Game Marketing Tips, Analysis, and News


Sunday, March 6, 2011

Markets In Translation

This carrying bag was handed out at GDC... I saw no hard meet in the vicinity.
Sometimes you may be tempted to use Google Translate to handle translating your marketing documents into another language. Resist that temptation. Your cousin's sister-in-law took a class in that language you need? Don't have them translate your copy.

This fine example was provided by Handseeing Information Technology, which it will no doubt surprise you to learn is from mainland China. They had a booth at GDC, and of course I picked up their information packet... once I saw the bag pictured above, I was hooked. Their marketing's working! I'm blogging about it, spreading the word about their... what are their products, exactly?

Ah, they have some flyers here in their packet. One is for Lost, "The Best Web Game You Can't Miss In 2011". Great name for a game; it might make a cool title for a TV show someday. Here's the flyer so you can see for yourself that, in the immortal words of Dave Barry, I am not making this up.

Would you rather have the super blow feeling or the perfect hand feeling? Tough choices...

Note the strong selling points, whose meaning comes tantalizingly close to understandable: High interacting partnership developing system, Attribution and conflict. I feel like I've entered a different reality already. Nice artwork, though.

There are other flyers in the packet... I can't even make out the name of one, but it appears to be a MMORPG. My favorite feature: "Fantasy task and strong camp against setting let you fondle admiringly." Sounds like fun to me! Try that in WoW and you'll get your account banned for sure.

You might ask what they are doing at GDC. Looking for employees, perhaps; there are a number of job openings listed on their web site (which is where Google Translate does help out, so at least I can get the gist of what is posted). Though are they really going to find people in San Francisco who will want to move to China and work? Maybe they are intent on bringing their games to the US market... but if that's what they are looking for, you'd think they would post a big sign to that effect.

Lesson for marketers: When you're going to a country where they speak another language, spend the money to get a high-quality, culturally competent translation of your marketing materials. Consult with someone from that country about how to present your company. If you can't afford that, don't bother going to that country. You'll just waste your money as much as these guys did.

Otherwise, you may have a good game, but a hard meet. And wouldn't you rather Let Fun AnyWhere? I know I would.

1 comment:

  1. Gah! Kept meaning to pick their stuff up and did not.

    ReplyDelete