From marketing strategies to the particular way you brand your mission, understanding the local language and culture, and incorporating those elements into your business strategy will be key if you want to be embraced and fully immersed within the area and local community.
Not convinced? Consider these points:
- Thinking in terms of money and profit? Learning the language will help streamline business transactions
- Wanting to connect with individuals in the intended launch area? Speaking their language will facilitate communication
- Aiming to better understand, and make improvements to the supply chain? Learning the language will smooth this along
- And if you’re looking for new business partners, wouldn’t it be best to be able to tell them, in their own language, why they should do business with you?
Do you see where we’re going with this?
Whether you’re looking to grow your business, corporation, partnerships are profit margins, chances are learning a new language should be on your to-do list!
At the end of the day, learning a new language (and the efforts rolled up in that endeavor) is a form of respect for the people you’re hoping to do business with. It’s easy to assume that other people should speak whatever language you speak, but consider that from another person’s point of view. Wouldn’t you appreciate the effort if someone was making it for you? ING Media, for example, specifically looks for employees that are bilingual in order to better serve their growing list of international clients. In fact, the company’s managing director says that *“the fact the staff are multilingual has had a direct impact on its success with winning international work”. *And we’re not talking about full fluency here! While it may be nice to have someone understand you word, even simple comments that show you’re trying can make all the difference in the world!
English may be prevalent globally, but people come from a variety of countries and cultures. If you are truly looking to strengthen and grow your organization’s success, then the time is now to embrace the languages that belong to the clients and professionals around the world! If your first language is English, then the gesture of learning a new language despite the commonality of English, will speak volumes.
New business development begins with a first impression. From there, the corporate relationships begin to take root. Making sure that trust and open communication are at the foundation of the working relationship will mean that business can unfold in the way that feels most comfortable – and most profitable! – for both parties. Even if one individual does not have a complete grasp on the language, the other party will appreciate the effort – even if just for the simple dedication to the act of learning.
Similarly, when supply chains are stuck, business can slow almost to a halt. Especially when working in international markets the language barrier can be a major contributor to this. Indeed, when language is the only barrier, conversations are strained. Mistakes are made and confusion is king.
When companies are at the mercy of an intersection that includes inventory and an operations margin, it is usually difficult to improve one without the other. In many cases, the secret to fixing a clogged supply chain is in shifting how you think about it. How can this happen? Follow the path of executives at companies like Tesla, Toyota and Calvin Klein who are arriving at the solution by redesigning the process from the outside-in.
Monumental change starts with a small, single shift, and this shift, no matter how simple, is always a step in the right direction.
Don’t expect others to make these shifts. Work to make them in your very own way of doing business, and watch how the dilemma melts away!
Though learning a language may initially seem like a monumental endeavor, it isn’t. As in business, when you break language learning down into smaller pieces, success is always feels more attainable.In fact, research shows that it isn’t in excessive studying of grammar and rules that leads to language success, but rather through practicing conversations in real-life settings. When it doesn’t consist of flashcards and complicated textbooks, people discover that it’s actually fun, and practical, to continue learning new languages throughout their lifetimes!
And keep in mind that you don’t have to go at it alone either! Looping in other business professionals or co-workers can make the whole experience a lot more enjoyable. As the members of your team become more fluent in new languages, the world opens up – meaning more opportunities to do business. And more business means more revenue, which is exactly why most business are started in the first place!
Being a monolingual team is preventing you from growth and success. Isn’t it time to do something about it? Fluent City’s conversational approach to language learning provides the perfect atmosphere to help your business grow. Find out more here.
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