French Language Day: 5 reasons why French will benefit your business

With a rapidly globalising world, speaking a second or third language is becoming increasingly important in business. BoldData shares five data driven reasons why French should be your top pick.

1. Language of the future?
French is one of the most spoken languages in the world. 29 countries use French as their official language. This number is second only to English, which is spoken officially in 45 countries. Did you know that - besides English - French is the only language spoken on all five continents? Some projections even say that French will be spoken by 750 million people by 2050 due to rapid development in the Francophone African countries. By that time, French could be the most-spoken language in the world.

2. 5% of all companies worldwide are French
The world counts 304 million companies. Of which 16 million are French speaking companies. That means 5% of the business world is run by a French speaking company. The main language in business is English with 126 million companies. Closely followed by Mandarin with 78 million companies. French is number 6 in our list. All French countries combined account for 20% of world trade in goods.

3. Boost your business
So while English will get you a long way in business, speaking a second or third language like French will definitely give you an advantage. A lot of French speaking companies favour their own mother tongue. Speaking to them in French will make it easier to connect, establish trust and build client relationships.

4. Language of diplomacy
We all know French as the language of love. But did you know that for centuries it was also the language of diplomacy? Due to political and economic rise of France in the 17th century, French quickly became the language of diplomacy across Europe and later across the world. Now English has taken its place. But French is still the official language of the International Olympic Committee. And most international organisations use French as one of their official languages. From the United Nations to UNESCO.

5. Frenglish
Do you speak English? Then French is one of the easiest languages to learn. Did you know that about 30% of all the English words have French origins? Since the Norman Conquest of 1066, a lot of French words were adapted into English. What about entrepreneur, budget, pioneer, restaurant and travel? So if you speak English, you're half way there. Well, almost...