UPDATE: It is rare for a marketer to come forward and admit they have made a mistake. But that is exactly what Gorton’s did. Not only did the company add the missing accent over “mamas,” but it sent a very nice email thanking this blog for pointing out the mistake. Scroll down to the end of the post to read the complete email:
I love it when marketers go out of their way and launch Spanish-language web sites to reach my people (i.e. Hispanics.)
But just one little thing. If you are going to be as rigorous as Gorton’s Seafood, which seems to be pretty good at putting accents and including “eñes” in their Spanish-language copy, you might want to make sure to put a little accent over the word “mamás” … I mean, if what you mean is to talk about moms (mamás) and not what some dirty minds (not mine) might be thinking of.
FROM 02/16/2012.
Dear Ms. Martinez,
Thank you so much for alerting us to the error that was included on our recently launched website,GortonsEnEspanol.com. We are very sorry for the omission of that accent in the headline. As you noted, we did work diligently to be rigorous about our translation. Though we used a Spanish translation service, and had Spanish-speaking staff members review the site before it was launched, this typo was somehow overlooked. We truly regret the error and sincerely apologize to you and to any of our consumers who may have been offended.
The error has been fixed and we are once more reviewing the site to ensure accurate translation of the intended message. It is our goal to do the right thing and to always put our consumers first.
While we worked quickly to fix the error, we still feel badly about it. Sometimes even when you give things your best effort mistakes still happen. But, as a thank you for alerting us to the issue we would like to send you a little something. If you’d like to send us your mailing address we can get it out to you right away.
Again, our sincere apologies and heartfelt thanks,
The Gorton’s Crew
MI BLOG ES TU BLOG 
great catch (is that punny)
All of a sudden, fish sticks are kinky. LOL, this is CLASSIC FAIL. When will brands actually hire agencies that I don’t know, understand Spanish? Great find!
In the Midwest, at least, we have a corporate chain of Mexican restaurants (in the ‘gringified’ category) called Chi-chi’s. I can’t believe that someone didn’t say something before they got to print?
Yet there’s still another glaring error on their Spanish-language web site (check the text on the photo of the seasoned old fisherman).
It seems like another case of middle America getting a fully-developed product (and website), and Latin consumers get recycled leftovers that aren’t given the same attention.
I would also love to know who on the Rinck Advertising team is a Spanish speaker. A quick look at their website reveals no stated expertise in anything Spanish language or Latin, or background doing this. Do they have fluent speakers there, or someone who had a semester of Spanish in high school, or someone who claims they know Spanish but doesn’t? Or did they just grab the first person physically in their building with a Spanish surname and set them up to take the fall for this?
Rinck threw a translator under the bus pretty quickly, but I don’t know any translators who are in charge of graphic design. Or putting a website together and overseeing a project from start to finish in the first place.
Hilarious. I love catching those kinds of mistakes, and I have to say, that was a pretty awesome response on their part.