Studies have revealed that millions of people around the world gain access to the internet, and projections show that the entire world will be online by 2030.
These statistics show that the abilities to drive eCommerce are growing each day exponentially. Therefore, businesses from different industries need to adapt their business models to align with their customers’ methods of buying products.
In this regard, businesses have opted to work with language service providers to drive their sales in different territories around the globe. This mostly involves businesses adjusting their strategies to meet the local expectations of their customers. Part of the strategy involves the use of language. Research has shown that language has value and power if a business wants to harness the benefits of eCommerce.
Online Business Opportunities
Recent statistics have shown how the internet has transformed how people interact globally. Studies have also revealed that the internet is growing at a mind-boggling rate. For instance, there are around 510 million active websites with 14.3 trillion live web pages. Additionally, there are one million first-time internet users daily. The studies also reveal that Wikipedia has 222 active languages.
Online business experts have explained that the continued spread of the internet has affected the value of language. Initially, English was regarded as the lingua franca of the internet. In this regard, many businesses were looking for employees who could speak English fluently.
However, times have changed. Studies have shown that in the past, availing a web page in 21 languages ensures 90% of the global internet users can understand your content. On the other hand, if you increase it to around 34 languages, you’ll reach 95% of web users. It is also apparent that with time, the value of language increases. For example, as the remaining parts of the global population get access to the internet, websites will need to cater to more languages to enable them to reach the growing numbers and increasing diversity of internet users.
Impact of Diversity of Language
Language diversity on the internet determines how internet users make buying decisions. When a business analyses language, it can discover likely online habits. Therefore, businesses need to decide the languages that will work as they try to increase brand awareness, build trust with their customers and sell goods and services effectively.
In this regard, a business needs to know the languages to target when it reaches international markets. Sometimes, the multilingual strategy can feel like a game of chance which usually discourages businesses from leaving their comfort zone.
Is Language Translation Enough?
In an increasingly multilingual world, many business executives consider translation as the answer to their language needs. However, translation is the starting point of a greater strategy that targets a specific language group. For example, if a company has a customer base that includes another language group, it should create a strategy that’s specific to that group.
So, why is a language-specific strategy necessary?
- Studies have shown that over 50% of global web users buy only at websites that present information in their language.
- Moreover, the studies also revealed that over 80% of web users claimed that having content in their own language plays an important role in buying insurance and financial services.
- Internet users also prefer using local payment methods and currency when buying online.
- Many internet users also claimed that they would rather buy from an international organization than a local one.
These findings show that businesses should focus on language support and identifying the characteristics of their target customers. For example, foreign language web users have differing online behaviour. Therefore, businesses must research their habits to develop a proper strategy for them.
Consider Complete Language Support
Language is a critical factor in international business strategy. However, it is not restricted to web content only. Instead, businesses should avail their entire online spectrum for foreign language users to peruse through. This should include other online activity that goes beyond the website such as social networks and online advertisement.
Businesses that have localized support usually end up having a healthy return on investment. This is because they can effectively target web users through content relevant to them. The businesses’ focus should be customer satisfaction, and the first step is to develop an ongoing language strategy for their foreign language web users.
What Does The Future Hold?
Studies have shown that language is increasingly becoming critical. For example, when you look at Google, it is continually driving towards a completely semantic use of language. This means they want the internet and how it communicates to become more natural and conversational. In this regard, local languages will play a key part.
Therefore, any organization that plans to run a global eCommerce platform must take into consideration language requirements. Additionally, those who wish to work for such companies should work on their language skills. Fortunately, it is easy to learn a new language thanks to the internet. For example, you can learn English Online and join an organization expanding to English-speaking regions. In short, the future of language is local!
