I recently received a marketing email from Microsoft Advertising, promoting Bing's new Copilot and AI-powered experiences. The subject line promised transformation. The CTA at the top said "Start advertising."

My immediate reaction: "Start what? No way I'm clicking that."

Not because I wasn't interested. But because the message didn't explain why I should care — or even what would happen if I clicked.

The stats were there. The intent wasn't.

The email was packed with numbers: Image Creator had generated 1 billion images since February 2023. Copilot users reduced their search time by half. CTR is 1.8x higher with Copilot. 72% of users came from Google, and a third are new to Bing.

Some of these are impressive. But none of them clearly explained what value this brings to me as an advertiser, how it ties to the actual experience of running ads, or why I should take action now.

And again — the CTA was "Start advertising." Which sounds like you'll be dropped into an ad dashboard with a credit card prompt and a blinking cursor.

I clicked — not because I felt confident or curious, but because I suspected it would just lead to a landing page. It did. But most Japanese users wouldn't click at all.

Why "Start advertising" doesn't work in Japanese

"Start advertising" sounds like you're committing to something you can't undo. In Japanese, that phrase implies money is already involved — even if the original English doesn't carry that weight.

A direct translation can distort intent. What feels like a gentle nudge in English can become a hard push in Japanese. The risk perception is different. The threshold for action is higher. And a CTA that implies financial commitment will stop many users before they even consider clicking.

What would work instead

If this were written for Japan, a softer CTA would work much better. Something like "Find out more," "Try a free ad simulation," or "See what your ad could look like."

These don't just soften the tone. They shift the implied commitment from "you're starting something" to "you're exploring something." That distinction matters more in Japanese than most global teams realize.

This isn't about translating words. It's about designing the right level of friction for the right market.