EU: SMEs not using foreign language skills are losing out

SMEs that don't use foreign language content marketing on their websites are losing money every day.

In a statement to mark yesterday's European Day of Languages, the European Commission highlighted how multilingual companies have a better competitive edge than monolingual ones.

According to a previous study carried out for the European Commission, the cost to businesses of not using foreign languages is high.

It revealed that SMEs investing in the language skills of their staff or following a language strategy achieved a 44.5 per cent higher value of export sales than those businesses which didn't make these investments.

These findings come as no surprise to Frank Hartkopf, who leads the multilingual content team at ContentPlus.

He said: "Most internet users have a 'can't read, won't buy' approach. Even if many customers overseas speak English as a second language, they are more comfortable to buy from companies who show they care by speaking their language."

Mr Hartkopf added that in a globalised world, UK businesses should seize the opportunity to easily reach new markets online with multilingual content marketing.

ContentPlus currently provides content in six different languages. We have recently extended our offering to companies from Germany, France, Denmark, Netherlands and other European countries who want to reach new customers worldwide by providing English and non-English content.

Learn more about the importance of foreign language content:

Globalise your SMEs website with foreign language content

Are you speaking your customers' language?