I’m looking at how we overcome language barriers in export sales.
A slightly annoying thing about customers from other countries is that they do everything differently. They drive on the wrong side of the road, eat funny food and worst of all, they talk funny.
It has to be admitted that British business people are among the worst in the world when it comes to learning to speak other languages. To some extent, we are lucky because, thanks to that place called the USA, English is widely spoken among business people in most parts of the world. But to assume that clients are both willing and able to speak my language frequently puts me at a disadvantage in a sales negotiation.
No exporting company should underestimate the importance of developing language skills among their key staff. But no matter how much time one devotes to mastering them, there will be times when the only solution is to call in a professional.
I’m grateful to John from Choice Translations for the following article, that portrays how professional language services can be invaluable in overcoming client objections.
Choice Translations helped local Adlington-based firm Proseal Ltd, a leading manufacturer and supplier of specialist packaging equipment for the food industry, win a new batch of orders and clients in France.
“As well as providing the usual commercial translations for the to-ing and fro-ing during the sales negotiations, we provided Proseal with specialist technical translations for the manuals that were to accompany the machines being sold to the French client” explained John Heywood. “We also provided an on-site interpreter during the installation process in France, so that the French workers could be trained to use the machine properly.”
But it was the knowledge that Proseal could trade with the French client in their own language that enabled the sales process to be completed successfully, as Carl Phythian, Proseal’s Project’s Manager explains. “Knowing we had the backup and support of Choice, who acted as our own in-house language support service, meant that we could be confident that the language barrier was not a problem and we were able to complete the orders we wanted.”
Proseal have now won orders for further machines to be installed with a major food supplier in France and Carl is sure that “this wouldn’t have happened had we not have been able to talk to the client in French and provide manuals and training in their language as well! This won’t be the last time we go to win orders from overseas markets and certainly not the last time we use Choice!”
Contact John on 01625 610151, john@choicetranslations.co.uk, or see our website, www.choicetranslations.co.uk
The Accidental Exporter 
I never thought of it that way, well put!