Cindy King's International Business Blog » cultural behaviors

Opposite Cultural Perceptions

Cindy King — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:00:04 +0000

I‘m collaborating with an American writer to write an ebook. The book will be marketed to an American audience and I have spent all of my life marketing to international audiences. So this represents a fair bit of cultural adaptation on my part. But with my cross-cultural marketing background I find this fascinating. So I thought I’d share one of the first changes I made to adapt my writing to an American audience.

2 Different Perceptions of “Let’s”

My American mentor pointed out that I use the words “Let’s…” often and to an American audience this comes with a certain perception. With these 2 little words, American readers perceive me as putting myself above them.

With my cross-cultural background I find this interesting. I’ve worked so long within different cultures and the words “Let’s…” are not perceived in the same way at all… in fact the effect is the opposite. I use them to be perceived as part of their team, on their level, with the exact same words.

Opposite cultural perceptions with the exact same words.

Cultural Behavior Scales

If you are not aware of the cultural scales of Individualism and Collectivism, I’ve written about them here.

Although these cultural scales have limitations they can often be helpful when looking for explanations in different cultural perceptions. Together with some basic cross-cultural skills you can also use them to look for ideas in improving your cross-cultural communication.

If this intrigues you, be sure to also take the time to look at this long list of countries with their scores on 5 different culture scales.

It’s not surprising how different cultures have different perceptions from the exact same words.

A word of caution: do not go overboard into stereotypes and broad generalizations. These scales can only provide a certain degree of insights into cultural differences. You need strong cross-cultural skills to interpret them wisely and learn how to apply them to your communication.

The Answer Is In The Culture Code

Another way to understand these cultural differences in perception is to look at the different culture codes. This example reminds me of The Culture Code which I re-read recently.

First in this book Clotaire Rapaille explains how when an American construction worker whistles at a American woman passing by on a big city street the woman will scowl and her response would be one of anger. And if you put the same woman on a big city street in Italy with an Italian construction worker, the woman would blush and be flattered.

The reason is because of different culture codes. The American code for sex is violence and the Italian code for sex is having fun. And this is communicated in the way men whistle in both of these countries and what women have to deal with. Clotaire Rapaille even goes so far to say in his book that he would never want to be an American woman today because of the challenges with the culture codes in being an American woman.

Changes In Culture Codes

This brings me back to the second reason why I thought of the Culture Code. In Clotaire Rapaille’s recent Archetype Discoveries Newsletter he alludes to the rise of the Latina, the South American woman in the United States. And I cannot help wondering how this will impact American culture codes. You see, in general all South American countries have higher scores on the Collectivism scales and the United States has a notorious high score at the opposite end of this scale – “Individualism”.

It is going to be fascinating to watch the rise of the Latina and how this impacts the American culture code as the older American generation dies off.

And this change in culture code will impact perceptions in how we write. With the Latina influencing American communication, I wonder if the perception of the words “Let’s” will change in the future.

Writing For Different Cultures

Writing in English for different cultures is not easy today.

We have gone through changes:

The global economy and the web have given rise to a certain understanding and tolerance for cultural differences.
There is also a certain International English used in “standard” international business today.

We are going to continue going through changes with as the populations in many of the world’s leading nations change and the once minority ethnic groups become the new majorities.

It’s easy to think everyone has the same understanding of the English. But this is not the case. Different cultural perceptions pop up in the smallest of places. It safe to expect these different cultural perceptions to change over time too.

I’m definitely looking forward to this exercise in learning how to adapt my own writing for a predominant American audience and hope to come back to you with more clear examples of cultural differences.

What about you?

What does “Let’s” say to you? Do you feel included or excluded in any way?
What expressions do you find have different meanings in different cultures?
How do you think the cultural evolution in our societies will influence communication in years to come?

Please share your thoughts and comments below.

Do You Use English Or American Spelling?

Cindy King — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:00:05 +0000

Culturally Customized Content

John Yunker on Global By Design wrote an article last month about different labels for different English spellings. Apparently the acronym “ENU” was used to mean “English – US”.

Another article raised the question of “International English” versus “American English”. I found this article slightly misleading simply because there are so many ways to use the term International English today: Global English, Universal English.

It does make me smile when an American says that “American English” is in the lead.

This reminds me of the all of trips to Canada, where Canadians would come up to me and say that Canada had been voted the best place to live in the whole world. After two different trips, I asked who carried out the study… well it was Canadian studies. The French go “coccoricco” often enough too.

There are quite a few interesting comments in this thread. I never thought the term “British English” could be considered false. And apparently Adobe uses:

“International English” (IE) = “American English”
“Universal English” (UE) = “British English”

Before you get into how you label your choice of English language, let’s look at how to choose the one you want to use.

There are in fact two business decisions to make.

