WHEN IN BABYLON
Friday, November 1, 2013 @ 9:03 PM
Moscow Business Sector
Do as the Babylonians do. It seems extraordinary that, operating in the most multinational community in the world, language barriers still separate businesses from potential clients. Most businesses rely on brochures, advertisements and website content. However, many Spanish and British owned service suppliers appear to practice language apartheid. Various Spanish and British owned suppliers market in their own language. This discourages those whose familiarity with these languages is minimal.
Scores of businesses recognise that setting one’s stall out in two or three languages can substantially increase profitability. The real estate sector appears to be the most switched on. Their target is the Russian buyers.
My Russian-Ukrainian wife Nadia has weeks of work ahead of her. Whilst she is happy to provide a service for all types of business, most of her work is translating property descriptions for estate agents. An upmarket educational academy, eager to cash in on Russian speaking students, is just one business awaiting her attention.
The classier restaurants and hotels are catching on too. Russian speakers, there are 350 million of them, spend more per head than do Western Europeans.
Whilst just 4% of Russians are familiar with the English language most of those holidaying on the Costas, buying or renting property, opening businesses, can get by in English. They are however inclined to use restaurants, property and other services that show an interest in them by at least welcoming them in their own language.
A point most often made is why advertise for Russian speaking clients when I do not have a Russian-speaking member of the staff? Excuse my flippancy; the obvious answer is to find one. There are plenty of them around.
So why advertise in Russian? Because if you do not you can bet your life your business rivals will. They will have a significant advantage. Why? Because all nationalities, including your own, will be prejudiced in favour of those who make them feel welcome - in their own language. - Mike Walsh.
www.michaelwalsh.es