Global communications can pave the way for biotech companies to successfully expand into international markets. Whether your communications focus on research and development, clinical trials, regulatory submissions, manufacturing, or sales and marketing, a strategy to translate relevant information can give your company an edge in global markets.
The Agency Advantage
When developing your strategy for translating biotech materials, consider working with a professional language services agency. Working with an agency can increase efficiency in many ways.
- Finding Experts. When working with an agency, you have access to a variety of professionals who are fully bilingual and have specialized skills or advanced degrees in specific disciplines. This is an efficient way to find the right expert for your needs.
- Document Formatting. Professional translation agencies who are knowledgeable in the life sciences industry can save companies the time and effort of researching the complexities of translating and formatting materials for clinical trials, validation documentation, and patents, as well as press releases and websites for marketing communications.
- Regulatory Compliance. Each country has its own specific regulatory guidelines, and a good translation agency will be familiar with those regulations and be able to guide you through the required steps.
- Project Management. Be sure to ask potential agencies about their project management process and delivery guarantees. ISO certification indicates that the agency has a systematic approach to providing language services. However, ISO certification does not necessarily guarantee quality translations. Many companies without ISO certification have equally good project management systems in place.
- Quality. Errors in translation, formatting, or procedures can end up being quite costly in terms of time and money. Translation experts in the biotech industry comprehend the importance of accuracy and the potential impact of errors on human life.
- Guaranteed Delivery. Planning time for translation into project deadlines is important. Communicate your company’s needs to the agency, respond to questions, and work with them to resolve issues as they arise and facilitate an on-time delivery.
Partnering with a qualified translation agency throughout the product development stages is a proactive strategy for expansion.
Make Global Connections
Connecting with global customers is easier when you make the effort to speak to them in their own language. Professional language services agencies work with you to convey your message accurately. They also consider the overall presentation of that message. For this, there are two strategies.
Globalization takes products, ideas, or communications and makes them functional for different regions around the world. For language service providers, this means using one language to convey a message for all parts of the world where that language is spoken.
Localization translates a message into the target language and adapts the product, ideas, or communications to a specific geographic area, culture, or community. While globalization appeals to many areas with one shared language, localization references many different aspects of one culture to make connections with a specific region.
When it comes to translating for global markets, details matter. A combination of globalization and localization strategies can be applied to a variety of mediums, including:
- Technical manuals
- Diagrams
- Websites
- Pamphlets
- Advertising
- Software
- Public announcements
Globalization and localization both have a role supporting biotech in the global marketplace. Identifying your target market can help in deciding which approach or combination of approaches works best for your products, ideas, or communications.
Cultural Adaptation
Incorporating those cultural norms and regional user needs in the design phase can contribute to success in global markets. For products, this would include:
- Identifying which languages to support.
- Writing copy that makes sense in those languages.
- Implementing the appropriate character classification, numeric and measurement conventions, and date and time formatting.
For marketing materials, respecting cultural norms is essential for localization. If you don’t convey an understanding of the culture, you run the risk of violating cultural standards and alienating your audience. The benefits of an approach that is sensitive and appropriate to regional convention include:
- More rapid launch of products into the market.
- Efficient use of resources.
- Easier maintenance of products.
A partnership with a professional language services agency lets the agency take care of global communications, so your company can focus on bringing biotech innovation to global markets.