Nowadays, more businesses have started developing websites that support several languages. Unfortunately, in many cases the results are distinctly below par. This happens when companies choose machine translation over professional localization of their websites.
Even though all translation technology has advanced considerably over recent years and can prove a good fit for personal use, for business the smart choice is still to choose a professional website localization service. Accurate and authentic website localization helps a business to make its point and create the right image with no negative connotations, ambiguity, or shady meanings for potential online customers from any target region.
That is why, in this article, you will find five of the most important tips to consider before the localization of your website.
Get to Know Your Target Market
Developers mostly use the world’s top hundred languages, and not every business is ready to localize their products to all of them; to be honest, there is no need. That is why the first and the crucial point is to find out who your target is. This will be the starting point that sets the direction of the whole process and determines how all further decisions will be made.
As it is a new market, you need to study it carefully and find your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Why is your product worth buying? What could put the client off? What positioning strategy do you need to choose there?
Design Your Product Wisely
It is no secret that different cultures attach a wide variety of meanings to the same colors, objects, and words. For example, in Asian countries white represents death, while in Western society it is the color of purity and cleanliness and people use it as the main color in wedding ceremonies. Knowing such facts, you may adjust your website according to the preferences of clients in your target market.
But design is not just color: it is also the way you structure your website pages and present the text content.
The majority of people don’t read your text, they just scan it. UX designers have researched and identified the patterns of how the attention of the user is spread across the page. One of the most common is the F pattern, which means that users stick to the left part while scrolling down the page. But that doesn’t mean that this pattern suits best in every country of the world. Remember, there are right-to-left languages for which the F pattern is mirrored vertically.
Do not forget to space your content: words may change their length and height when they are translated, so it may look odd. Try to think about it in advance while you are developing your website.
Make a Glossary
When preparing the content for your website, you are working on a particular topic in a particular sphere. Not surprisingly, some words, phrases, and terms repeat across the website. To make the localization process faster and cheaper, collect such words and include them in a glossary. This will help to make the website language consistent and reduce the chance of any misunderstandings or errors. Having a glossary will also help you if you decide to change the localization provider. The new localization team will not have to start the work from scratch: you can give them a good basis by sharing the glossary.
Think About Your Graphics
Obviously, every business wants to provide a good user experience in the languages they support. But it often happens that website owners concentrate on the text content, and they forget about the visual part. As you can guess, symbols and images need to be localized as well.
Do not forget to make sure that the images you use are culturally appropriate and, if they contain any text (which we strongly advise against), it is properly translated and does not convey any negative connotations that could put your business at risk in new markets.
Create an SEO Strategy
You already carried out keyword research and optimized the titles, headings, tags, and links as part of planning your SEO strategy. But it is better for your marketing team to work closely with your localization provider to come up with a new SEO strategy or even strategies for the target languages and regions in which you plan to promote your website (or you may even think of hiring a local digital marketing expert). Take this into account to make sure local SEO statistics don’t come as an unpleasant surprise.
Conclusion
When you do not know where to start or what you need to bear in mind while setting out to conquer new markets, it is better to consult experts in this field. Any mistakes you may make will cost you money, and they could even damage your brand’s reputation. You may not be aware of all the cultural differences, or you may be trying to move into countries whose languages you do not speak at all: in this case, it will always be good to have some experts to support, advise, and double-check your project.
