Take me out to the "BAL" game...

I was reading this article and it reminded me of how important proofreading is:

Majestic Athletic, the company that created these jerseys, creates all of the jerseys for Major League Baseball. They issued an apology here. To avoid national embarrasement, make sure you have a trustworthy proofreader!

Announcement!

I know I know, this might not be complete blog material - but LinguaLinx has announced the formation of its newest division. This division specializes in content authoring. Think of your LSP as a partner - we can help you write your content from day one, making the translation process easier for us and saving you money. It's a win-win situation. For more information, click here:

LinguaLinx Announces Formation of GlobalScript™

German Business Culture

In business, it is important to understand the cultural differences that affect the way business is conducted between people from various countries. In order to make sure not to offend or misinterpret clients or partners, cultural sensitivity is critical. The World Business Culture website outlines the ins and outs of 39 countries from a business culture standpoint and can be a valuable tool when dealing with unfamiliar environments. Below is a sampling of some of the more important similarities and differences between the ways German companies tend to operate compared with American companies.

Check out these "top ten" German Culture rules. For more rules, go here.

Top Ten Business Culture Rules:

1. Companies tend to be run by technical experts rather than lawyers and accountants.
2. Companies tend to have a strictly hierarchical approach within which individuals' specific roles and responsibilities are tightly defined and compartmentalized.
3. This results in what appears to be a distant and cold demeanor.
4. People are expected to contribute to the debate when discussions touch their area of expertise.
5. The greatest amount of respect is due to the person with the greatest depth of technical merit. Therefore, education is highly prized.
6. Relationships between bosses and subordinates tend to appear somewhat formal.
7. Direct speaking is seen in Germany as a sign of respect and a fundamental in the search for the correct answer.
8. Fact is the important issue and personal emotions should not deflect the truth from being spoken.
9. The perceived arrogance is more a misinterpretation of direct speech.
10. Instructions need to be clear, precise and above all unambiguous.

By Anthony Thornton, Intern Extraordinaire.

April Fool's Day treat

I found this blog called "Speak Media Blog" by JA Jones Consulting and today's post is about incorrectly translated marketing campaigns. I don't want to beat a dead horse (we've all heard these translation blunders), but I did want to post a few of my favorites:


1. Frank Perdue's chicken slogan, "It takes a strong man to make a tender chicken" was translated into Spanish as "It takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate."


2. Pepsi's "Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" was read as "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave" in Chinese by billions of potential consumers.


3. When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used the same packaging as they did in the U.S., with the beautiful Caucasian baby on the label. Later they learned that in Africa, companies routinely put pictures on the label of what's inside because most people can't read.




For more, click here.


Happy April Fools Day!