Business Jargon on Thai Corporate Websites: A Linguistic and Rhetorical Analysis and a Glocalization Approach

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Business jargon has become a salient feature of contemporary corporate communication, particularly on English-language corporate websites where organizations seek to establish professionalism, legitimacy, and competitive positioning in the global marketplace. In non-Western contexts such as Thailand, corporate discourse is influenced not only by international business conventions but also by local cultural values, resulting in distinctive forms of communication that reflect processes of glocalization. Although previous studies have investigated corporate discourse and multimodal communication, limited research has integrated linguistic, rhetorical, and visual dimensions within a unified analytical framework, particularly in Southeast Asian contexts. This study therefore aimed to (1) analyze the linguistic features and rhetorical functions of business jargon employed on Thai corporate websites, (2) examine the interaction between textual and visual resources in constructing corporate identity from a glocalization perspective, and (3) compare business jargon usage and communication strategies on Thai corporate websites with those of selected international corporations from the United States, Japan, and Singapore.
Methods: This study employed a qualitative-dominant mixed-methods design, combining corpus-based linguistic analysis with multimodal discourse analysis and cross-cultural comparison. The dataset consisted of 30 Thai corporate websites representing four industries, namely finance, technology, real estate, and manufacturing, and 15 international corporate websites selected from the United States, Japan, and Singapore. English-language content from the Homepage and About Us sections was collected and analyzed. Corpus analysis was conducted using AntConc to identify lexical frequencies, collocational patterns, and concordance lines of business-related terminology. Qualitative analysis was informed by genre analysis, systemic functional linguistics, multimodal discourse analysis, and glocalization theory. Cross-cultural comparison was further employed to interpret similarities and differences in linguistic and visual communication strategies across national contexts.
Results: The findings revealed that business jargon was employed strategically rather than incidentally on Thai corporate websites. High-frequency lexical items included sustainability, innovation, ecosystem, transformation, and ESG, which functioned as persuasive and evaluative resources in promotional discourse. Collocational analysis showed recurring lexical clusters such as digital transformation, customer-centric approach, and global standards, indicating that business jargon operates as formulaic discourse patterns that reinforce corporate positioning. Multimodal analysis demonstrated that textual messages were systematically supported by visual elements, including executive-centered imagery, culturally symbolic color schemes, and hybrid typographic styles, all of which contributed to the construction of credibility, trust, continuity, and innovation. Moreover, cross-cultural comparison revealed that Thai corporate websites occupied a hybrid communicative position, balancing globally recognizable business discourse with culturally embedded values. In contrast, U.S. corporate websites tended to exhibit more assertive and innovation-oriented discourse, whereas Japanese websites emphasized harmony, continuity, and restrained communication styles.
Application of this study: The findings provide practical implications for corporate communication and Business English education. Organizations may use the findings to develop more effective digital branding and strategic communication practices by employing business jargon purposefully and in a culturally sensitive manner. The results also contribute to English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and Business English pedagogy by promoting corpus-informed and discourse-based instruction. Furthermore, the study offers insights for intercultural communication training and may assist multinational corporations in designing communication strategies that balance global competitiveness with local cultural identity.
Conclusions: The study demonstrates that business jargon on Thai corporate websites functions as a strategic linguistic and rhetorical resource rather than merely specialized vocabulary. Corporate identity is constructed through the interaction of linguistic and visual elements, reflecting deliberate multimodal communication strategies. Thai corporate websites represent a glocalized form of digital discourse in which international business conventions are adapted to local cultural values. Overall, the findings contribute to a deeper understanding of corporate communication as a dynamic process shaped by linguistic, visual, and cultural dimensions and highlight the role of English as a flexible resource in contemporary global business communication.