Three Reasons Translation is Still Essential for Global Businesses in 2015

By Sarah-Claire Jordan

If you’re at all interested in business and technology, then you probably know about Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends report which is released every year. The report includes statistics on anything and everything related to technology and the internet, from the latest chat applications to the most advanced technologies. Aside from letting you know exactly what consumers and internet users are most interested in, this report gives you clues as to what to focus on if you are an internet business owner.

This year, a lot of the statistics are showing that globalization is still one of the most important things to focus on as a business, which means that translation is still something that every company should take seriously. Here are three good reasons from the report that back this up:

1. More people are using the internet to buy products and services

This could be generalized further to say that more people are using the internet period, but it is especially interesting that people have started to look more and more to the internet to buy things they would have bought in a store 10 years ago, or maybe even 5 years ago. Basically, people are coming around to the fact that internet shopping is so much more convenient, since they don’t have to leave the comfort of their home to buy what they need. This goes for international customers as well, though. Someone in Thailand can easily buy something from an American website. This opens up new opportunities for American companies to localize, which means translating their websites for starters.

2. Many countries are catching up to the U.S. in terms of online businesses

Though the top two internet companies as of 2015 are American, the rest of the spots in the list of the top 20 are based in other countries, largely in Asia. This means that Google and Apple have some stiff competition in Japan and China as well as other countries. The best strategy to deal with that kind of international competition is to start catering towards customers from the very countries competing with your company. The most essential step in terms of localization is, of course, translation. Once a prospective client or customer sees that your product or service is offered in their native language, they are much more likely to use it.

3. Online business is growing at an unprecedented rate

It’s becoming more and more evident with each passing year that online business is the most lucrative kind of business there is. Even if a business isn’t internet-based, it’s hard to find a company that doesn’t have its own website or at least Facebook page. When you put your business out there on the internet, however, you should keep in mind that anyone in the world can access it. Take advantage of that by translating your site into the languages your international customers speak, and your business will grow more than ever.

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Category: Business Translation