Bad Brands And Translation Blunders

I Love You, and other foreign language faux pas

- Terri Morrison

As Alexander Pope said, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” But could learning just a few phrases in a foreign language actually be hazardous? Yes and no. In Madrid a few years ago, some coworkers and I stopped at a café for coffee. At least that’s what I ordered. My associate from England was more interested in a lovely cup of tea. But as he looked up at the stunning Spanish waitress, his basic Spanish 101 request came out as “Te quiero” (I love you) instead of “Quiero té” (I want tea). Lucky for him, the waitress smiled – and sat in his lap! Of course, he was dead chuffed (utterly delighted) and now loves Spain. However, language blunders and poor translations rarely work in our favor.

Many global firms have struggled with poor translations of everything from annual reports to brand names. Appropriate translations can be particularly challenging in languages with different writing systems. In written Chinese, characters can represent abstract ideas, so names are very evocative. Poor ones can sink you, and propitious ones sell products.