When language support is missing from a customer experience (CX) strategy, customers can easily become disoriented. In Unbabel’s 2021 Global Multilingual CX Report, 57% of respondents say they perceive a brand as being biased if the company does not provide a multilingual customer experience, which in turn impacts customer behaviors and purchasing decisions.
Language is a risky territory to miss. A staggering 98% of consumers report that they lose trust and loyalty to a brand after a poor support experience in their native language, and 40% of all consumers are known to defect from a brand after a single poor experience. Clearly, a language problem can quickly become a business issue.
Language gaps present themselves in typical customer pain points across various touchpoints and scenarios:
Product frustration: Customers abandon products they have purchased due to poorly translated documentation or unmet support requests.
Inefficient support: Call times are longer, and productivity goes down when there's a language barrier between the agent and the customer.
Lack of trust: Customers feel neglected and disrespected when language is not appropriately supported.
For product managers, missed expectations can be among the most critical pain points, since customers are often unable to articulate product issues in a language in which they are proficient. Customers usually take their frustrations out on the company, resulting in negative brand sentiment and a dip in customer loyalty.
Partnering with a reliable localization agency is a powerful way to bridge this gap. Localization agencies specialize in translation that not only conveys words but also the true meaning behind them. According to CSA Research, 76% of users prefer purchasing products and services if the content is in their language, which is why partnerships with localization agencies are a must.
Language barriers also form obstacles between customers and service agents. Companies lose out on repurchases because they cannot humanize the CX enough to connect across languages emotionally. Additionally, miscommunications confuse who is responsible for which tasks, and customers are often "riffed" around without quick resolution.
Language localization is a great way for brands to show they appreciate and value cultural diversity. Brands that partner with a high-quality localization agency and implement frictionless, multilingual experiences across their entire CX make customers feel included, as they see that brands value their identity. This welcoming CX results in positive brand perceptions that foster belonging, which in turn enhances customer loyalty across the globe.
Lost in Translation: The Hidden CX Risk No One Talks About
Language barriers are more than just customer frustrations – they are silent killers to your business. A study by CSA Research found that approximately 75% of non-English speaking consumers demand service in their native language, which is an issue most companies fail to acknowledge.
Translation errors can be highly costly, doing far more than simply miscommunicating the value of a product or service. For example, HSBC suffered a significant loss when an intended "Assume Nothing" campaign was mistranslated as "Do Nothing" in many languages. The bank had to spend $10 million to rebrand and redo its materials. KFC faced a similar problem in China when their iconic "Finger-lickin' good” slogan was mistranslated to “Eat your fingers off”. This promoted brand confusion rather than consumer loyalty.
Language barriers also significantly decrease efficiency. Bilingual workers spend an average of 4 hours per week acting as "shadow translators" for their monolingual peers. This amounts to an estimated $7,500 per bilingual employee per year in lost productivity. This is in addition to the lost productivity of the workers who require translation assistance, which is an additional $1,800 per employee per year.
Product managers face hidden challenges, including:
Low trust and credibility: A single spelling error on your website can decrease your sales by 50%. 59% of people refuse to do business with companies that have poor grammar.
Search engine penalties: Poorly translated content sinks in search rankings, making products nearly invisible in competitive markets.
Legal and safety ramifications: Product instructions or warning translations can lead to liability and compliance concerns.
The problem persists in companies relying on automated translation services, which often replace words rather than the context or meaning. The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) recently had an incident on their website in which a Google-translated Spanish version of their COVID-19 vaccine page indicated that the vaccine was "not necessary".
Partnering with a dedicated localization agency that specializes in providing cultural context beyond translation. Professional localization will enhance your product’s desirability to the local market and help avoid many costly pitfalls. These companies can account for and effectively address idioms, cultural references, and region-specific priorities often overlooked by automated services.
A savvy global product strategy will view localization as an investment instead of an expense. Proper localization can become a competitive advantage, especially as your business expands into new markets, where language capabilities can be directly translated to customer loyalty.
Multilingual Support That Feels Native—Not Just Translated
Native language customer support requires more than simple word-for-word translation. Successful customer support for multiple languages demands cultural fluency to make every customer feel heard and understood. A 2022 study of international shoppers revealed that 76% prefer to buy a product with information in their native language.
Product managers should know the difference between translation and localization. Translation is the conversion of written text from one language to another. Localization is the translation process of the entire experience to feel native within a specific culture. Localization is more detailed than translation. It considers aspects such as tone of voice, brand personality, local communication styles, cultural values, and regional customer priorities that automated translators and software cannot understand.
Product managers can measure the value of native-language support, which increases when properly localized:
Customer satisfaction – 61% of customers are more satisfied when they can access support in their native language.
Customer loyalty – 70% of customers are more likely to stick with a brand that communicates in their native language.
Conversion rates – 40% of online shoppers are not willing to purchase products on a website in another language.
