication. It is projected that technology translation will not be perfect, merely adequate. Now these applications are often considered “passable”. This is fine for general information or basic business, but not delicate matters with the potential to impact health. Therefore, we still need to rely on medical translation firms who specialize in high quality language standards. Just ask yourself. If you were in China, would you trust your personal health needs to a technology translation application? How about if the words were passable?

(MUR)

Pharma Can Fill This Order

It is no secret that physicians worldwide have demanding schedules round the clock. They often have limited time since they have to first see their patients who come to their offices, make rounds in hospitals and stay abreast of medical information that makes them competent. Of course, there are many other tasks to accomplish for this complicated role in medicine.

This leaves little room for digital communication with their patients who need to know more about their illness or medication. Not only is this a patient need, it has become a craving for patients throughout the world. A recent study conducted by MedTera revealed that 95% of patients require more comprehensive information to manage their disease, learn about their illness or manage their medication. New studies are underway to determine useful tools to help patients. In the meantime, this is an opportunity for pharma to fill the void by providing valuable information particularly for the global patient who has additional needs related to language and culture.

All patients have unique concerns about their individual health. If they are not managing their disease or learning about an illness, they are working on prevention efforts such as altering their lifestyle and learning how to live a more healthy life. The global patient profile is a patient that speaks another language and requires information in a culturally sensitive manner so that it makes sense, is useful and makes an impact right away. Yes, one has to take time to figure out effective means of communication with the global patient. Pharma already has a strong knowledge base about comprehensive health information to meet the global patients’ needs. Furthermore, they have the resources at their fingertips to translate materials in a culturally appropriate way. If patients are hungry for more, who says that pharma cannot fill this order?

(MUR)