Speaking Your Customers' Language.

A television spot designed to entice UK buyers to invest in Spanish property has bemused me for some time now because it so resembles the mattress wholesaler advertisements that are the staple of local US television. That is, it reeks of economy while seeking to entice high ticket purchases. The company president speaks directly to the viewer telling us that it "was easy to make good investments in Spanish property five years ago" and urging us to "make sure you pay for your property a fair price."

Is the language poorly translated or is it deliberately done to make it memorable? I don't know and was unable to find the Polaris ad on Youtube so that you could judge, but I tend to think it's the former and proves that speaking your customers' language is less about language and all about idiom. Even if you're marketing within your own country, you would do well to remember that, if you're marketing outside your home country (or usual demographic), you cannot afford to forget it.