Translations Or Not?

Are you writing for one broad international audience and would like to prepare the work for translating your content into different languages?

If you will need to translate your English language content into more than one language, you will save time and money by learning to write for an international audience.

If you strive for an International English you will also improve communication across a broader non-native English speaking audience.

Spelling

Are you targeting an American audience or a British, European or former British colony audience? This decision is fairly easy to make.

Although I was brought up with the Queen’s English, I have worked with American companies. I chose American spelling on my blogs because of software. I did not want to continually maintain the Queen’s English on American software. There is no major conflict for my business, so the decision was easy.

I still write in a style that is easy for non-native English readers. It is only a question of spelling and some grammar.

Clarity And Consistency

Whatever spelling you choose, remember to be consistent. This means that you should use the same spelling throughout all of your content, no matter who you are targeting. This makes your communication clear. Everyone knows how to identify you.

Do not create your own acronyms and keep your English labels simple and consistent with what your readers expect.

“EUS” does not mean anything to anyone
American English is not International English
British English is not Universal English

Online Business Networking When Cultural Communication Styles Clash

Cindy King — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 23:00:22 +0000

International Business Networking

Online networking for international business development using social media brings in results. International social media networking does work within cultures that are comfortable with direct communication. There are times when there are culture clashes between direct and indirect communication.

You can read more about the behavioral scales in different cultures on Get International Clients.

As a person with a direct communication profile and cross-cultural communication skills I find these clashes a bit painful. I always seem to regret giving them too much of my time. And this is an awkward position for a solo entrepreneur to be in. You see, I know there could be a valid opportunity for some sort of valuable international business connection. But social media networking does not work as well with people who are used to doing business with an indirect communication style.

They need more time.

Besides email and online communication is just mined with cross-cultural communication barriers. You need real human contact to be sure you understand each other. Here are some examples where I have been approached with an indirect communicator:

Facebook

A message on FaceBook: I am interested in cross cultural communication

Skype

I have also had several very similar messages come in through Skype where they contact me first:

Them: Hello
Me: Hello
Them: How are you?
Me: What can I do for you?
Them: It is nice meeting you?
Me: Yes, is there anything I can do for you?
Them: Hello
Me: Yes, hello
Them: I like international business
Me: Yes, an interesting subject

I also get a slew of similar Skype messages any time I inadvertently leave Skype open for any length of time. These are mainly from Northern African users who use Skype similar to Meetic. These are messages with at least 5 lines of “hello” after which you understand these are men who want to chat about personal things with women. They are always very polite when you tell them you only use Skype for business.

I have also had several Skype message conversations with translation companies in Asia. Similar to this:

Them: Hello
Me: Hello
Them: You want translations?
Me: No thanks.
Them: I do best translations in the world
Me: Sorry I am not interested in translations
Them: I good service
Me: Try contacting translations agencies
Them: I good all languages
Me: Sorry I cannot help you
Them: (a list of languages)

And usually the English is even more riddled with mistakes.

Emails

The most frustrating indirect communication contacts come in my email. Here the email basically says:

I have a great product (without telling me what the product is and who else thinks it is great).
I want to sell to international markets.

And occasionally there is also:

I only pay commissions after sale.

And a few of these emails have also included:

I am desperate. You are my last hope.

Cross-Cultural Business Communication

Now, as I said before, I am sure that most of these contacts were sincere. But they cannot be aware of my reality as a solo business owner. These conversations take up too much of my time. And I simply cannot spend 30 minutes for every contact. If these people contacted me with a more direct communication I would probably have been able to give them an idea of who they should contact. What about you?

How do you go about international business networking?
What do you like most about international business networking?
What are you biggest challenges in international business networking?

Please leave your comments below.

More on International Business Networking:

Copyright Cindy King 2006-2010 - International Business Blog

Online Business Networking When Cultural Communication Styles Clash

A Different English For Your International Audience

Cindy King — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 23:00:21 +0000

Culturally Customized Content

There was an interesting article published last Friday on the BBC News: New lingua franca upsets French

It is the end of this article that I find most interesting.

International business professionals are finding themselves confronted with a new breed of English language.

Non-native English speakers have a distinct way of speaking English.
And the native English speakers are having a hard time understanding this new form of their own language.

Some people call this new form of English “Globish”. I have used “International English” to describe it here. I have also heard the term “Global English”.

This Globish or International English is picked up by non-native English business professionals who need to communicate effectively in English. They need to have results and they also need to limit cross-cultural communication blunders and barriers.

Here are some particularities of this new form of the English language:

Less Vocabulary

Vocabulary is drastically reduced. In this article, it states that Globish only has 1,500 words.

Non-native English business professionals use their words wisely. They get straight to the point. They use the minimum amount of words to make their point clearly.

