Content is king. This well-known adage may seem like just another cliche, but it has a strong origin story. In 1996, Bill Gates predicted a virtually universal, online marketplace. Arguably, this is not very different to the current reality in 2021. In this digital space, content is equivalent to an actual, tangible presence. Without content, brands don’t exist! What is presented in this public forum can not only influence individual sales, but also brand image, appeal, trustworthiness and ultimately, success. This new way of communicating, buying, and selling can be empowering for businesses and individuals alike. However, crossing language barriers to enter new markets can feel like walking up an old creaky staircase blindfolded, desperately trying not to step on a rusty nail! So, in this blog, we’ve collected the top five tips from our extensive translation and marketing partners to help you take the blindfold off and improve your translated content.
1. Market Research
Be proactive! We’ve said it before but cannot stress it enough. Researching your new target demographic will reap long term rewards. Research has shown that customers prefer to be sold to in their native tongue. This should help direct you to choose which language markets to target. Additionally, it’s worth considering other language markets within your local community that you’re not currently targeting.
2. A Reliable Translation Partner
Choosing the right language services provider (LSP) for your business needs is a vital step that should not be overlooked. Translation providers offer incredible value with their expertise and ability to match your translation projects with the most appropriate, native speakers and can allow you to harness the power of sophisticated translation technologies. This can improve workflow, maintain industry and company specific terminologies, and save resources over time. Translation providers will also ensure that all translated content undergoes rigorous, multistage review and quality control processes to protect your brand reputation and ‘voice’ consistency. We have all seen just how detrimental Marketing Translation Fails can be for a brand.
3. Localization
Choosing how to communicate with your new language market is extremely important. While the proper translation of the content is key, so also are the graphics, layout, formatting, local regulations, and legal requirements. As we talked about in the blog “Marketing Translation Fails: How to Avoid Common Mistakes”, words matter, but so do intentions, tone, analogies and overall relevance of content for the intended audience!
4. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The results of your localization research should be the foundation of your SEO journey. Regional and language specific keyword research and implementation will increase your visibility to your target market. Our blog ‘Is Localization Important for Software and Websites?’ is a great place to start when thinking about implementing keyword localization. It’s important to remember that whatever the language, you must market to your audience’s needs.
5. User Experience (UX)
When developing a website or new software, it’s always good practice to consider localization potential from the very beginning. If your layout does not account for expansion of words or formatting in different languages, your localization efforts will likely be hampered. User interfaces might require remodelling or extensive re-coding to work in different markets. Layout and imagery are extremely important for engaging user interest, so taking the time to ensure your layouts are adaptable for new languages is essential. Essentially, by keeping UX in mind for each language customer base, you are offering them the same dedication as your local consumer base. Check out our guide to software and website localization to discover how to make this process as smooth as possible.
While we hope these five tips help you to better navigate the minefield of multilingual content creation, the most important takeaway is… don’t simply create multilingual content! Instead, thoughtfully adapt your content for each new linguistic market. No matter the language, when your clients know that you’re talking directly to them, they’re much more likely to respond!