After a few months, he wondered why there were no members of the Thai community dining at his restaurant. Well, his questions were soon answered when his Thai chef was replaced by a new one. The new Thai chef pointed out that his sign (written only in Thai) did not say "Welcome and see you again" at all in English. The direct English translation was "Go Away and Don't Come Back."

This is why no matter how big or small the project, one must always use a professional translation agency. Even a project that appears small, such as dual-sided bilingual business cards, a translation blunder like this can obliterate any chance for a successful first impression in business.

Bennett has since changed the name of his restaurant to "Victory Thai" in hopes of reestablishing his roots in the Thai community. However, the damage has already been done. Bennett went on to say, "That's why it pays to do research" and we couldn't agree more.

PHOTO: Fred Bennett stands outside his Thai restaurant formerly known as 'Go Away and Don't Come Back'

Business cards are part of your brand. They serve both as an inexpensive marketing tool and a way for you to provide your contact information to potential clients. When doing business overseas, this can be an opportunity to revamp your existing English business card into a new design that serves both your brand and your needs in China, Japan, Korea, etc. When having your business cards translated for Asia, there are additional items to consider which may or may not be unique to bilingual business cards.

Below is a list of tips to guide you when having your business cards translated:

1. Shape - For Asia, avoid using modern or highly unusual die cut business cards. It's best to stick to the traditional rectangle shape and size.
2. Never hand write anything on your business card. All information should be printed, clean and legible.
3. Keep all information, (address, city, state) current and up to date on your business card.
4. For international use, do not forget to include the country on your mailing address. For example, always include "USA" at the end of your mailing address if you are located in the states, etc.
5. Always have your business cards professionally printed. Never print them at home, and never use pre-perforated business card templates. They are unprofessional.
6. You can lower your per-card costs by ordering large quantities of translated business cards at the time of printing.
7. Always have your business cards professionally translated. (Never use someone in the office who "knows a little Chinese" for example.) The translation is just one part of the process. A crucial, and often overlooked portion of the process, is professional typesetting.
8. For branding, stick with a clean and professional logo for your company. Never use unprofessional clip art.
9. Consider adding a QR code that links back to your company website. This is especially helpful to use on Japanese business cards.
10. For business card translation, it's ideal to use two-sided business cards with English on one side and your target language on the back. Trying to add too much information on one side will be busy and/or make font sizes too small to be read.
11. Avoid trying to add multiple target languages on the same card. For example, if you're traveling to Asia on business and will be heading to China and Japan, it's not wise to include Japanese and Chinese on the same business card. Create separate translated business cards for each region you are visiting.
12. Glossy or UV coated cards can make a good impression based on certain card layouts.
13. For Chinese business cards, know your target language. If you are visiting China, you will want to use Simplified Chinese. If you are visiting Taiwan, you will want Traditional Chinese. Each are different for their particular regions. If you are visiting a region overseas and you are unsure of the correct target language, ask your professional translation agency doing your cards. They can assist you.
14. For Chinese business cards, you cannot use Mandarin or Cantonese for printing. These are the spoken versions of Chinese, not the written. See Tip #13 for more information.
15. Never fold or crease your business cards when distributing them in Asia. Ensure your cards are clean, crisp and professional, never folded.
16. If you desire specialized card stocks or inks, like linen stocks or raised ink, your professional translation agency translating and typesetting your business cards can often supply you with a press-ready PDF file of the Japanese, Chinese or Korean business card layout. Then you can submit this file to any specialized local printer.
17. For branding purposes, if your logo contains English text (for example, your company's name) this text should not be translated. You can always add an additional line of text under the logo with the translated company name. But for branding, the logo should stay as-is.
18. Free email addresses should not be printed on your business card. It's wise to invest in a professional web site and vanity URL for your business.
19. Always include your company's web site URL on your business card. Email addresses and web site URLs are never "translated" they are listed as-is.
20. Any telephone numbers on your business card for Asia should be included as-is as Western numerals. For example, it's not wise to "translate" telephone numbers into Chinese numerals or Japanese numerals. Always leave them as-is.
21. Keep fonts clear and concise to be read at smaller sizes.
22. Font selection is extremely important. The typography on your business card should match your business profession. If you are a graphic designer, then you are allowed some flexibility in using more whimsical fonts. However, if you are an attorney, your font selection should be a professional serif font choice, etc.
23. When translating business cards, a professional agency should match your fonts on the translated side of the card. For example, if fonts are bold on the English side, they should be bold on the Chinese side, and so on. This also applies to matching serifs and sans-serif fonts for the translated side of the card, etc.
24. Avoid using multiple fonts on your business card. For variations, it's best to use multiple font weights within the same font family. For example, using Helvetica Light, Helvetica Bold, etc., is perfectly fine. However, it's not wise to include multiple font families (different font names, etc.) on the same business card.
25. Double-check the spelling on your business card. A spelling mistake will be disastrous.
26. Always include social media links on your business card if you use them. This can be your company's Facebook page, Twitter account, etc.
27. Don't forget to add your Skype username on your business card if you need to connect with Asian clients overseas via Skype.
28. For international business cards, don't forget to include the international country code in front of all telephone numbers. For example, (212) 555-1234 should read +1 (212) 555-1234 for a telephone number located in the USA. (The USA country code to add is always +1 in front of the area code.)
29. Decide whether you would like your company name translated at all on your card. For branding purposes, it's often wise to leave this as-is in English. This is especially true for Chinese business cards which use characters that have both a phonetic and literal meaning.
30. Decide whether you would like your mailing address translated on your business cards. If you're doing dual-sided Chinese business cards, for example, the translated mailing address on the Chinese side will allow your Chinese customers to quickly recognize the city/state in Chinese characters, and the English side can be used for actual mailing, etc.