Less Fun

Certain things are avoided:

Humor
Metaphors
All abbreviations

These are major pitfalls in cross-cultural communication.

Lack Of Personality

Native English speakers often feel that Globish leads to a lack of warmth or personality in the English language.

And in many ways this is true.

National metaphors add life to communication. So does humor. And abbreviations mean that you can get onto the more interesting part of your discussion faster.

But Globish speakers avoid them like the plague because they can easily create confusion, misunderstandings and this simply slows down communication. You often only pick up the confusion or misunderstanding much further down the road.

Reasons To Use Globish

But this stark way of communicating also has a distinct advantage:

You communicate more effectively to a broader audience

There is also another advantage:

Globish or International English is very clear.

This is why such a wide audience can quickly understand what is being said.

Clarity and consistency are key elements for good web content.

Globish speakers are also very good at identifying possible areas that can lead to cross-cultural confusion. They know when it is best to give more details or ask for confirmation of understanding.

People with good Global English or International English skills are good communicators.

Yes, some of the non-native English speakers may still make grammar mistakes. But do not underestimate their power of communication.

If you need to communicate across a wide international audience, which includes non-native English speakers, contact me to find out more about the International English copywriting services I offer.

Cultural Perception Of The Use Of Information

Cindy King — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 23:00:34 +0000

Cultural Perceptions

A question on LinkedIn sparked some thoughts on cross-cultural challenges in communication based on different cultural perceptions and levels of acceptance. The question was about:

People who deliberately withhold knowledge or dangle tempting bits of information over your head to go one-up.

Of course, there are people who like to share their knowledge and others who prefer not to. And there are also those who actively conceal information for various reasons.

The Cultural Thumbprint

From a cross-cultural viewpoint, there are also different cultures more prone to seeing good reasons to withhold knowledge or information.

As a cross-cultural marketer, I notice cultural differences in people who like to withhold information. This is intriguing.

Are there cross-cultural communication issues here?

Individualism Versus Collectivism Cultures

You can use Geert Hofstede’s cultural behavior scales to try to understand this.

In my personal experience, the people who blatantly withhold information for their own personal benefit usually come from cultures with a high “Individualism” score. But this is only my personal experience, and I interact quite a bit with these cultures.

It should be easy enough to establish a cultural connection if you look into strong “Collectivism” cultures. You would naturally assume that any use of this sort of tactic would have an adverse effect on the “offender”.

A Change In Generations

Again from a marketing standpoint, it is obvious that we are now living in a customer-centric world. Our behaviors and expectations have changed and will continue to change in the future.

Personal tactics of withholding information for power just will not continue to work in the current context.

Of course, there are some people who seem to be naturally inclined to be social bullies. But being a social bully in today’s world will not get them far.

Information For Personal Gain

How do people use information or knowledge for personal gain?
Are there cultural differences?

I do think there are some differences in cultural acceptance of how people use information. The cultural perception will create different barriers for what people can get away with.

Even so, there are also other, more personal, factors or skills that come into play.

And what do you think? Please share your thoughts below.

Customizing Content For Your Clients

Cindy King — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 23:00:18 +0000

Culturally Customized Content

New developments on Get International Clients are keeping me busy. In 2008 I blogged about the expertise I acquired over the last 25 years as an international sales and marketing executive. And as I blogged I created a structure for my business system.

That was last year. It was all about getting the content out and finding the structure to create a backbone for my business. This year I want to take all of this information and make it:

More “sexy”
More scannable
Easier to digest

The objective?

To customize this information for today’s busy readers who also need to take away the information they need.

This is why my blogging schedule has been slower these first weeks of the year. I am busy getting things ready behind the scenes.

I did enjoy a good read earlier, where Steve Rubel says that text will remain king.

Get International Clients will soon have audios and videos in addition to the text. Get International Clients is read by business professionals. Some prefer the flexibility and choice of format. Readers come from a variety of countries.

But most of the Get International Clients readers prefer text. Short text, easy to understand. Printable text.

So the main task for 2009 is simplifying the information. This is customization of the format of the information.

Next week we will look at customizing content for different cultures.

Cultural Dimensions – A New Tool

Cindy King — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 23:00:59 +0000

Improve Your Cross-Cultural Communication

This is a special note for all of you interested in cross-cultural communication or international business.

Have a look at this page on the Geert Hofstede website:

Cultural Dimensions

This gives you a long list of countries with the scores on Geert Hulshof’s cultural behavior scales:

Power Distance Index
Individualism
Masculinity
Uncertainty Avoidance Index
Long-Term Orientation

There is also a quick tool to compare cultural differences between two countries.

Are you an iPhone or iPod Touch user too? Then have a look at this new download.

Geert Hofstede™ Cultural Dimensions

Yes, Christmas has come and gone. But I might not be the only one with a birthday coming up.

