Be careful when you select photographs or graphics of common American gestures for your international documents.   User guides and operating manuals often include them as a substitute for text, to break up long paragraphs, and to make the copy easier to understand. A word of caution here: these images may be meaningless or offensive in other countries.

• Thumbs Up - Steer clear of photos of this sign if you are selling in the Middle East or Southeast Asia.  Americans use this to show approval or support, but it is the equivalent of a middle finger salute in other areas.  In Thailand, it is considered to be a childish gesture similar to sticking out your tongue.

• "V" Sign - Winston Churchill made this hand gesture to celebrate victory.  George W. H. Bush learned that can be an insult in many parts of the English-speaking world after he used it in front of a group of Australian farmers.

• The "Okay" Sign - A circle made with the thumb and the index finger is definitely not okay in many parts of the world.  In France, it means something is worthless, in Japan it signifies money, and in Venezuela it is used to question someone's masculinity.

• Crossed Fingers - A photograph of this will bring you no luck in Viet Nam where it is considered an obscene gesture.

• Bull Horns - You won't hook any new business if you use a picture of  a raised index and pinkie fingers in Italy. This insult means that someone's wife is being unfaithful.

Image courtesy of Joe Lodge.

Do you know anyone who has signed a document written in a language she or he couldn't understand?  What were the consequences?

Insist on Translations: Originally published on The Business Ethics Blog.

Continuing my Friday series on keeping your business out of court, let’s discuss a potential pitfall that has emerged relatively recently. Commerce is becoming more international all the time as American businesses try to tap into new markets abroad. It’s all well and good … but it also creates a tremendous opportunity for misunderstanding.

Here’s an example. Several years ago, General Motors tried to market its Chevrolet Nova in Mexico. No one could understand why the car wouldn’t sell - GM’s analysis showed that it was perfect for the Mexican market. Eventually, however, GM discovered that “Nova,” or “no va,” roughly translates in Spanish to “won’t go.” Would you buy a car that “won’t go”? Of course not - and neither would Mexican consumers.

That particular example is pretty entertaining, but it points to a larger problem. If your company is doing business in a foreign country, there’s a good chance that your communications with your customers there are less than perfect. (Incidentally, that’s not just true in countries where languages other than English are spoken. American English bears less resemblance to the English spoken in Canada, Australia, and the U.K. than one might think.) And you can’t just rely on your local contacts to speak for you. I know of one instance where an American business professional signed a regulatory certification in a language he couldn’t read based on his local advisor’s assurance that everything was fine. It wasn’t, and the American got in serious legal trouble.

International markets can offer tremendous opportunities, but the risks associated with doing business in an unfamiliar language are tremendous, too. Before you venture into unknown terrority, make sure you know what the locals are saying to you. It can save your company a world of legal trouble half a world away.

From Smallbiztrends.com

One of the challenges of small businesses going global is the complexity of dealing with language and local requirements. However, if you do your homework, you can sell your products and services outside the U.S. even if your sales and marketing budget is small. One of the most cost effective ways to sell across borders is to use your website, either for eCommerce, or as an informational and lead generation site. Here are 4 key ways to ready your website for international business:

(1) Internationalize your website content

Buyers are much more likely to buy if a website is in their own language.  For the small business, providing website content in other languages can be a particular challenge because it’s costly to translate text into multiple languages.  One way to keep costs in control is to translate text or provide country-specific sites only for the country or countries where you sell the most.  Organizations like Lisa.org and Gala Global provide resources to help businesses localize their products and websites, including links to translation services.  Don’t forget Spanish speakers in the U.S. — more and more businesses are providing Spanish translation specifically for this market within our own borders.

The complete article can be found here.

• For freelance translators, interpreters, and language professionals
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Both interpreters and translators fill necessary roles in today's global economy. They facilitate cross-cultural communication by transposing one language into another.

Quality translators and interpreters do more than just translate words, they convey meaning and concepts into another language and culture. As such, quality translators and interpreters are not only bilingual, they are also culturally literate when it comes to the languages/cultures they are translating between. To this end, many translators and interpreters have spent extended periods of time in other countries learning not only other languages, but also the cultures that correspond to them. Moreover, they are knowledgeable in a variety of subject matters and possess a wide and sometimes very specialized vocabulary in both languages depending on the type of translation or interpreting they do.

Read more of this article from jobmonkey.com (and see where Janine Libbey is quoted) here.