Why should you expand your business in Vietnam?

Overview

Clear blue beaches and beautiful floating markets aren’t the only things Vietnam has to offer. While we agree that this stunning South East-Asian country is the perfect tourist destination, it is also a great place to market your products and services. In this article, we shall gently go over some reasons why you should expand your business in Vietnam and how Vietnamese translations can help you succeed.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is home to an estimated ninety-six million people. This makes it the 15th most populous country in the world. While the country has mainly been an agricultural economy, things have taken a turn for the better since the country decided to devalue its exchange rate, increase exports, and formulate profitable economic policies.

The Đổi Mới reform program encouraged private investments and ownership. The state-owned enterprises were reformed to follow market constraints. This socialist market mechanism led to a striking 8% increase in the GDP of the country. The real breakthrough came when the US decided to end its economic sanctions against the country.

Right now, Vietnam is buzzing with economic energy and how. This fast-growing economy is now the third-largest market in Southeast-Asia! There are a bunch of reasons why you should invest in this ASEAN state and we’ll try bringing a few of them to light.

Why invest in Vietnam?

First, it is located in the middle of Southeast-Asia. The country shares its borders with some of Asia’s major economies, take for instance - China. With its long coastline and international shipping routes, Vietnam is excellent for new businesses.

Being a member of the ASEAN and having several trade agreements under its belt, Vietnam offers tariff reductions. Foreign investors keep a close eye on the country’s economic policy owing to its connections with the World Trade Organization.

Other trade agreements include the BTA with the US, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and the Free Trade Agreement with Japan and Korea.

While this may sound a little far-fetched, Vietnam’s economic development is comparable to that of China, as it was a decade or so ago. Further, China’s labor and operations cost is increasing and more companies are heading towards Vietnam as a replacement.

The need for Vietnamese Translations

Before we move on to the language and its nuances, let us tell you why localization and translation are important for successful business expansion.

Localizing your product content and brand image is done to remove any discrepancy that may be offensive or insensitive to the target audience. Before launching your business in a foreign territory, it is necessary to ensure that your brand content compels the audience to relate with your business.

This is achieved through effective translation. As more and more companies translate their business content to a different language, the customers flock to them with the same trust and comfort as they would show to a shop next door.

For this reason, we suggest you place Vietnamese translations at the top of your To-do list. Ensnare the linguistically homogeneous country with creative and clever Vietnamese translation.

Before we answer where and how such translation should take place, let us introduce you to certain facts about the language itself.

Vietnamese is an Austroasiatic language spoken majorly in Vietnam as the country’s national and official language. In numbers - it is spoken by approximately ninety million people as their mother tongue. Several others speak Vietnamese in different parts of the world owing to the Vietnamese immigration.

The Vietnamese language is significantly influenced by French and Chinese. Initially, the script that was used for writing Vietnamese is Chu Nôm which used local Chinese characters. After the French colonial rule, the current Vietnamese characters that use Latin Alphabets for tones and pronunciation were officially adopted.

Since then, the Latin alphabets are the only ones in use except for a few Chinese people in the country that still use the former Chữ Nôm characters.

Is it wise to choose a translation agency for Vietnamese translations?

There’s just one correct answer - it depends. If you’re a domestic company looking to expand the business, skilled personnel from your own company can do the job. On the other hand, If you’re an MNC looking to expand in Vietnam, the task is far from easy.

To ensure that your Vietnamese translations are error-free, professional, and creative, a quality translation agency would be your best bet. Save time and money (in the long run) and hire translators that understand you and your brand.

Plan the tone and style of marketing as per the Vietnamese market and get your brand content prepared for customers in the country.

Wrapping up

“Ăn quả nhớ kẻ trồng cây” is a powerful Vietnamese proverb that comes to mind for this conclusion. The sentence says that while you’re eating a fruit, think of the person who planted the tree.

It’s an easy comparison to draw. The advantages of establishing a business in Vietnam are immense and it is an opportunity that lies just there in the distance, ripe for taking.

But before you do so, you shall learn to think about the people that will make or break your business. Localizing and language translation are two of the many ways you can reach them. We truly hope you perform these well and explore others that suit your business.