The amusing campaign regarding the pronunciation of Zomato or Zomaito reminds us of the classic debate over “Potato” and “Po-tta-to.” The humorous commercial highlights how the pronunciation of brand names can vary based on individual interpretations and articulation.
While the brand’s ad campaign takes a lighthearted approach, Reverie’s transliteration capabilities offer the potential for people from varying linguistic and cultural backgrounds to accurately pronounce brand names despite their native language connotations.
Some may ask – “Is it feasible to achieve accurate articulation, given the diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds in India, which is influenced by an individual’s mother tongue?”
The answer is YES!
Reverie’s Transliteration and Text-to-Speech APIs can serve as a straightforward solution to accurately pronounce proper nouns, such as names, places, animals, and objects, by replicating the pronunciation as in the original language.
In the case of ‘Zomato’, it can be written as follows:
ज़ोमैटो/ जोमाटो – in Hindi
ஜொமாட்டோ/ சோமாட்டோ – in Tamil
జొమాటో – in Telugu
ಜೊಮ್ಯಾಟೊ – in Kannada
झोमॅटो/ झोमाटो – in Marathi
Assisting brands in getting multiple customer-led enunciations is just the beginning of the journey for food-tech companies in India. Reverie’s Text-to-Speech and Transliteration APIs are also utilized by brands to create a seamless experience for users in their preferred language.
For example –
The Text-to-Speech feature facilitates a “listen in” menu and other vital information in the customers’ language, making it convenient for those who are visually impaired or have difficulty reading in a particular language.
In addition to helping with the accurate pronunciation of brand names, the Transliteration API also allows users to type in their preferred language using a phonetic keyboard. This feature makes it easy for individuals who may not be familiar with the English language script to conduct a search for food items or restaurants.
Having said that, we admire the strategy adopted by Zomato to involve customers with its brand recall.
