How do you say ‘Merry Christmas’ in the language of your clients? You might want to give that closer attention to avoid offending anyone . . .

‘Season’s Greetings’ is a western phrase and doesn’t translate well into other languages. Many think that using this phrase as an alternative to more religious connotations is a safe option, but you could end up leaving the recipient bemused or even offended.

So says Simon George, MD of Thames Translations. He reveals there are a range of cultural issues that need to be acknowledged when planning a multi-lingual communications campaign and that it isn’t always obvious which phrases can be used in which countries.

For example, in Russia, Christmas is celebrated on January 7, but in Turkey, Christmas isn’t really celebrated at all. China is typical of many Asian countries, predominantly non-Christian, but increasingly shops, streets and homes are decorated there at this time of year to make it a time for family celebration.

To help you through the language maze this Christmas, Thames Translations has put together a guide to the getting your greetings right. To request a copy, email marketing@thames.net – translations are in ready-to-print formats to remove the chance of transposing errors.

George adds: “We find that, every Christmas, we get dozens of requests for help with correct translations and so, with this handy guide, customers can have access to the most popular festive phrases which won’t change, so it can be used year after year at no additional cost.”

Simon George.