Maybe you’ve been thinking about translating your website for a while but haven’t got round to it.
Maybe you’re not sure if it’s a worthwhile venture for your business.
Or maybe you just don’t know where to start!
In this article, we’ll look at the benefits of getting your website translated and give you some pointers on how to get the ball rolling!
Can’t everyone speak English?
Maybe you’re thinking – ‘yes, I’d like to reach new customers overseas, but do I really need to translate my website? Can’t everyone speak English these days?’
Well, you’d be mistaken!
Think about it, only around 360 million of the planet’s 7.7 billion inhabitants speak English as their first language… That’s a rather small proportion!
And yes, English is by far the most widely spoken second language in the world, but that doesn’t mean that non-native speakers want to, or that they should have to, make do with buying from sites that don’t speak their language!
Even in a country like Germany where it’s well known that English is widely spoken as a second language, locals still prefer to shop in their native language online.
In a study of ten countries from around the world, Germans were one of the top three national populations that preferred to make online purchases in their own language!
If you want your company to have a global presence, an international reputation, you need to seriously consider getting your website translated.
So, what are the benefits for your company?
There are plenty of advantages to making your website available in other languages apart from the obvious like increased sales and a more global presence!
Here are our top 3 reasons to translate your website!
- Brand reputation and trust
Website visitors are more likely to trust a site that’s written in their native language, provided that the quality of language is good, of course!
And prospective customers will appreciate the fact that you have provided content in their native language – they’re more likely to feel that your company cares about them and their business.
It’s worth noting that a badly translated website is likely to do the opposite, which is why it’s important to get your website content translated by a reputable translator or language agency and not just to turn to Google Translate!
- SEO
Internet users are more likely to spend time on your site and engage with its content if it’s written in their native language.
Again, it’s important to point out that the translation has to be good!
Translating your website will improve your search rankings and the number of visitors to your site.
- Taking on the competition
If your competitors haven’t yet translated their website, this could be a good way for you to get the edge over them!
You can expand your reach to new customers who would be excluded if your website didn’t exist in their language.
And if your competitors do have their websites translated into other languages, there’s a good chance that it would be helpful for you to do the same!
Where should you start?
There are a few questions to ask yourself before diving straight in to getting your website translated!
The below should help you to come up with a clear plan of what’s needed in the short and long term.
Which languages?
A good place to start!
This will largely depend on your business and who you want to target.
Is there a foreign market that you want to reach? Do you want to introduce your products/services in a particular country? Have you seen a lot of interest from a certain market?
Consider all these questions and come up with a list of languages you need in order of priority.
Maybe you’ll want to start off with one or two languages and see how that goes.
Which content?
Not everything on your website will be relevant to overseas audiences.
Will they be interested in your blog about a recent UK event, for example?
Will they want to read webpages about products or services that won’t even be available in their country?
Take the time to check what will be needed on your translated site.
Which format?
How do you want to receive the translations for your website?
A lot of clients like to put all the text they need translating into an Excel spreadsheet or a Word document.
This is great for translation agencies and translators, as it means the document can be run through computer-assisted translation tools to check for repeated text, which can then be charged to you at a discounted rate! And it means that the translations will be consistent!
You’ll then be free to upload the text to your website in whichever way suits you best.
Some companies provide log-in details to a particular site where they would like the translator to work directly.
Have a think about the best way for you to receive your translations.
Want more information?
I hope this article has helped to clear up some of the questions you might have about translating your website!
If you have any questions about website translation or if you’d like to receive a quote or just some more information, please do get in touch with us at sales@ttmltd.com.
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