Product managers who take the next step beyond word equivalents and consider local culture for truly native feeling support. Native speakers play an essential role in this regard. Businesses with agents who have experience with the local community, communication style, and consumer expectations create the most natural connections. "Native support representatives can also fill in gaps and bridge the technology with a human connection for your customers," says one industry expert. "They can interpret and understand things that may be lost in translation, such as idioms, slang, cultural references, and personal sentiments that AI chatbots cannot detect.”
Localization agency expertise can assist product managers in navigating the above and more. Experts can help by explaining regional customer priorities, appropriate tone, and cultural references and knowledge. The most effective localization strategy combines the best automated solutions with human expertise. Smartling has created the Customer Support Integration Suite, which makes localized customer support across many channels possible around the clock without overburdening teams.
It is still possible to find that the word-for-word translation is wrong. White is a sign of purity in Western cultures. In Eastern culture, white stands for death and mourning. Localization agencies like Smartling understand these cultural differences and know how to avoid potentially expensive mistakes.
Native-feeling support fosters the more personalized experiences that customers demand. They help product managers show customers respect for their cultural identity, as demonstrated by Microsoft across its product lines, to increase trust, drive loyalty, and gain a competitive advantage over time.
From Cost to Competitive Edge: How Language Builds Loyalty
Multilingual customer service isn’t just an overhead cost; it’s a strategic investment with a direct impact on the bottom line. The facts are in: 70% of end users report being more loyal to brands that provide support in their preferred language. That number is even higher for actual repurchase rates: 75% of consumers say they will buy from a brand again if they receive customer support in their preferred language.
Viewing language support as a strategic initiative rather than an overhead expense can unlock significant returns. A staggering 29% of companies report losing customers due to the lack of language support, directly implicating language as a revenue driver. Success stories:
A retailer implementing Spanish-language support experiences an 18% increase in average order value. Spanish-speaking customers demonstrate a 25% higher rate of repeat purchases.
After a brand introduced customer service support in Chinese, they experienced a 35% increase in customer retention for Chinese-speaking clients.
An extensive hospital network successfully reduces patient readmission rates by 30% and increases patient satisfaction by 25% through the introduction of language services.
Product managers at medium-sized businesses can use this as a competitive differentiator by forming a partnership with an experienced localization agency. To illustrate: less than half of all brands currently provide multilingual support in most countries and languages, which means there's a massive opportunity for companies that fill this gap. Additionally, the best agencies offer language expertise that goes beyond mere translation to ensure culturally and linguistically appropriate interactions.
Language isn’t just a communication tool for the customer experience. It’s a signal that businesses send to customers about how they’re valued. This significantly impacts customer perception of being respected and understood. A brand that extends the customer experience in the user’s native language communicates that the customer belongs, deepening trust and building brand loyalty.
In today’s globalized economy, multilingual customer experience is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s a business imperative. For organizations expanding into new markets, language can be a powerful competitive differentiator, opening doors and building genuine customer relationships. A localization agency becomes not just a service provider, but a strategic partner in building customer loyalty across language barriers.
Conclusion: Speak Their Language, Win Their Trust
Language support is a fundamental component of any customer experience strategy. Product managers who overlook its importance do so at their peril. The repercussions of inadequate language localization go beyond sporadic customer grievances - they hold the potential to exact tangible business costs. Data confirms the impact of language localization on crucial customer-centric metrics, such as trust, loyalty, and ultimately revenue.
The distinction between translation and localization is pivotal in the evolution of global customer experience. Businesses that perceive multilingual support as an investment, rather than an expense, enjoy a quantifiable advantage over their competitors. This paradigm shift yields tangible outcomes - higher conversion rates, increased average order values, and enhanced customer retention across diverse markets.
Language barriers silently undermine efficiency across organizations. These barriers hinder emotional resonance - the intangible factor that forges customer loyalty. Specialized localization agencies offer the expertise to navigate this terrain. They ensure that communications transcend linguistic accuracy to remain culturally pertinent and impactful.
The chasm between translation and accurate localization is vast. When customers receive support in their native language, they experience a sense of belonging and respect that fosters long-term relationships. This emotional connection assumes particular significance in markets where all other brands, save for one, offer multilingual support.
Product managers with a vision are increasingly recognizing language support as a strategic asset rather than a mere operational cost. Medium-sized enterprises seeking a competitive edge must forge alliances with reputable localization agencies. These partners possess the finesse to craft genuine, culturally appropriate experiences that resonate with diverse global audiences.
Brands that champion language localization will shape the future of global customer experience. Customers respond with increased purchases, loyalty, and positive brand advocacy when they feel understood and valued in their native language. Product managers eyeing global expansion must understand that meticulous language support, facilitated through qualified localization agencies, isn't a discretionary luxury - it is a shrewd business strategy that fuels quantifiable growth.
