As the number of international visitors at U.S. tradeshows grows and businesses expand into new international markets, so does the challenge of communicating with non-English speakers. In 2008, nearly two million people travelled overseas to the U.S. for conferences and conventions; 6.3 million for business purposes. More than 675,000 travel abroad from the U.S. for conventions and tradeshows. All in all, millions of us cross borders for business and networking opportunities. Undoubtedly, we don’t all speak English, German, Japanese or Spanish.
Think only large conventions or huge global businesses should cater to international audiences? Online or offline, chances are your customer’s industry, brand and target audience is crossing borders. The very nature of international business demands that marketers and exhibitors consider the preferences of their non-English-speaking internal and external customers. Before you push off from shore, consider these important items featured in the June 2011 issue of Promotional Products Business magazine and avoid sinking your marketing boat on its way overseas.
