Designing for Non-North AmericanAudiences
It's not a small world after all
by Mary Holmes, February 1996
You are designing a new media product that you
want to transcend the North American marketplace. In
terms of content and navigation there are a number of
issues that should be considered in design beyond
just offering multiple language pathways.
The beauty of new media is the ability to convey
ideas and content with less of a reliance on
language. Images, pictures, video, and sound can
convey the message where language once did the whole
job. Now, if these elements are relied on to convey
the message they must be considered in terms of how
they will be perceived outside of North America. If
images are being used in conjunction with multiple
language routes through a program, it is doubly
important to pay attention to the cultural
significance of sounds and images. A carefully
translated program can be ruined by ill-conceived
sounds and images. Here are a few things to consider:
- Colour: colour can take on different meanings
across cultures, including vulgarity, and
potentially represent unrelated, and
unintended, ideas.
- Image grouping: the type of images and the
way and number of images placed on the screen
can be misconstrued as in poor taste or
represent bad luck.
- Dates, time, measurements, currency measures,
and time all vary from culture to culture.
- The way people address each other varies: by
first name, surname,gender, formal or casual
circumstances.
- Icons: telephone, mailboxes, fax machines,
and household appliancesmay not be understood
or familiar in non-North American cultures.
- Sound: as with familiar icons, sounds
familiar to a North American ear may not be
understood or interpreted correctly in a
different culture. Traffic signal, door bell,
telephone ring are a few examples.
- Music: choosing music for its
"recognition" may produce
inappropriate meanings across cultures.
- English abbreviations and shortcuts are
easily misunderstoodespecially when combined
with an unfamiliar graphic.
These are just a few issues to keep in mind when
designing a product for beyond a North American,
English-speaking audience. If multiple language
versioning is possible, and the investment to do so
is made, then it is vitally important that the images
and sound do not conflict and jeopardize the
translation.
(Many of these ideas were drawn from the 1994
Apple publication Multimedia Demystified.
This is an excellent, comprehensive resource for
multimedia design ideas.)
Most recently associate producer for M & M
Film Productions in Toronto, Mary Holmes
has moved her media writing and management experience
to the digital form. She has worked with
Encyclomedia, a BBS for film and TV professionals,
has a curriculum degree from the University of
Toronto, and is a participant in the Interactive
Media Management program at the Bell Centre for
Creative Communications. Mary can be
reached via E-mail at mmholmes@inforamp.net.
