Spanish Landing Pages – An Under Utilized Conversion Strategy

Today we have another new guest post on the Unbounce blog! The topic surrounds a huge market potential that lies in engaging the large online Hispanic community – by offering landing pages correctly translated into marketing Spanish. The author is Angelica Maria, President of Marketing Translation at Traducción4you.com.

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I have been working with optimizing landing pages for a while and have discovered through my work that many people have forgotten to think about the Hispanic demographic. As a Spanish-American myself, when I view a landing page or even a website, the first think I look for is the Spanish option. I know I am not the only one that does this.

Engaging the online Hispanic community is an increasingly smart business strategy. With over 47 million Hispanics now living in the United States, they have a powerful influence on the American consumer economy. Those companies that have opened up their eyes to this ethnic group are benefiting financially for it.

Reason #1 – CATERING to the Demographic

Even though many Hispanic Internet users speak English, they want advertising and online content that speaks to them in their own language. This gives them a feeling that your company has thought about them and is offering them the same opportunity as the English consumer.

Reason #2 – Show them YOU care

Many Hispanics who can read English go to the Spanish option to validate what they read in English to make sure they understood the offer. They base their purchase decision when they feel they have received and understood what they are purchasing. English has many idioms, colloquialisms, slang and other expressions that do not mean the same to a Hispanic customer when they read it. When the page has been properly translated the sentences and ideas will flow with the same coherence as the English version. This is an important fact that cannot be ignored.

Reason #3 – Getting that LOYAL customer

Hispanics are one of the most loyal customers once you have gained their trust. Scarborough’s report,” The Power of the Hispanic Consumer Online” states that “The online advertising marketplace appears to be under-represented when it comes to Hispanic promotions, so first-movers with Hispanic-targeting online marketing activity could lay the groundwork for creating greater opportunities for lifetime brand loyalty,” said the report. To read the entire report go to: http://traduccion4you.com/facts.html

It’s not just translation… it’s Marketing Translation

It’s not uncommon for companies who have websites to simply translate their existing English pages to Spanish. Many believe that just translating word per word will be understood by the Hispanic reader but it’s a mistake I see everyday. Here are some examples I saw the other day that made me laugh. But to the Hispanic customer, they would have shaken their head and moved on.

“Includes everything but the kitchen sink.”

When they say this slogan the English consumer thinks they are getting a good deal. But to the Hispanic customer, they stop and say “WHAT?” and then they bounced off your site.

When Parker Pen marketed a ballpoint pen in Mexico, its ads were supposed to say:
“It won’t leak in your pocket and embarrass you.”

However, the company mistakenly thought the Spanish word “embarazar” meant embarrass. Instead the ads said:
“It won’t leak in your pocket and make you pregnant.”

When General Motors introduced the Chevy Nova in South America, it was apparently unaware that “no va” means “it won’t go.”

After the company figured out why it wasn’t selling any cars, it renamed the car in its Spanish markets to the Caribe.

Bad marketing translations happen in other languages as well….

In Taiwan, the translation of the Pepsi slogan “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” came out as “Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead.”

Also in Chinese, the Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan “finger-lickin’ good” came out as “eat your fingers off.”

Your conversion will depend on a good Marketing Translation Company

What I recommend that you look for in a marketing translation company is one who understands Spanish language optimization for landing pages and even websites. They need to understand that creating a cultural context and provide language adaption, accuracy, cultural rapport is vital for you to be able to get that Hispanic customer.

The translation must read as though it originated in the target language. A good marketing translator will bear in mind any cultural references that may need to be explained to the intended audience. Some subjects may be more difficult than others to translate because words or passages may have multiple meanings that make several translations possible. Not surprisingly, translated work often goes through multiple revisions before the final text is submitted.

Are you ready to benefit from this market?

If you are dealing with an English speaking Hispanic, and they don’t understand your marketing message then you have lost them and they bounce off to another site.

Nearly 1 in 3 Hispanic households have Internet and you begin to see why this rapidly growing demographic group, already larger than the entire population of Canada, represents a major economic force with amazing opportunities for forward thinking businesses. Statistical data on true conversion is extremely limited because companies with websites and landing pages are just now targeting this demographic. Did you know even with this huge Hispanic market, less than 1% of all U.S. websites offer text in Spanish.

Knowing that, the question is, “Are you ready to benefit from this market?”

Written by Angelica Maria of Traducción4you.

About the Author

Angelica Maria, a native Chilean from Chile, South America is a dynamic forward thinking Hispanic who has been in the direct response marketing business for several years. She started Traduccion4you out of the demand for her services. Her company is unique in that she specializes in Spanish landing page optimization.

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About Angelica Maria
Angelica Maria, a native Chilean from Chile, South America is a dynamic forward thinking Hispanic who has been in the direct response marketing business for several years. She decided to create Traduccion4you out of the high demand for her services. Her company is unique in that she specializes in Spanish landing page optimization. Her main goal is to increase your sales and customer base.
» More blog posts by Angelica Maria