Website translation is an essential service for those e-commerce businesses or companies looking to take the leap and internationalize their products or services. Language is the most powerful tool and the first thing that you should use to attract new audiences. Therefore, we’d like to explain the difficulties involved in this process here – and why it’s so important to leave in the hands of specialists.
What does website translation consist of?
The main idea is simple to understand, but a bit more complex to execute. It consists of translating all the elements that may be present in a web portal from one language to another. As we’ll see below, there are always more details than might first appear, and which are necessary to pay attention to.
In this process, a new plan is also carried out for the positioning strategy to be adopted. This is a priority, as it would be a huge blunder to only translate the texts and leave your website as is. Keep in mind that positioning will change depending on the region or country you are targeting, how users utilize search engines, and the competition that may exist in that specific geographical area. For all these reasons, translation is something that should always be entrusted to experts in the field.
Likewise, there are other obvious difficulties that will help convince you to rely on native translators:
- Adequacy of expressions. Idioms or more colloquial language can cause problems when being translated. To avoid misunderstandings, it’s best to turn to experts.
- Maintaining the tone and feel of your website. The narrative style of your brand should also be reflected in the translation of your website. Thus, it will retain its personality and essence.
- Offering a better image. Nothing ruins a potential purchase more than disjointed sentences or misspelled words appearing. To avoid this happening to you, always count on a professional team.
What elements should you translate on your website?
The quick answer would be to only translate the text. And yes, this is the bulk of any website, but it’s not the only thing that should be translated into another language. There are many other elements that must be taken care of and that can have a major influence on the website’s final positioning in foreign countries. Here are some of the most relevant:
- URL. In general, this is based on the keywords that are going to be used. Therefore, the choice of new URLs also depends on the positioning strategy and how the selected keywords are translated.
- Privacy policy. Any legal aspects relating to data protection policy are particularly sensitive and delicate. Therefore, translations in this area should be as accurate as possible. Any possible doubts or slightly inadequate explanations can lead to major problems in the future.
- Product descriptions. Although it may seem obvious, the truth is that not all websites have enough effort put into the descriptions of products being sold. Remember, this is the most crucial text that you can use to gain the trust and confidence of your audience. A bad description not only leads to confusion, but can also result in returns.
- Target elements. Everything that, at first glance, may seem secondary and part of the website architecture also requires careful and thought-out professional work. Thanks to these elements, search engines will be able to index the various pages on your website so that they appear in search engines.
- Images. As you may already know, websites ask you for a description of the images you upload. This description must also be correctly translated into another language. Otherwise, it will be penalized by search engines.
- Other elements. There will be websites that have other sections also involving text. For example: if you offer an e-book to download, or you have a subscription to your newsletter, etc. Needless to say, here too you will need to rely on the work of translators.
The importance of translation for a company
Most importantly, you need to understand the idea that for a company to grow in new territories, it will need to speak the same language as its audience. Only through the use of language can you achieve real contact and generate an authentic bond with your target market.
Ultimately, website translation is a service that both small and large companies may require. Thanks to it, you can cross borders and take your brand to new frontiers. If you want to start growing your business, don’t hesitate. At blarlo we will help you with all the translation work. Get in touch with us!
This post is also available in: Español (Spanish) Français (French) Nederlands (Dutch) Deutsch (German)
