British Diana (asker) Feb 15, 2019:

@Björn I know where you are coming from here and all I can say is that the text is not very logical. Probably the author has put together various complaints made by the guests about their GF rather randomly and tried to address them all in one point. Let's leave it at that now that the question is closed.
P.S. Feel free to contact me with a ProZ message any time! Diana

Björn Vrooman Feb 15, 2019:

It was: "If some members of the group want to stop to shop..."

How is that "providing...opportunities to buy?" It's the tourists who want to stop, not you.

Unfortunately, KudoZ is not a very good platform for these kinds of questions. I would have to see the entire (German) paragraph to figure out whether this makes sense as written.

Sorry that I can't offer a better solution right now. This household here is part German, part American and I know how hard it is to give a satisfying answer when I'm being asked to explain some German word. Too much will depend on the circumstances.

Enjoy your weekend and best wishes

Björn Vrooman Feb 15, 2019:

Hello Diana I apologize; I've wanted to provide a more detailed response, but I've only been on here sporadically because I've been sick for the past few days.

"Unfortunately we translators only have the text itself to work from, so any interpretation is going to be speculation."

That is why I asked about your opinion. The trouble is that the tidbit you posted has been shortened, which makes this really difficult (though I can understand why you did that).

For example, Thomas's suggestion of...
"Seien Sie nicht aufdringlich, Vermeiden Sie es, aufdringlich zu wirken/zu sein..."
...doesn't work at all(!) based on the context you posted. It says "...guides should advise them gently and kindly that they will be able to buy postcards etc. at the end of the tour."

Aufdringlich is if you were actually all up in their face trying to sell them something instead of waiting for later. But you're not the one waiting; you're asking others to do that. This can't be described as unaufdringlich; that'd be out of place.

Moreover, your explanation--"If the guides are asked to be subtle when providing the tourists with opportunities to buy..." does not seem to match the example you gave.

[...]

British Diana (asker) Feb 14, 2019:

Björn Thank you for your input. Unfortunately we translators only have the text itself to work from, so any interpretation is going to be speculation. But in my opinion the author is writing from the point of view of the tour company and indicating to the local guides what kind of behaviour is acceptable for the company. If the guides are asked to be subtle when providing the tourists with opportunities to buy souvenirs or when reacting to the tourists' wishes I think this means they should "feel their way" ("gefühlsmäßig erfassen") and not be insistent. It is the opposite of aggressive selling tactics and would apply irrespective of who is likely to profit from the sale.

Björn Vrooman Feb 13, 2019:

Diana Could you maybe explain what you think subtlety means in this context?

Because I agree with Sabrina that it sounds a bit odd.

Moreover, I don't know how Fingerspitzengefühl garnered six agreements.

In this context, Fingerspitzengefühl would be more like tact, but it's a really horrible word to use.

In German, in this particular context, it would sound as if they were saying: Actually, you do know you need to sell these dumbos something; I mean, the more money, the better our margin. But please be a bit less obvious about it.

In particular, your text says: "...make sure clients do not feel this is the reason for the guide's interest in them..." Also, it says: "... advise them gently and kindly that they will be able to buy postcards etc. at the end of the tour." What in the world has that to do with the above?

What about
"Fähigkeit, einen verborgenen, nicht deutlich sichtbaren Sachverhalt gefühlsmäßig zu erfassen; Gefühl (3b)
Beispiele
ein feines, sicheres Gespür für etwas haben"
https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Gespuer

Best wishes

Ramey Rieger (X) Feb 13, 2019:

Haha! Well, we DO have to adhere to protocoll. Let's be nice on paper :-).

British Diana (asker) Feb 13, 2019:

@Ramey Yes, if it was not contravening one of the other rules ("Avoidance of nationality references") I would be tempted to say, "Wir sind hier doch nicht auf einem (Ländernamen) Bazar!"

Ramey Rieger (X) Feb 13, 2019:

JA! Sie sollen die Gäste ihrer Waren unterjubeln (one of my favorite German words)

British Diana (asker) Feb 13, 2019:

Verstehe Aha, also die Gästeführer dürfen schon den Touristen Andenken usw. verkaufen bzw. diesen Kauf ermöglichen und außerdem ihre eigene Bereitschaft, Trinkgelder entgegenzunehmen signalisieren, solange dieses diskret erfolgt ? Es soll nicht zu plump sein?

Sabrina Stolfa Feb 13, 2019:

Ah, sorry, I'd misunderstood this, I thought it was a half-good English term that needed improving. Well, the German solutions given seem wonderful to me!

Ramey Rieger (X) Feb 13, 2019:

Unaufdringlichkeit Feinsinn

Ramey Rieger (X) Feb 13, 2019:

Hi Diana I wondered!

British Diana (asker) Feb 13, 2019:

German, please! So sorry, I got the language pair wrong! I am in fact looking for a German translation of subtlety.