| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Online Business Cards Thread poster: Preston Decker
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564354352 (X) 
Denmark
Local time: 17:28
Danish to English
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| Hopeless at all things artistic | Oct 24, 2015 |
Thomas T. Frost wrote:
You can upload your own design on Vistaprint. If you aren't very good at design, I agree it's better to get someone else to do it.
I have no artistic skills whatsoever, not even a sense of what colours work well together, so any attempt at 'doing my own thing' would make me stand out as the very opposite of 'pretentious'. I've never aimed for 'pretentious', only for 'professional'. I am a child of the Jantelov, after all...
I didn't know that I could upload my own design to Vistaprint. Thanks for that bit of info. As I have a file with my current design, I will try that next time I move and need to update contact details.
| | | | Dan Lucas
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:28
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
| Other lands, other ways | Oct 24, 2015 |
Thomas T. Frost wrote:
It depends a lot on culture, Dan. What could be considered normal in one country could be considered pretentious in another, for example in Scandinavia
Culture is undeniably a major factor and your reference to the law of Jante was interesting. I will keep that in mind if I deal with direct clients in that part of the world.
Japan is mostly about understated quality. Businessmen generally don't go in for gold-leaf cards and so on. I have business cards from many CEOs in my collection and they are often indistinguishable from those of other employees. Sometimes the card stock is of better quality.
Oh, and such cards may also give the message that the person is probably too expensive.
Well, I do aim at the high end of the market, where prospective clients are generally ready to spend a little more for a perceived better service.
Regards
Dan
| | | | | Professional site not enough | Oct 24, 2015 |
Gitte Hovedskov, MCIL wrote:
I've never aimed for 'pretentious', only for 'professional'. I am a child of the Jantelov, after all...
Indeed. I've been doing as you, aiming for 'professional'; although I strongly dislike the Jante law mentality, I also dislike the strong boasting/macho mentality one can find in certain other countries to the south.
Nevertheless, I once received the following comment from a Dane, relating to a previous, professional website that highlighted my experience and skills:
"Hjemmesiden oser i øvrigt af et ego som virker noget ude af trit med dansk tradition."
In English:
"By the way, your web site oozes of an ego that somehow seems out of step with Danish tradition."
The Danish version of the site was a direct translation of the original, English version.
It only happened once, and fortunately, only a part of the Scandinavians are like that, but an American would never have written something like that.
It illustrates the difficulty of doing business in Scandinavia: while you need to tell potential customers what you can do, you can't do it in a way that could make someone interpret it in the sense that you think you are better at anything than anyone else. But if you say you are not very good at something, people will buy from someone else. Or you just have to write off the part of the population that are too deeply ingrained with the Jante Law.
| | | | Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:28
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Thomas T. Frost wrote:
"Hjemmesiden oser i øvrigt af et ego som virker noget ude af trit med dansk tradition."
In English:
"By the way, your web site oozes of an ego that somehow seems out of step with Danish tradition."
The Danish version of the site was a direct translation of the original, English version.
Wow - so nobody in Denmark is egotistical? I'm impressed.
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Dan Lucas
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:28
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
Tom in London wrote:
Wow - so nobody in Denmark is egotistical? I'm impressed.
You're needlessly conflating two separate issues, namely egotism and the public expression of that egotism. It is the latter to which Thomas' critic was objecting.
As far as I can see, Japan has no fewer egotists than other countries, but people who behave in a manner that most other people would find excessively attention-seeking will come in for criticism. "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down" etc.
Going by what Thomas says, the situation in Denmark is similar.
Dan
[Edited at 2015-10-24 12:22 GMT]
| | | | | It can be a very strange mentality indeed | Oct 24, 2015 |
Tom in London wrote:
Wow - so nobody in Denmark is egotistical? I'm impressed.
As you can see, it can be a very strange mentality with many contradictions. I always struggled with it as a Dane in Denmark until I emigrated in 1993, and I can imagine it must be incredibly difficult for immigrants to Denmark to adapt to this. I certainly don't miss it. In a certain sense, I felt much more at home in England, when I lived there, and now feel much more at home in Germany than I ever did in Denmark. It may sound strange, I know.
I don't intend to criticise Scandinavians or Scandinavia across the board; my comments only concern a certain part of them. A large part of them are just fine and easy and fair to do business with. They know precisely what I refer to.
Foreigners doing business with Scandinavians should simply be aware that it’s better to understate their abilities and behave modestly than to exaggerate. It won’t do any harm even when dealing with those not affected by the Jante Law syndrome.
| | | | | Understatement is an art in Denmark | Oct 24, 2015 |
It sometimes makes translating Danish marketing difficult, especially as you can't hear the subtleties in the tone of voice.
'Not too bad' is sometimes the highest praise you can get, but say it in the wrong tone of voice, and you are actually close to disaster...
Danes sometimes say 'We wish to' when they mean 'We will bust a gut to...' and 'We offer...' when they mean 'Count on us, we deliver...' - and they DO mean it!
It is quite difficult to get all th... See more It sometimes makes translating Danish marketing difficult, especially as you can't hear the subtleties in the tone of voice.
'Not too bad' is sometimes the highest praise you can get, but say it in the wrong tone of voice, and you are actually close to disaster...
Danes sometimes say 'We wish to' when they mean 'We will bust a gut to...' and 'We offer...' when they mean 'Count on us, we deliver...' - and they DO mean it!
It is quite difficult to get all the nuances in on a suitably modest-looking business card! If your card or website is self-deprecating enough to work in Denmark, others may admire your self-knowledge, but actually do business with someone more self confident!
The only answer is to have two versions, which are NOT direct translations of each other. If the English version is not 'oozing with ego that is out of step with Danish tradition', you may not have many chances on the English market! Not to mention all the other considerations in other languages and other markets.
Localisation is not just a fancy word for translation here. It is the difference between giving clients the right impression and putting them off.
Try comparing different countries here
http://geert-hofstede.com/united-kingdom.html
PS I really love the Danes, but they drive me nuts at times too. 
[Edited at 2015-10-24 19:44 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | After checking out what Vistaprint had on offer | Oct 24, 2015 |
I still opted for Moo. Loved their website and the creative process.
I've used Moo twice and have had excellent feedback from people I have offered my business card to. The quality is top notch and makes a good first impression.
You can print on the back and front and have different motives on the back so you can tailor them for different needs.
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564354352 (X)
Denmark
Local time: 17:28
Danish to English
+ ...
Christine Andersen wrote: PS I really love the Danes, but they drive me nuts at times too.
I know you don't mean to, but that just sounds so insulting to a Dane living in the very same town as you...
Brits in Denmark drive me nuts at times, too... 
| | | | | Sorry, I thought that went without saying... | Oct 26, 2015 |
Gitte Hovedskov, MCIL wrote: Brits in Denmark drive me nuts at times, too...
I reckon we Brits drive everyone nuts. That is why some of us call ourelves Brits, not English, hoping you will think we're Scots or Welsh or even Irish, but it doesn't help in the slightest!
That line was intended for any non-Danish readers who might think I was criticising.
Over and out from here before we get too far off topic!
| | | | Jean Lachaud
United States
Local time: 11:28
English to French
+ ...
I never thought I would see this in writing, ever!!!
Christine Andersen wrote:
I reckon we Brits drive everyone nuts.
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