M a r k e t i n g t i p
Expand your market by more than 10 percent
Part one of a two-part series on cross-lingual marketing for lease brokers
Se habla Espanol? If not, don't worry. You don't need to speak Spanish - or most other languages - to effectively conduct business in languages other than English.
The 2000 U.S. Census showed that over 10 percent of the population of the United States prefers to speak in Spanish, and millions more people prefer to speak in other languages besides English. The ability to conduct business in other languages can be a powerful marketing tool to differentiate your company from your competitors.
Many brokerages approach this opportunity by retaining one or more staff members who speak second languages, mostly Spanish. However, many leasing brokerages do not employ associates who speak other languages. Retaining staff who speak the dozens of languages used in the United States is virtually impossible. But forfeiting or not competing for non-English speaking customers can also be very costly.
An effective method of connecting with customers who prefer to speak languages other than English is to offer information on your Web site in additional languages. There are a couple varieties of Web site translation. The first is to embed a translating tool on your site. Once a visitor chooses a language from a "translation box," the page is translated to the selected language. This is a simple (and free) way to add multilingual capabilities, but the translations are usually rough. The second method is to have your pages translated by a qualified person, and then to offer site visitors Web pages in their preferred language. Enlisting a person to translate will deliver much higher quality translations and thereby allow you to enjoy more credibility and offer better service.
Read this article for easy step-by-step instructions for adding a bolt-on translation function to your Web site. It requires minimal Web programming skills.
http://labnol.blogspot.com/2005/11/add-language-translation-to-website.html
For human-generated translations which you can display on their own Web pages on your site, one of the most popular services is WorldLingo, however many other services can be found with a quick search. www.worldlingo.com/en/products/
As a bonus, translation tools and translated pages may also improve your search engine rankings, especially if the user enters keywords in another language.
In part two of this two-part series, we will look at resources for translating one-on-one communications such as phone calls and e-mails.
Want more marketing tips? See more.
S a m p l e d e a l o f t h e w e e k
Tow truck lessee receives easy terms while broker earns full ten points in commission
You can offer lease structures with minimal due up-front and low monthly payments. The sample transaction below funded earlier this week with a payment factor of 0.024 and a total of 4 percent due before funding:
Average Trans Union FICO: 696
Verified time-in-business: 8.5 years
Asset: 2005 Roll-back tow truck
Amount financed: $49,500
Documents needed for credit decision: online application
Monthly payment: $1,184
Total due before funding: $1,982 (no capital cost reduction)
Requested broker commission: 10 points = $4,950
Funding status: Booked
More information on SunBridge Capital's credit programs.
Want more sample structures? See more.
S t a t e o f t h e i n d u s t r y
Does your brokerage communicate with customers in languages other than English?
Vote now to see how you compare to your peers.
(If you are one of the first respondents, check back later to see more developed results. All responses are anonymous.)
P r o g r a m a d v a n t a g e
Both Trucks at Hand promotions extended through August 31
Want to offer a wide approval range and earn maximum commissions while providing super-competitive pricing and tems? Trucks at Hand is the solution. We are extending our promotional incentives through August. Benefits of the promotion include:
- Low payments through maximized terms and minimized buy rates
- Easy up-front amounts of only one payment and no processing fee
- Wide approval range including start-ups and sole proprietors on all assets
- Deferred first payment after funding and $300 fuel card on dozens of trucks, trailers and pieces of heavy equipment
- Waived restrictions on applicant bankruptcies
See how you can take advantage of these great benefits at...
www.sunbridgecapital.com/kit/ktahnewterms.htm
View the assets eligible for the $300 fuel card and deferred payments...
www.sunbridgecapital.com/promotions/summer-2008.html
