A multilingual website is a web tool adapted to users from different countries. High-quality translations of your site will demonstrate the excellence and motivation of your company, show your concern for users, and present your advantages, technologies, products, and services to a wide audience.
Why You Should Create a Multilingual Website
Bringing your project to the international scene presents new brand promotion and revenue increase opportunities for your brand by attracting international clients. Most well-known and successful companies use a platform that is modified for different regions. Business owners planning to enter broader markets should start by translating their sites into other languages.
The chance to review web page content in their native language is a concrete bonus for users. In a competitive market, it is important to hold clients’ full attention, provide pertinent information quickly and effortlessly, promote the company’s advantages, and be active. A multilingual web resource is a competitive advantage and helps to unlock the potential of online material.
Some websites are equipped with an automatic translation function—a Google Translator widget. This helps native speakers of different languages understand the meaning of the content and recognize the words on a menu bar and in titles. However, machine translation like this is complicated to understand and can be confusing. This is yet another reason you should configure language versions and translate your source materials very carefully.
Which Languages to Choose for Website Translation
The most common language to translate a website into is English. English is considered an international language. English is the third largest language in the world by the number of native speakers, after Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. English is also the second language in many countries with a different primary language and is offered through educational institutions and courses
If your target audience is mainly from the U.S. or Great Britain, you should translate your site into English. If your company prioritizes European clients and partners, you will need to provide corresponding language versions because the percentage of people with at least a conversational understanding of the English language in a given country can be small.
With web pages translated into users’ native language, you will have an opportunity to attract new clients. A high-quality translation must be localized to the target region, language group, and dialect. Due to the differences between British and American English, for instance, your site will need to offer corresponding English versions.
Reach a Larger Audience with a Multilingual Website
A website adapted to users from different countries is an effective tool to boost your sales. Foreign visitors feel comfortable reading a resource in their native language and have more confidence in it. A professionally translated and localized website is a sure way to increase your traffic, reach more target audiences, and stay ahead of competitors who are focused only on a local market. Getting a high-quality translation from Russian and leveraging a productive business funnel and marketing strategy opens the door to greater revenues from new consumers.
The Aspects of Creating a Multilingual Website
Making a multilingual website includes a range of actions and usually requires the involvement of several qualified experts. Although mistakes made in this process may escape the developer’s attention, they will not go unnoticed by foreign audiences. To make a positive impression on a user during their initial visit, the following crucial aspects of the translation and configuration of a multilingual platform should be considered.
Encoding
The way text elements appear in the site interface depends on character encoding. Mixing text encoding with a source code or converting a site to another language version can result in errors that visitors see as unknown words on their screens. The method for text encoding is selected based on when such encoding will be configured, whether at the development stage of a multilingual website or the “attachment” of language versions to a source site. Unicode, the versatile character-encoding standard, is a popular solution for international projects.
Page Content Filling
A new website language version is like a blank canvas that you need to fill with your content. It is important to translate all pages with information that is valuable to users. Filling websites with content allows entrepreneurs to best market their products and services to an international audience and can be an auxiliary tool for promoting the site in another region with key phrases.
Translation Quality
The translation accuracy of automated translation tools is insufficient. A machine-translation tool will convey the general idea of the text but the phrases and structures used in translated sentences are quite often wrong. If you want to show the best qualities of your company and products, benefit from marketing tools, and drive user actions, you should entrust the translation of your site to a professional translation agency. After translation, all text must be edited and proofread. Field-specific materials, technical descriptions, and legally important text, i.e., areas where information must be checked by specialists or conform to the corresponding country laws or approved standards, deserve special attention. To ensure appropriate and consistent term usage, all text with professional terminology must be further reviewed.
Material Localization
Translated materials will need to be adapted to the cultural features of the target country, as well as the units of measure and time format standards. This will help your users perceive the localized text as naturally as possible.
Adaptivity of Visual Elements
When making a new site version, special attention should be paid not only to text elements but also to graphics on webpages, such as banners, infographics, and photos, as well as to UI elements, such as navigation blocks, keys, customer forms, etc. A source language phrase can be compact and can fit into a reserved space on a screen. When text is translated to another language, the length of the resulting translation may significantly exceed the original text and extend beyond the frames of visual components. To modify the UI element, the block will need to be edited so that the entire translated text fits smoothly.
