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Author: Scott Oliver

Four Things You Never Want to Do When You Have an International Customer Base

The great thing about online businesses is that you have the opportunity to reach more customers than you can in a traditional physical store. But with that extended reach, you need to remember that you also need to create your site with international visitors in mind. There are many things you should never do on your website when you are trying to bring in international business. Here are four of the biggest mistakes you could make when dealing with your global customer base.

Use Clichés and Slang

When it comes to getting lost in translation, clichés and slang are the two things that you need to avoid. While you might think that you are being clever on your website, these phrases can often be interpreted as disrespectful and even crass to some international visitors. Your website should contain plain and simple English that will be simple to translate and to understand. Your sentences should be short and filled with basic words, but still rich with descriptions of your business and your products.

If you are writing your own website content, you will want to go back to reread what you have written down to be sure that everything is easy to read in a literal sense. For example, if it's not actually 'raining cats and dogs,' don't say that it is. Have a few people read your site before you post it up on the internet to be sure you are being as clear as possible.

Use Other Languages Improperly

The next mistake that many people make with their international website is to try to use a few languages from various cultures they cater to - but this can be disastrous. If you haven't taken the time to be fluent in the foreign language, you should not be using it on your site. The only way that you should use a foreign language on your site is to have a native speaker write the site for you. It's simply better if you avoid trying to add in other languages too because you don't want any international customers to feel 'left out' because their language isn't used.

Not Have a Translation Page

When you don't have a way for your page to be translated for your customers, this can spell problems for your business. True, there are websites that profess to be able to translate pages for you, but they're not always reliable. What you will want to do is create a simple English website and then hire a translator to translate it into the languages that you want your site in. That way, you can have customers click onto a new link to get the site in their native language. When you don't offer this, it can look as though you're simply not interested in helping your non-English speaking contingent.

Forget about Currency Exchange Rates

Of course, if you are selling anything, you need to be able to price things as the customers will be paying for them. Have a currency exchange calculator built into your shopping cart experience so that you can easily help your customers. That way, you can get the money in the currency you wish to be paid in and your customers have a clear idea as to how much they will be spending. You might also want to have a currency exchange calculator on the pages with your products if you don't have the prices clearly adjusted.

When you are trying to woo international customers, you need to make sure you have everything they need for the transaction to go smoothly and respectfully.

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