One of the highest ROI tactics I have developed was something that came as a result of my international upbringing and curiosity for other peoples’ cultures. It’s simply saying “Thank you” or something like that; “Hello, how are you?” is another example in their native tongue.

Nothing says “I hear you, and I see you for who you are” more than identifying where someone is from and being able to speak to them in their native tongue. It shows a level of effort that increases your status in the interaction while also setting expectations a bit higher. Naturally, this isn’t something you can do all the time and it’s not trivial to learn to identify the right language.

This obviously works best when you have broader exposure to a given culture, if you work a lot with companies based out of Israel, you will learn to recognize Hebrew and can throw in a “To’dat” or “Maneeshma”. However, you should also be aware of cultural sensitivities as well. Don’t mix up Hebrew and Arabic, or Arabic and Farsi. The closest parallel I can use to explain this to someone without exposure to a lot of cultures, is the implied assumptions attached to asking “Is that an English accent” to someone from Australia.

It’s also worth noting that setting expectations higher also means you need to make good on them. If you ask someone “how are you?” in their language, you better be prepared to field the response and reply in kind. That’s why I think “Thank You” is the best option, since it’s a full sentence and usually comes at the end of the engagement, so you can use it to go into followup planning with momentum.