Translation of Additional Content
Translating your site in another language should include the processing of user-generated content, such as testimonials. Don’t forget about references, purchase and delivery terms, and FAQs, which will also need to be translated. Providing your company blog articles in different languages will help inform your potential customers about your product features and related items and can assist the decision-making process. When translating a website, it is also important to adapt hidden content, such as an account design accessible only to registered users or loyalty program members.
Variability in Website Structure
Whenever a language version is prepared, the information blocks contained on a page must be analyzed. The scope of services and offerings for users, e.g., delivery terms or product ranges, may vary depending on the country.
Language Switcher
One of the possible technical problems encountered when switching between language versions is that a displayed page may not show the correct language version. To avoid such errors, different language versions of your site and the layout of corresponding pages must be tested.
Setting Up Multilingual Content and CMS
The Internet is flooded with information about “how to build a multilingual website” using an engine. For instance, WordPress language versions can be created with the WordPress Multisite mode or language plugins. The popular Joomla platform offers “multilanguage” as a standard function. An administrator panel allows the site owner to create a new version extension, set a language for categories and materials, build a language switcher, activate a multilingual plugin, etc.
Translation of System Messages
For site translation—regardless of CMS—standard system messages shown to users on their screens deserve special attention. These messages include “adding an item to a shopping cart” and “successful order placement” notifications, technical failure information, and template emails sent to a customer making a purchase. Such system messages are generally displayed in the language of a baseline version or a web development language. Comprehensive translation includes adapting all system messages, customer forms, and email notifications by editing the corresponding files within a content management system.
Multilanguage and Website Optimization
To drive international traffic to your site, new versions must be configured for search engines. Technical optimization is a baseline for configuring a website language version. New website versions should be presented to a selected search engine. SEO optimizers use the “hreflang” attribute and Sitemap file so Google can serve the desired webpage version. Link texts are modified for geotargeting with a URL containing the source language text and region name. Avoid duplicating your content when configuring another language version. Search engines measure how unique your content is and may downgrade your page rankings because of duplicates. This is especially relevant for multiregional projects where different site versions can have monolingual content, e.g., different French versions for France and French-speaking Canada. Efficient technical optimization, in this case, should include the “rel=canonical” element and “hreflang” tags to indicate the priority and secondary versions of the page in different languages.
Semantics is a powerful tool for website promotion in another region. You need to choose and use the appropriate semantic core to boost your site visibility in the international segment. At the same time, it is important to focus not only on the obvious key phrases but also on related queries a potential customer could use in search requests. The phrases selected to promote your site should be placed in meta-tags, landing page content, site user information, etc.
Who Should Translate a Website
If you decide to entrust the translation of your site to experts, you have several options.
In-house Translator
In-house translations are performed by an employee of the company that owns a site. This scenario can save on costs; however, the quality and time frame may not meet your expectations. Making translated content sound as if it has been written in the target language to a foreign reader requires a thorough knowledge of the language and linguistic features of the target country, as well as technical and functional localization techniques.
Independent Translator
You can use freelance marketplaces to hire a translator. With a satisfactory portfolio, proof of the freelancer’s qualifications, and feedback, you can expect higher-quality translation than your in-house employees can provide. However, many websites contain information requiring specific professional knowledge, e.g., legal documents and specifications. In this case, a single translator is not enough, and such a project may require more experts in the relevant industry field.
Translation Agency
A company providing professional translation services with a comprehensive approach to projects may offer an entire consultation team providing up-to-date information, such as legal and technical documentation, to ensure that the project goals are achieved. Localization is essential to a high-quality translation. Computer-assisted translation tools, translators’ expertise, and cooperation with native speakers are the keys to the successful adaptation of a website to a country-specific version, including its content, images, special characters, resource UI, and inner structure elements.
By working with a translation agency, you will benefit from the expertise and qualifications of professional translators and receive a high service delivery speed as well. An accurate and localized translation will be easily understood by users and will increase your revenue. Want to discover why you need a professional translator? Read our article here.
Professional translation of a startup site is a fundamental aspect of its further development and globalization. A translation agency guarantees perfect quality and support for every user at every stage of a project. Budgeting for translations through a translation agency is a great investment, giving you confidence in a high-quality translation that will promote your company’s image to foreign customers.