This little tool is definitely something worth investigating a bit more.

An Example Of Cultural Differences In Behavior

Cindy King — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:00:25 +0000

Cross-Cultural Communication Blunders

Comments on one example of cross-cultural communication hiccup three days in a row! Here is one last observation on the LeWeb incident.

You can read the first two here:

Today I want to remind you that there is no right or wrong here. This incident simply highlights our differences.

Differences In Cultural Attitudes

One of the ways a cross-cultural marketer studies these differences is through the cross-cultural behaviors defined by Geert Hulshof.

This is no exact science. It simply provides a tool for comparison.

By comparing the cultural differences using these five behavior scales, you get a better understanding.

Behavioral Scores

You can read more on behavioral scales on Get International Clients

On the Individualism versus Collectivism behavioral scale:

Americans have the highest score for Individualism

The French have a lower score

On the Uncertainty Avoidance behavioral scale:

Americans have a relatively low score

The French have a relatively high score

On the Power Distance behavioral scale:

Americans have a relatively low score

The French have a relatively high score

On the Masculinity versus Femininity behavioral scale, they are both towards the middle:

Americans have a higher score

The French have a lower score

On the High versus Low Context behavioral scale:

Americans have a relatively low score

The French have a relatively high score

What should you read into this? Simply…

…This is a method of measuring cultural differences.

It is obvious there are fundamental cultural differences between the USA and France.

This means that both parties need to make an effort to meet in effective cross-cultural communication.

Balance In Communication

When you watch this video you can pick up attitudes towards different cultures.

One of the American panelists stated that it is up to the foreigners to adapt to his culture. It is obvious that he feels he does not have to make any effort to obtain effective communication with other cultures.

Now this is not possible. In order to have good cross-cultural communication you need effort on both sides.

Most of the time, the effort is not balanced. The person with the stronger cross-cultural skills will cover more distance between the two people.

Now, here is some food for thought…

If one of the two people involved does not make any effort at all, the communication is dependent on the good communication skills of the other person.

If there is any effective communication going on at all, it is thanks to the good communicator.

The good communicator has a much better understanding of the situation. He becomes a master at knowing:

What to say
When to say it
How to say it

In fact, if the good communicator is the sole person working towards the communication between the two cultures, he is in control.

This does not happen often, but…

In business, do you want to hand over control to the other person?

Perception Of Communication

So what happened at LeWeb?

Well, at least one American panelist conveyed that he did not want to adapt his communication.

Yesterday I wrote about how Europeans need more time to build relationships.

Effective cross-cultural communication here was not easy.

An easy way to remedy this is to:

Diversify the cultures on the panel. This was suggested.
Have the same panelists return next year. You need exposure to develop good international skills. Well all started at ease just one culture.

Read more on Cross-Cultural Communication Blunders in these articles:
- The Limits Of Cultural Generalizations
- Cultural Blunders In Tele-Sales
- Should You Be Afraid Of Cultural Blunders?
- Can You Prevent All Cultural Blunders?

And read even more in the…
Get International Clients International Sales Road Map

International English

• What is international English and what can it do your for business?

Find out more here.

Culture Customized Content

• How can culture-customized content increase your international sales?

Find out more here.

Cindy King's International Business Blog » cultural behaviors

Opposite Cultural Perceptions

2 Different Perceptions of “Let’s”

Cultural Behavior Scales

The Answer Is In The Culture Code

Changes In Culture Codes

Writing For Different Cultures

More on Culturally Customized Content:

More in the Get International Clients Business Guides

Do You Use English Or American Spelling?

Translations Or Not?

Spelling

Clarity And Consistency

More on Culturally Customized Content:

More in the Get International Clients Business Guides

Online Business Networking When Cultural Communication Styles Clash

Facebook

Skype

Emails

Cross-Cultural Business Communication

More on International Business Networking:

A Different English For Your International Audience

Less Vocabulary

Less Fun

Lack Of Personality

Reasons To Use Globish

More on Culturally Customized Content:

More in the Get International Clients Business Guides

Cultural Perception Of The Use Of Information

The Cultural Thumbprint

Individualism Versus Collectivism Cultures

A Change In Generations

Information For Personal Gain

More on Cultural Perceptions:

More On These Get International Clients Business Guides:

Customizing Content For Your Clients

More on Culturally Customized Content:

More in the Get International Clients Business Guides

Cultural Dimensions – A New Tool

More On How To Improve Your Cross-Cultural Communication:

More In These Get International Clients Business Guides:

An Example Of Cultural Differences In Behavior

Differences In Cultural Attitudes

Behavioral Scores

Balance In Communication

Perception Of Communication

And read even more in the… Get International Clients International Sales Road Map

International English

Culture Customized Content

And read even more in the…
Get International Clients International Sales Road Map