Let’s pretend for a moment I’m a public relations professional about to go on an international business trip. I pack my bags, double check my flights and reservations. However, will I review the customs of my destination? Will I look at international body language and make sure I do not offend my potential clients? For example, using the left hand for any public purpose is usually unacceptable in many Middle Eastern countries. I know that now because I am currently researching a speech for a class this term focusing on international body language. Another example is the commonly accepted sign for “okay” in the United States. In Japan, the hand signal means “money” and in France it literally means “zero.” In other countries, such as Brazil, the seemingly harmless gesture could be seen as offensive and should not be used. Also, if you were to cross your legs and expose the bottom of your foot, you might offend those in Thailand or in middle eastern countries because the foot is considered the lowest part of the body. Other body language blunders can be found here, in a 2000 ar
ticle by CNN.com.
Now, I do not know the preparatory steps for most companies and maybe body language is reviewed. But if I had to guess, most entry-level public relations professionals–if they are lucky enough to get a job where they can travel–do not research the customs of their potential clients. I’m researching past international body language mistakes and hopefully will continue to update with interesting facts I find.
enardozz
It’s linguistic as well as non-verbal. The small car from the GM subsidiary called Nova (‘doesn’t go’ in Spanish); the mobile phone operator called Orange (a politically charged word in Northern Ireland).
Even with a common language there are pitfalls: people in Britain (my country) will often say the opposite of what they mean and criticise people from your country for ‘not getting irony’.