Translation is an art, and like most arts it is more complicated than it looks. There are many aspects to consider when localising a site:
- Availability of domains, and the related purchase regulations
- Blogs – the easiest way to create new content
- Customs regulations and tariffs when shipping products overseas
- Design and build of the website
- E-commerce platforms – which one to choose?
- Foreign addresses and contacts
- Global distribution
- Happy customers are the best form of marketing
- International sales taxes
- Japanese, Russian, Chinese and Arabic use non-Latin scripts, so you need an expert to handle these
- Keyword research is essential to create a well-optimised site
- Local search engines and directories
- Multiple currency transactions
- Native speakers should always be used for localisation of content
- Onpage and offpage SEO are vital for being found in search engines
- Political, religious and cultural issues and connotations
- Quality Assurance is critical to ensure your website is localised fully and accurately
- Research how your brand and strapline are perceived in your target market
- Social media is a perfect opportunity to connect with foreign markets
- Translation is a key stage of the localisation process
- Use of imagery
- Videos – the newest marketing trend
- Website audit prior to localisation – how good is your English site?
- XML, HTML, PHP, and other web files types won’t be a problem for an experienced localisation provider to handle
- Yoruba – not a good website language, but there are many other languages which are!
- Z – is this pronounced’zee’ or ‘zed’? Know your target market!
