100 • Chapter 4 • Global Cultural Environment and Buying Behavior
Mistranslations may create the impression that the company does not care about
its customers abroad. Several techniques can be used to achieve good translations of
company literature. With back translation, a bilingual speaker—whose native tongue
is the target language—translates the company document rst in the foreign language.
Another bilingual translator—whose native tongue is the base language—then trans-
lates this version back into the original language. Differences between the versions are
then resolved through discussion until consensus is reached on the proper translation.
Firms doing business in multilingual societies need to decide what languages to use
for product labels or advertising copy. Multilingual labels are fairly common now, espe-
cially in the pan-European market. Advertising copy poses a bigger hurdle. To deal with
language issues in advertising copy, advertisers can rely on local advertising agencies,
minimize the spoken part of the commercial, or use subtitles. We will revisit these issues
in much more detail in the global advertising and promotion chapter (Chapter 13).
In markets such as China, marketers also need to decide whether to keep the
original brand or company name or whether to adopt a localized brand identity. Many
multinationals in China have localized their brand names by creating equivalent names
that sound like their global name with a positive meaning in Chinese. Hewlett-Packard,
for instance, adopted Hui-Pu as its Chinese brand name. Hui means “kindness” and
Pu means “universal.” Other companies take a different track and translate their
name using characters that do not necessarily have the same sound as the original
name. In 2002, Oracle, following a brainstorming session with its Chinese executives,
adopted the name Jia Gu Wen. The literal translation means the recording of data
and information—a nice t with Oracle’s core business. Apparently, the meaning of
the phrase stems from a time when tortoise shells were used to record the prophecies
from an oracle during the Shang dynasty. Global Perspective 4-2 discusses how Nestlé
leveraged the Japanese sound of the Kit Kat candy brand name.
Nguồn gốc/Thành phần nào được nhắc đến trong bài?
G LOBAL PERSPECTIVE 4-2
KIT KAT IN JAPAN: KITTO KATSU
Kit Kat, the candy brand owned by Swiss multinational Nestlé, Nestlé partnered with Japan Post to create “Kit Kat Mail,”
has become the leading confectionary brand in Japan (Kit Kat a post-card like product available only at the post of ce. These
is made under license by Hershey in the U.S. market). The items could be mailed to students as an edible good-luck
road to the top spot took some very clever, creative market- charm. Nestlé also decorated post of ces with a cherry blos-
ing. A number of years ago, Nestlé, the Swiss multinational som theme, as Japan’s annual exam period overlaps with the
food company, discovered a sharp spike in the sales of Kit Kat celebration of the country’s cherry-blossom season. Using the
candy bars during exam periods. Apparently, Japanese parents postal service as a distribution channel provided Nestlé with
would place Kit Kat bars as a treat in their children’s lunch the further advantage of no competition—unlike convenience
boxes, especially during exam season. In addition, studious stores or supermarkets.
pupils were buying Kit Kats for themselves as a reminder that To cater to the taste of Japanese consumers, Nestlé offers
they were going to give these exams their best shot. Kit Kat a wide variety of avors. Just as in the rest of the world, the
had become a lucky charm for Japanese students cramming rm sells its staple chocolate avors. But it does not end there.
for their exams. Other avors re ect specialties from regions across Japan
One reason for Kit Kat’s success has to do with the ring such as sweet potatoes from Okinawa, melons from Hokkaido,
of its brand name: the “Kit Kat” name sounds very much strawberries from Tochigi, green tea from Kyoto, and soy sauce
like the expression “kitto katsu,” a Japanese exam-season from Tokyo. Other even more exotic avors include wasabi
mantra that literally means “I’ll do my best to make sure I (green horse-radish), chili, miso (a traditional Japanese sea-
succeed.” To leverage the brand name’s symbolic meaning, soning), cherry, and lemon or strawberry cheesecake. Many of
these special avors are introduced for a limited time only to
Sources: “Kit Kat Takes on Japanese Tastes,” [Link] encourage shoppers to try something new and are then subse-
[Link]/life-style/food-and-drink/kit-kat-takes-on-japanese-tastes-
quently taken off the market. Excess inventory is collected and
[Link]; and “Soy-sauce- avored Kit Kats? In Japan, They’re
used to create “Happy Bags” that are sold during gift-giving
No. 1,” [Link] avors-
kit-kat-japan-markets/142461/. periods such as New Year.