See anything odd about the sign above? Well, if you're not a native Welsh speaker, you may not notice a thing. And, unfortunately for the transportation authority in Wales, they didn't notice anything wrong either. All official road signs in Wales must be bilingual in both English and Welsh. So the local transportation authority would simply email their in-house speaker for any Welsh translations they needed. In this case, they simply needed the Welsh translation for "No entry for heavy goods vehicles. Residential site only", so they sent off an email to their in-house Welsh speaker. When they received the "translation" reply back via email, they simply went into production. No proofer, and not a single Welsh-speaker was asked to review the text before the sign went into production.

This is why it's crucial to use a professional translation agency when translating documents into foreign languages. Many times, potential clients may mistakenly think that dual-sided bilingual business cards are small enough to where someone in the office "who knows a little Japanese or Chinese" can do the task. Ask yourself this: is it worth it? In the example above, cutting corners by not using a professional agency for translation and/or final proofing, not only cost the transportation authority in Wales quite a bit of embarrassment, it also cost them money. Now imagine if this is your first trip to China, Japan or Korea, and you think it will work to cut corners on translation costs for Japanese business cards, for example. Still think it's worth it? The cost of an error on translated business cards, will far exceed the cost of creating translated business cards themselves. Thus, only select a company that used professional, native language-speaking translators on-staff, who can properly translate, typeset and proof your Japanese, Korean, or Chinese business cards, or business documents.

Sometimes it's not what you say, but how you say it. This is why reports of the demise of the standard business card are always premature in nature.
This simple, yet highly creative business card design was created by the folks over at Calgary-based design studio Wax. It shows that even the tiniest of business cards can have a dramatic impact.

Although the limited real estate doesn't allow for let's say, a Japanese business card translation, it does include just enough information on the card to keep people talking. This is why, even for those businesses who don't have immediate plans in international or multilingual business, dual-sided bilingual business cards too can have an incredible impact and make your business card stand out among the rest. It's all about getting people talking and making your business card the most memorable it can be….like this one.

In researching business card design, we came across an excellent YouTube video with a fast and easy way to design a business card. Although this is not necessarily catered to bilingual business cards, the principles of this demonstration are sound, and provide adequate space on any business card for typesetting in large and legible sizes.

When converted into dual-sided bilingual business cards, the design instructions in this video are perfect for multilingual business cards should translation expansion occur. Simply click the image below to view the video, or visit the link:

Video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiDEnZj50DM

If you're designing your business card for the first time, or looking to revamp your company's branding, here are some extremely creative business cards that may assist you:

Unique Clothing Store - Designer: Denise Demarchis

Chewing Gum Design - Designer: Matteo Neri

Fabric Style - Designer: Francesca Pasini

Dog Tags Design - Designer: Laurie Demartino

Ticket Design - Designer: Frank Matson

Mini Map Design - Designer: Rethink Communications (for Wanderlust Maps)

Tear Away Design - Designer: Junge Schachtel

Seed Pack Design - Designer: Struck Creative (for Lush)

Burned Card Design - Designer: Howl Fire

Here we will post news and information surrounding the translation industry in general, with a focus on business card designs and business card translation.

