03/ 28/ 2002
Our United States was built from a diverse mixture of cultural groups. Americans take pride in the "melting pot" concept. Some of our most prominent businesses and industries got their start from an immigrant entrepreneur's shop. The lure of a nation that welcomes immigrants continues to attract new citizens from other countries throughout the world. In today's Workshop, Edith Helmich discusses some key concepts to make your business more open for people of other cultural backgrounds.
Over the years, most European immigrant groups acculturated into the American mainstream within a generation, while still maintaining some ethnic identification through the celebration of special holidays or traditions.
Other immigrants have maintained a more distinct ethnic individuality that holds significance for businesses that wish to add these groups to their customer base.
Problems often arise when communicating with people across cultures because of differences along the language dimension. Multi-lingual employees and foreign language written material is cost-effective for businesses with large customer groups that speak another language. When these accommodations are not practical, some useful tips for communicating with customers who use English as a second language include the following:
- Speak slowly and clearly.
- Use simple, frequently used words.
- Be very careful with translation.
- Avoid slang, colloquialisms and idiomatic expressions.
- Be patient.
- Adapt tone of voice, style and behavior to what is culturally acceptable to your audience.
Perhaps the most important attitudinal changes that individuals must make to effectively attract customers from different cultures are the following:
* Develop a personal sense of cultural awareness. Each person must be aware of their own culture before they can learn about the culture of the people with whom they need to communicate.
* Eliminate ethnocentrism. Ethnocentrism is the tendency to judge all other groups according to your own group's standards, behaviors and customs. Individuals must learn that it is okay to be different, and that each culture has admirable attributes.
* Learn about other cultures. Learning about other cultures occurs on several levels: direct contact, communication, reading, listening, and participation in activities. Familiarity with a different culture invariably identifies the values that transcend different groups of people: family, industry, personal aspirations, and other universal human qualities.
The United States' WASP population (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants) of yesteryear is giving way to a majority of minority groups with a wide cultural base. More and more of tomorrow's customers will be Asian, African American and Hispanic. In other neighborhoods, Eastern European and Middle-Eastern populations constitute the majority population.
Astute business owners will attune their sales staff, product lines and advertising to accommodate a wide base of customers from various cultural backgrounds. It is good business to do so...as well as an American tradition.
