Websites are frequently the first point of contact with potential customers which is why website localization becomes a vital part of your company’s plan to expand globally. With 72 percent of customers showing a preference toward websites in their native language, website localization allows you to reach new customers by marketing your services with content that resonates with them.
What is Website Localization?
Website localization is the process of modifying a current website to suit the language and culture of the market you are trying to reach. While maintaining the messages and integrity of the original website, the modifications have to include tailoring the overall design, content, and images so that the site feels natural to its users. Some of the aspects of website localization include:
- Content Translation – When translating content, it is critical that all text is translated to suit the target language, including paying attention to grammar, choice of vocabulary, and punctuation.
- Image Adaptation – Images are highly subjective to cultures, meaning that an image can be perceived differently in various regions. If the wrong pictures are selected for the localized website, then your company can inadvertently offend users.
- Symbol Localization – Similar to images, symbols can have very different meanings, depending on the culture of the website audience.
- Layout Specifications – One of the key aspects of website localization is ensuring that the layout fits the translated content. Some languages need more or less space than others; for example, translating content from English to Portuguese may reduce the text by up to 15 percent, whereas the same content might be increased by 40 percent in Finnish.
- Color Considerations – Colors also have cultural connotations that have to be carefully considered when localizing a website. Paying attention to color choices can ensure that users connect with the website, rather than forgo it.
Why Website Localization is Necessary
Since so many people prefer shopping in their native language, they will naturally be more apt to visit and explore your website if it is localized to their region. Specific benefits of website localization include:
- Reaching a wider audience. Through localization, your website will become available to many potential customers who might not have seen it otherwise.
- Improving SEO. By localizing SEO campaigns, you can boost the site’s rankings.
- Expanding clients’ understanding of your products and services.With your localized site, users will have a clearer insight into your business, making them more likely to consider what you have to offer.
- Building relationships with other businesses and communities in the region. Localizing your website shows that you care about what matters to the people of your target market.
How to Perform Multilingual SEO with Website Localization
Multilingual SEO is the process of translating current content into another language and making certain that the content is optimized for SEO, which will help increase targeted search traffic. By using multilingual SEO, you are making your site available to countless new customers. Some of the steps involved with achieving such SEO include:
- Using top-level domains that are coded for the country you are serving.
- Applying hreflang tags, which prompt Google to know the language the site is written in, as well as the region for which it is intended.
- Translating metadata, which will help ensure that your site ranks higher in the country you are targeting.
- Optimizing the new content as it is translated.
- Conducting research on keywords to understand what the search competition and volume are like in other locations, as well as to include essential keywords in both your back links and on-page SEO.
- Making certain that your website loads quickly and does not get bogged down.
By taking the time to do each of these steps, you can effectively perform multilingual SEO with your localized website.
As more businesses strive to expand globally, website localization can help them achieve their translation goals and increase sales. By partnering with a reliable translation company, you can be confident that all aspects of website localization will be successfully implemented.
Summary
Since websites often are the first contact that potential customers have with businesses, website localization is an excellent way to reach new clients and showcase your products and services to them.
