Ho ho ho! iWL helps Santa bring happiness to the people this year!

The team preparing the gifts at the office! (From left to right, David Kasteler at the desk,
Karlie Bodine, Erin Millet, Marcus Broderick, Vanesa Broderick and Veronica Johnson.)

Dashing through the snow

In a one horse open sleigh

O'er the fields we go

Laughing all the way

Bells on bob tails ring

Making spirits bright

What fun it is to laugh and sing

A sleighing song tonight...

Okay, so maybe our team didn’t dash through the snow, and maybe they preferred an actual car rather than a one horse open sleigh for speed and comfort purposes, but they certainly did laugh a lot, and bells jingled all the way on the day that the iWLteam went on their latest iWL Cares adventure: a sub-for-Santa initiative!

“This month, for inWhatLanguage Cares, we looked for a few families to help with Christmas! Families that are in tough situations and could really use and truly deserve the help,” explains Karlie Bodine, who once again organized the initiative this month. “I think all too often people forget the true spirit of Christmas: that is that Christmas is a time for giving and a time to remember others less fortunate than ourselves.”

Karlie Bodine wrapping up gifts!

Karlie went with iWL CEO Cody Broderick to get the gifts on Tuesday, December 16^th, and next day they went along with many other iWL team members to deliver them to the families. The experience was certainly something they will never forget.

“Seeing a mother of two cry and say ‘thank you’ over and over was very startling,” says Cody Broderick. “It serves as a reminder of why inWhatLanguage exists and motivates me to grow the company so we can have an even greater impact. I’m hopeful we brightened their holiday spirit and that they might also pay it forward.”

“It really makes you look at what you take for granted,” adds Karlie. “Some people don't know where they could be living next week or where their next meal is coming from. Meanwhile, some people are worried about whether or not they'll get the new iPhone that just came out.”

From left to right, Karlie Bodine, Cody and his son Markus Broderick, David Kasteler,
Brian Palmer, Veronica Johson and Erin Millet, all ready to deliver the gifts!

Perspective: that is one thing that Karlie acquired out of this experience. “We bought some essentials for the families like toilet paper, laundry detergent, all-purpose cleaner, toothpaste and toothbrushes, winter clothes, and other necessary items that most of our team don't ever have a second thought about buying, along with some toys for the kids,” she explains.

“It's always important to remember those less fortunate than you, especially this time of year,” Karlie concludes. “Our team was really glad to help these two families have such a memorable Christmas! We hope everyone remembers those less fortunate this holiday season and be truly grateful for what you have. Our team hopes to inspire the holiday spirit in others in making a difference in another's life.”

“I wish I could see the faces of the families when they open their gifts,” Cody smiles. “Sub for Santa on behalf of inWhatLanguage Cares was awesome!”

Feedback from our clients: love for and from iWL!

Working at inWhatLanguage is a real pleasure, that is a fact. And a good part of it is because we have such amazing clients! Helping them to the best of our abilities when they need our services is the least we can do in exchange for their trust and support – as well as their constructive feedback!

This week, our blog post is dedicated to them. Here is a quick compilation of the best feedback comments we have received lately:

“We love inWhatLanguage. It is one of the best services we have ever seen. Being able to communicate with staff in languages from Farsi to Mandarin is such a huge asset to our property. Every agent I have been in contact with was professional and outstanding in their demeanor and assistance. I cannot say anything negative about the service. We love it.”

“Great attention and a really warm way of approaching.”

“inWhatLanguage was very fast to respond to our needs. They proved to be highly experienced and helped us understand the best ways in which our organization needed to address our international target markets. They went the extra mile to ensure our content (in over 18 languages!) was culturally adapted and aligned with our company branding, messaging and overall marketing styles. The pricing was great and I was also very pleased with the turnaround time. But what really stands out is the way they treated me and my marketing team. It felt like we had been working with them for years. I would highly recommend inWhatLanguage for any translation or language project.”

“I needed about 30 official certified translations done for our adoption and inwhatlanguage provided all the translation in the same formats and certified in amazing time. I was amazed at the turn around, the pricing and the level of professionalism for just an individual. Highly recommended.”

“Great quality! I wish I had found InWhatLanguage sooner. I recently needed to change to a new translation firm. I was referred to InWhatLanguage through a friend. They completed my request much faster than I had anticipated. They were friendly, easy to deal with, and not too expensive. I was blown away by the quality of the work and the time in which it took. I would highly recommend InWhatLanguage to anyone needing translations services.”

“Very helpful customer service from IWL. They took the time to get things right and deliver good quality. Prices are competitive and they make you feel confident in the work their providing.”

Thank you so VERY much for all of your love! You are the reason why we do what we do, and thanks to your comments, we are more motivated than ever!

Let’s keep on rockin’!!

Second languages: a market share you don’t want to miss out on!

Checking language-related articles yesterday, I came upon this very interesting infographic that made me think about the importance of this “second languages” in the translation industry.

Let me give you an example: India. When we think about translating documents for the Indian market, usually the first thought that comes to mind is to go for Hindi translation, since Hindi is the most widely spoken language in the country, with more than 400 million speakers.

Truth is, however, that Hindi is mainly spoken in the regions of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan. There are parts of India missing here. Look at that map!

India has a total of 22 official languages, and some of them are actually spoken in regions where Hindi is not that extended, like Kashmiri, Assamese, Bengali, Kannada or Urdu. Their numbers of speakers are well in the millions, despite not being comparable to the number of Hindi speakers.

Another example is the US. While English is undoubtedly predominant in the country as a whole, each state is definitely a world of its own, and in some regions it is currently hardly spoken. 229 million people speak English in the US. 35 million speak Spanish. 

There is a big difference, yes. But take out the first part of the comparison, and focus on the second:  35 million Spanish speakers in the US! 

If that number doesn’t make you think twice about the language strategy for your communications in the US, I don’t know what will.

My point is that translation is not black and white anymore. It is not as simple as choosing a country and simply translating your documents to the language that is mainly or traditionally spoken there. Statistically speaking, you will probably reach a wider audience. But is it really the audience you are aiming to target?

Furthermore, you don’t have to choose just one language: it is not an elimination game. Not when you can work with an agency that can provide you with the means to target all the different communities in their respective local languages. The investment will be a little bigger, but the number of potential customers that you will reach will grow exponentially. 

And if the agency is trustworthy and manages its translators efficiently, really, the costs won’t rise all that much.

Do you need proof? Try inWhatLanguage. We are the living example of excellent localizationservices for the most affordable prices!