GTH TRANSLATION ILDIKO GYIMESI Director of Business Operations at GTH Translation
Q Like most of our readers you have a background in FX. How did you fall into the industry? It’s funny you mentioned that I “fell” into forex, as that’s exactly what happened. I moved to Cyprus in 2015 and got right to work with one of the island’s largest brokers, HotForex, spending two enjoyable years learning the ropes in the Partnerships department. Working with IBs and affiliates was a real eye opener as I was quickly introduced to the world of FX, but more importantly, I got to see the inner workings of how the industry operates. Dealing with partners such as Introducing Brokers, Money Managers, and Affiliates, there were a few things they wanted; no scratch that; demanded. One of the key things all partners asked for was proper localization and great content. Obviously, the partners looked at the customer care side too, but that was greatly affected by the way the forex brand relayed information to their clients. So, the localization aspect became a massive aspect in the way we onboarded clients, and funnily, or ironically enough, it’s what I now do! Q What intrigued you to move over to the translation industry? Communication is key, and that applies to any and every industry, not just forex. If you’re looking to convey a message, then you’re going to have to not only speak the language, but understand the nuances of the language, as well as the cultural differences too. This is what really intrigued me to get into the localization business. I realized quite quickly that if any Forex brand is going to make a real success at advertising their brand and building strong relationships with partners and traders in a new country, they’re going to need to understand them; speak their language, so to speak. As I mentioned earlier, when it came to dealing with the Forex partners that were being managed by me, they would often complain that a simple translation wasn’t enough. A native speaker can translate a sentence no problem, but does he/she fully understand the meaning of what they’re translating? If you ask a native speaker to translate the word “spread”, are they
GAME CHANGERS Issue #33
going to translate the meaning and relate it to spreading butter over toast, or the difference between the bid and the ask? Language is truly a complex thing, and when it comes to FX brands, there are quite a few who don’t fully understand the complexities of localization. For instance, when it comes to a brokerage targeting a new region, some are under the impression that one glove fits all. While working in the FX industry, I saw this first-hand. Over time, I saw that dealing with the bigger picture is what really counts, and that means not just looking at translations, but actually localizing a brand completely. And localization is the much broader term for when it comes to translating content. Do you want me to expand a little more? Localization does include the translation of your content, of course it does, but there’s a lot more to it. You asked me what intrigued me about moving into the translation industry, but I think you need to swap out the word “translation” for “localization”. I remember reading a case study on localization gone bad, and it was one of the sparks that led me on this pathway. That spark was a case study on Marks & Spencer (no pun intended). We all know M&S to be a global brand, and so it might surprise just how wrong this brand got it when it came to penetrating the Chinese market. M&S’ management thought they could expand their brand based solely on its global brand appeal. Their management also thought it would be a good idea to simply translate the M&S website into Mandarin. In 2008, Marks & Spencer pulled out the red carpet and entered the Chinese market with all the bells and whistles they could muster. They are an international brand after all, so you would expect this from them. M&S opened their 40,000 square foot flagship store in Shanghai’s premier shopping street, and this was the first Marks & Spencer’s in mainland China, as well as its largest in Asia. Thing is, it doesn’t matter how big you are. If you can’t convey your messaging, your brand is meaningless. The same happened to Marks & Spencer in 2016, when