We hope you enjoy this collection of business card and translation industry news, and welcome your input to our blog.

Feel free to contact us with relevant articles that may be suitable for posting.

Enjoy!

When considering business card translation, one should review many factors that can make or break your translated business card. Probably the most important item to consider is whether your bilingual business cards will be single or dual-sided. In most cases, having a dual-sided translated business card is the best option. This allows one to present the card with the translated side up, for greater impact on your potential clients in Asia. It also allows for extra business card space for certain items (such as the translated company name or mailing address) in Chinese, Japanese or Korean. For additional tips, we have created this guide for you to review when considering translating your business card:

Business Card Translation

We can't stress this enough--always use a professional translator or professional translation agency when creating translated business cards. It's easy to assume that these are just small pieces of paper that require little or no translation effort. This is completely incorrect. These small pieces of paper have been around for ages because they are the most effective way to engage potential customers and clients. They also serve as your lasting first impression on any potential client. A poorly designed or cheap business card will likely end up in the trash before achieving its desired impact. The same can be said for a business card with poorly translated items or unprofessional typesetting. Using tools like Google translate, instead of a qualified native-language speaking professional translator, can often break a deal before it begins. As good as online translation tools are, nothing can compare with the skills of a professional native-language speaking translator. Also, just knowing a person who speaks "a little Japanese" or "knows some Chinese" is equally as risky as there are certain cultural nuances and skills required for quality in both translation and typesetting. Don't risk it. Stick with a professional.

How large are the English fonts on your standard US-business card? Remember that Asian fonts need to be slightly larger than English fonts in order to be clearly read. Thus, if your English business card uses small fonts in the range of only 6pt, this will not work well in Asia. Consider increasing all fonts on the English side so that the corresponding Japanese, Chinese or Korean translation will also be clearly read when matched appropriately in size and font weights.

In virtually all cases, the standard US business card size of 3 1/2" x 2" will work fine overseas. Asian business cards have slightly different standard sizing, but again this is not necessary to customize your your layout to these exact sizes. In case you would like to know the exact standard sizing for Asian business cards, they are the following:

USA/Canadian business cards: 3.5" x 2"
Chinese business cards: 3.56" x 2.15
Japanese business cards: 3.58" x 2.17"
Korean business cards: 3.57" x 2.16"

Once again, the standard USA business card sizing will work well in all countries, but the above sizes are just provided as a guide.

Many people mistakenly think that Chinese business cards need to be either red or gold in color, and Japanese business cards need to be simplistic in design. Both of these assumptions are untrue. Really, there's no set standard for design or colors that need to be followed when creating translated business cards for Asia. For branding purposes especially, it's important that you stick with your existing company logo/design for greater consistency and brand awareness. There's no need to alter your design or colors specially when creating translated business cards. Just use a clear and effective design and you'll be fine. As you can see from the image above, Asian business cards too often come in a variety of styles and designs, much like their American counterparts.

Obviously, adding as much contact info to your card is paramount to a successful international business card. This can include web sites, email contacts, Skype, QR-codes and more. However, in some cases, what works well in the USA, may not work at all overseas. This is especially true for toll-free telephone numbers. For international cards, it's best to remove toll-free numbers entirely as they likely will not work from overseas. Another item to double-check is to be sure to include the addition of "USA" to any mailing address, and the country code symbol of "+1" in front of all telephone numbers. These are standard additions that should be included for anyone considering an international business card.

Now that you've used these tips to create the perfect international business card, it's important to know the general guidelines for exchanging business cards when overseas in Asia. An improper business card exchange in Asia can also make or break any first impression. So be aware of subtle cultural differences for exchanging business cards in different countries. We have also created multiple guides for exchanging business cards in Asia. These tools will assist you in ensuring that your business venture in Asia is a success! For more information, please see the following culture guides located here:

Japanese Business Card & Travel Etiquette Guide for Japan
Simplified Chinese Business Card & Travel Etiquette Guide for Mainland China
Traditional Chinese Business Card & Travel Etiquette Guide for Taiwan
Korean Business Card & Travel Etiquette for Korea

QR codes have officially reached mainstream status. What started out originally as a tool often found in Japan on Japanese business cards, is now found on everything from US-based magazine ads and even television commercials. These codes are an excellent addition to marketing your brand, and we definitely recommend them for Chinese business cards and all bilingual business cards for international usage.

