How to Navigate Business Culture in the Middle East - Part 2
“It’s not what you know; it’s who you know.” We all know relationships are vital in business. But in the Middle East, they take on a greater significance than in the West and hugely influence how key decisions are made in business as well as politics. If you want to understand how things get done in the Middle East, you need to grasp one very simple concept: wasta. ‘Wasta’ is an Arabic term that means leveraging connections to achieve particular goals, whether it’s renewing
How to Navigate Business Culture in the Middle East - Part 1
“Time is money.” – Benjamin Franklin In North America, business is fast paced. Everyone rushes to get things done and pack the most into each day. Productivity and efficiency are the ultimate goals. What about attitude towards time in the Middle East? Picture yourself at a government services office in Dubai. You ask the officer handling your case when your trade license will be ready for pick up. The officer tells you, “Tomorrow, inshallah.” Does this really mean your lice
Does Grammar Really Matter?
Grammatical errors. We’ve all seen them. We’ve all heard them. As grammar enthusiasts, these errors make us cringe. We mentally correct the mistakes or vent to our fellow grammar Nazi friends. Some people go a step further and write the offending party (yes, this does happen!). But when it comes to marketing and advertising, should we forego correct grammar to create catchier, more memorable copy? We see grammar slips over and over again in advertising. Just think about some
5 Easy Steps to Getting More Freelance Work Through Agencies
Whether you’re a translator, copywriter, editor or other communications professional, you’ll likely want to work as a freelancer at some point in your career – either to supplement your income or to have the freedom to dictate your own workload. Here are our top 5 tips for landing more freelance work through agencies: 1- Distinguish yourself on social media Follow and like your favourite agencies’ social media accounts. Engage with them and increase your visibility by liking
How to Adapt an Ad Campaign to a New Market: Tim Horton’s 50th Anniversary vs. #TimsDark Experiment
The best way to successfully adapt an ad campaign to a new market is to use a cross-cultural communications approach. This involves thoroughly evaluating the impact of specific regional, cultural and linguistic factors on consumer preferences, then creating or adapting content according to those considerations. But what happens if you don’t take this approach? In this post, we look at the popularity of the English and French versions of Tim Horton’s 50th Anniversary ad versus
Quick Guide: How to Connect with Consumers in Canada
Have you ever wondered how to promote your products and services in the Canadian market? What are the most important considerations? How useful is bilingual or multilingual content? Check out our latest infographic for helpful facts and tips: Quick Guide: How to Connect with Consumers in Canada #advertising #all #canada #business #communications #contentmarketing #copywriting #crosscultural #culture #english #french #language #localization #marketing #quebec #translation
5 Reasons You Should Work with a Cross-Cultural Communications Agency
Need communications services like branding, copywriting, translation, editing, voiceovers, subtitling? Here are 5 reasons you should entrust your communications needs to a professional cross-cultural communications agency with well-known clients and a proven track record of producing quality work. 1- Improve Customer Loyalty Cross-cultural communications involve using content and appropriate media to target a specific market or market segment, taking into account particular
Cross-Cultural Communications: How to Successfully Tap Into a New Market
“Sero Communications is a cross-cultural communications agency.” So what does that actually mean, you ask? First, there's a difference between ‘cross-cultural communication’ and ‘cross-cultural communications.’ Here's a simple way to understand it: Cross-cultural communication is the goal; cross-cultural communications are the means to successfully achieve that goal. Cross-cultural communication (noun, singular): A field of study that examines how individuals communicate and
Top 100 Language Lovers 2014 Results
We made it!
We're thrilled to announce that we've placed 10th in the Twitter category and 20th overall out of all the winners in the 2014 Top 100 Language Lovers Competition. The worldwide competition had over 1,200 nominations and more than 55,000 votes. Be sure to follow us on Twitter so you don't miss out on our winning content: www.twitter.com/SeroComms You can also check out all the categories and winners here: http://en.bab.la/news/top-100-language-lovers-2014 #all
