Millions of New Spanish Speaking Customers Are Waiting To Hear From You

If you’ve made the wise decision to add Spanish language content to your website or to export your products to a Spanish speaking country, you need more than an employee who speaks Spanish to make your program a success.

The very first thing you need to do is engage the services of a professional translation firm that can help you determine what variant of Spanish you need to reach your particular Spanish speaking customer. For instance, you don’t want to use the Tex-Mex Spanish variant if your main customer target is Puerto Rico, the Cuban population of Miami, or the nation of Spain.

On the other hand, you may want to take the broader path and translate using a neutral broadcast Spanish. This type of translation is a version mostly understood by Spanish speaking individuals. It is really more akin to Castilian Spanish than to any other version of Spanish spoken in the US, but it is the version of choice used by the news media.

However, if your goal is to emotionally brand a product or service with the US Hispanic population that is from Mexico, or to reach customers who reside in Mexico, using Castilian Spanish will not be the route to take. For instance, Spanish as spoken in Mexico as well as by Latinos in the US from Mexico will say lentes instead of gafas when speaking of eyeglasses; elevador instead of asensor for elevator; and estampilla instead of sello for the word stamp. So while you are still speaking Spanish the vocabulary is very different.

A brochure or even a sales letter going directly to this or any other niche Hispanic sector, will attract more interest if you have adapted your translation to have the nuances of language specifically for the dialect of Spanish spoken by the people you wish to reach.

You may want your translated materials to resonate with potential customers who speak a Puerto Rican variant of Spanish or a Cuban variant in addition to those who speak a Tex-Mex version of the language.
It is always a wise decision to have your materials actually speak to your market the way customers in that market speak to each other.

If you provide any services or sell any goods of a medical nature it is especially important for materials to be translated into the potential customers’ precise variant. The same concept holds true if you manage a neighborhood medical clinic, have a dental office or offer legal service and are asked to provide service to a Spanish-speaking customer. In these instances, it is critically important you speak the exact variant of Spanish that your customer or patient speaks or employ the services of someone who does. To not do so is to risk a lawsuit.

Sometimes it helps to step back and place yourself in the shoes of your prospective customer. Consider the English language for a moment. You can, no doubt, with a little effort understand spoken dialects of people from Australia or the United Kingdom. However, it is different and difference creates distance and places a small barrier to understanding. Although they are both English, some words have different meanings, the humor is not the same, and the spelling of some words is similar but different.

Now, if anyone from those countries is trying to market to you, you may feel justified in preferring their materials in the form of English you have learned and are accustomed to reading. If the communication is a business letter, would it be completely understood by the recipient without the benefit of graphics or photos? If the copy is for a brochure, would appearing to be more familiar with the culture, help you to make a sale? Is the content I am placing on my website understood by a broad audience of Spanish speakers? These are questions you should raise when considering the particular form of Spanish to use.

When you work with a professional translation firm, they have the depth of personnel and resources to help you make the right decisions regarding the type of Spanish to use in your materials. They also have processes to ensure that your materials are translated and proofread correctly to create the desired impression for your recipients.