Client question about his Japanese business card:
Is it normal for the address on the Japanese side to be translated? Obviously if this address was used in Kanji the USPS would have some difficulty in delivering it.
My answer:
You are right that the address translated on the Japanese side isn’t absolutely required; and it’s not useful from the standpoint of the USPS. But you’ll have your English address on the English side anyway, and this gives some balance to the card. It also reflects the way cards by your Japanese colleagues will have the address in both English and Japanese. In some cases, it can help with pronunciations of place names. And so, for these reasons, we translate/transliterate the address as a standard approach.
However, it’s a judgment call and leaving the address in English also a good alternative. I’ll be more than happy to switch it back to English so just let me know what you’d prefer. You will not face any issues in using the cards with either approach.