However, that doesn't mean that all QR codes are appropriate to be used everywhere.
Here are some funny examples of QR codes that beg the question, "What were they thinking?"

QR Code in the Sky
Best of luck trying to scan this QR code.

QR Code Billboard
Not a great idea to try to scan a QR code when driving down the highway.

Roof QR Code
Not sure which market they were targeting here with a QR code on the roof of a building.

QR Code Cupcake
Not the most appetizing cupcake frosting...

Train Ad QR Code
Be sure not to touch the third rail when trying to zoom in on this tiny QR code.

Simple Yet Creative Business Card Design
It's always nice to point out unique business card designs, and this one is no exception. Sometimes a simple idea can really create a lasting effect on your business card. This dual-sided business card takes advantage of a special die-cut and colors to make it noteworthy. It could have been even more impressive as a bilingual business card, but it's still an exceptional design.

In the translation industry, even on bilingual business cards, we are occasionally asked to "translate" documents to/from UK/US English. It's far more than just adding a "u" to the word "color" as each region has unique slang and local sayings that are specific to their locales. For example, to the US audience, the phrase "Do you want to stop at a lay by?" may make little sense. Well, there's a newly revised edition to "The UK to USA Dictionary: British English vs. American English" ($6.95, Solitaire Publishing) which hopes to solve these dilemmas. This edition chronicles the differences between UK and US English, including a pronunciation guide and sections on spelling differences and Cockney rhyming slang.

Some samples from the book include: (UK: USA)

Afters: Dessert

Anorak: Parka

Aubergine: Eggplant

Banger: Sausage or firecracker

Bap: Hamburger bun

Beetle crushers: Heavy boots

Bog: Toilet

Bridge roll: Hog dog bun

Buns: Muffins or cupcakes

Call box: Phone booth

Candy floss: Cotton candy

Cash point or hole-in-the-wall: ATM

Chemist: Pharmacist

Coach: Bus

Codswallop: Nonsense

Conjurer: Magician

Courgette: Zucchini

Crumpet: English muffin

Davenport: Writing desk, bureau

Drawing pin: Thumbtack

Dustcart: Garbage truck

Eggs and soldiers: Eggs and toast strips

Face flannel: washcloth

First floor: Second floor

Fish slice: Spatula

Flyover: Overpass

Gangway: Aisle

Gormless: Stupid, lacking sense

Hair grip: Bobby pin

Hire car: Rental car

Hoarding: Billboard

Iced lolly: Popsicle

Kagoul: Windbreaker

Kitchen roll: Paper towel

Knickers: Women's panties

The local: Neighborhood tavern

Motorway: Freeway

Muppet: Dimwit

Nappy: Diaper

Niff: A smell, stink

Off license: Liquor store

Orbital: Beltway

Plaster: Band-Aid

Power point: Electrical outlet

Rubber: Eraser

Scrummy: Delicious

Sleeping policemen: Speed bumps

Silver paper: Aluminum foil

Skip: Dumpster

Tomato sauce: Ketchup

What originally appeared as an item found on Japanese business cards, QR codes are now mainstream. Often, many designers feel that the QR codes force them to not use imaginative designs when creating business cards. Not so!

Here is a collection of business card designs that creatively utilize QR Codes onto the card. Unfortunately, very few of these took advantage of also using business card translation as a creative option, but many of these cards use creative shapes, die cuts, card stocks and materials to utilize QR Codes in ways you may not have imagined.

Square Letterpress Business Card

Cereal Box Business Card

QR Code Exclusively - Business Card

Le Boss cartoon card with QR Code

Full collection can be found here:
http://naldzgraphics.net/inspirations/qr-code-business-card-designs/

30 Top Personal Business Card Design Ideas
Many of these business card designs are incredible. It really shows that you do not need a large-scale business to have your card make an impact.
It would have been even nicer to see more business card translation among the set, but they are still incredibly impressive.

Blog:
http://slodive.com/inspiration/showcase/personal-business-cards/