Achieving success in your local market is a bold endeavor, but when your business prepares to go international, things can become even more challenging.
Entering a new market requires more than just translating content as part of a global arketing strategy. It should go without saying that content made for American consumers will not be as popular with audiences in other nations.
You need to tailor all your information around local values, customs, and beliefs in order to be able to connect with the regional audience. This includes building a clear localization strategy with the help of a translation management system. In this guide, we’ll go over what content localization is and cover tips for how to do it right.
What is content localization and what makes it so important?
Content localization, in short, is the process of developing or adjusting information for a target market’s specific language and cultural characteristics. Besides translation, localization also takes into account factors like idioms and phrases, laws and regulations, visuals and colors, currencies, date and time formats, etc.
English-language content is not always the greatest strategy to go international and dominate the global market. There are currently over eight billion people on the planet, and only 743 million of them are English speakers. Furthermore, 76% of customers favor making purchases from websites that have content in their local language.
Content localization has many advantages but the two most significant ones are the increased chances for market entry and improved local market conversion.
How to get content localization right
So, what is the most effective way to create a strategy for content localization?
- Research and analyze data
The first step of any successful content localization strategy is to gather information through research. To save time and money, consider hiring a professional who has knowledge of the market you are targeting, the industry, as well as the language you are trying to expand into. Choose the new market you wish to enter and carefully examine the following areas:
- Cultural nuances, customs, and potential conflicts which might affect how you interact with the local audience;
- Language, dialects, and vocabulary you need to use in order to win over the local audience;
- Consumption habits of the target market, preferred methods of payment, local laws and regulations, as well as anything else that may have an impact on content localization in any way.
- Decide what content to localize
Once you have completed the research phase, you need to decide what content you will translate. Determine which content pieces might perform best in the new market by conducting a content audit for all platforms, including blogs, social media, YouTube, and newsletters. Consider content portraying universal truths and values that would work in all situations and cultures with little modification.
In addition, check out which parts of your main website perform well and how your competitors are faring in the area where you want to expand. This ought to provide you with a clear picture of which content to prioritize and which to postpone or skip altogether.
- Plan the localization process
If you do the research and decision-making phase right, planning the localization process will be easier. These are the three things you need to take into consideration:
- Localization tools. Using an effective translation management system will have a significant effect on the cost and length of the process. Machine translation, in-context editors, glossaries, translation memories, and other functionalities are all included in translation management software to facilitate and speed up the localization process.
- Localization specialists. One option is to put together an in-house team of developers, linguists, and localization managers. Alternatively, you could use localization services specialized in your industry, which will save you time by eliminating the need to look for in-house staff.
- Localization workflow. If you use a translation management system, the localization workflow typically consists of these five steps: uploading, translating, reviewing, and downloading the language files, and publishing them once they’re all ready.
Content localization opens up the path to global success
Although content localization may seem like a lot of work, when done properly, it can have a number of advantages, including greater chances of market penetration and improved local market conversion. The tips offered in this article will help you remember that there is much more to the process than simply translating text.
Do your research, plan your strategy well, and consider using an efficient translation management system. By taking into consideration the cultural specifics and needs of your new market, you will be able to convey your message more effectively.
