website is a channel to spread and advertise information, products and services of businesses to target customers. To be able to grasp the opportunity to access the international market, translating websites into other languages is extremely necessary. However, not every business can afford to carry out the entire language conversion process for the website themselves. Therefore, you need to find a translation unit that suits your needs.
In the context of growing digitalization and globalization, multilingual website translation has become an indispensable strategy for businesses wanting to expand international markets. According to statistics in 2024, 75% of global consumers prefer to shop in their native language, this shows the great potential of multilingual websites. This article will delve into the importance, challenges, and best practices in the field of multilingual website translation.
The important role of multilingual websites in global business
Key statistics:
- 72,1% of consumers spend most or all of their time on websites in their own language (CSA Research, 2020)
- Localized websites are 3,6 times more likely to convert visitors into customers (Common Sense Advisory)
- 60% of Fortune 500 companies have invested in multilingual website content (Globalization and Localization Association)
These numbers highlight the undeniable impact of language accessibility on user engagement and conversion rates. Let's explore the main reasons why businesses should prioritize multilingual website translation:
- Market expansion: Providing content in multiple languages helps businesses reach new markets and target groups, which were previously limited by language barriers.
- Improved user experience: Content in local languages creates a more comfortable and intuitive browsing experience, leading to increased time on site and reduced bounce rates.
- Enhance brand trust: A localized website demonstrates a commitment to understanding and serving a diverse customer base, thereby building trust and reputation.
- Competitive advantage: In a saturated market, offering multilingual content can help a business stand out from competitors that have not invested in localization.
- SEO benefits: A properly localized website can rank higher in local search results, driving organic traffic from the target language market.
Challenges in translating website content
Website translation is not simply converting text. It is a complex process that includes cultural adaptation and technical considerations. Below are the main challenges that businesses face when performing professional website translation:
1. Linguistic nuances and cultural adaptations
- Idioms and expressions: Many meaningful phrases in one language can become meaningless or offensive when translated directly into another language.
- Cultural references: Content should be tailored to the target culture's values, sense of humor, and social norms.
- Visual elements: Images, colors and icons may need to be adjusted to avoid cultural misunderstandings.
For example: Slogan “Got Milk?” famous in America has been translated into Spanish as “Are You Lactating?” (Are you breastfeeding?), causing unnecessary confusion and discomfort.
2. Technical limitations
- Expand/contract text: Translated content often changes length, affecting layout and design.
- Character encoding: Ensures correct display of non-Latin scripts and special characters.
- Bidirectional text support: Adapts to languages that read right to left such as Arabic or Hebrew.
Table comparing text length after translation:
| Original language | Target language | % Change in length |
| English | German | + 30 % |
| English | French | + 15-20% |
| English | Japanese | -10-55% |
3. Consider SEO
Keyword localization: Direct translation of keywords often fails to capture local search intent.
Adjust metadata: Title tags, meta descriptions, and alt text should be optimized for each language.
Implement hreflang: Use the correct hreflang tag to indicate the language relationship between pages.
4. Content management
Version control: Maintain consistency between multiple language versions as the original website evolves.
Translation memory system: Implementing tools to improve efficiency and consistency in the translation continuum.
5. Legal and regulatory compliance
Data protection laws: Ensure compliance with regulations like GDPR across all language versions.
Industry-specific requirements: Comply with industry-specific guidance such as finance or healthcare.
The best method for multilingual website translation
To overcome these challenges and achieve optimal results, consider the following best practices:
- Conduct thorough market research: Understand your target audience's language preferences, cultural nuances, and online behavior.
- Use professional translators: Although machine translation has improved, human expertise is still important to capture nuance and context.
- Implement a powerful content management system (CMS): Choose a CMS that supports multilingual content and simplifies the translation process.
- Prioritize responsive design: Ensure translated content displays correctly on all devices and screen sizes.
- Invest in creative translation: For marketing content, consider using a creative translation service to tailor messages to each target culture.
- Perform regular quality checks: Implement a rigorous QA process to detect language, cultural, and technical issues before launch.
- Optimize for local SEO: Conduct keyword research for each target market and optimize on-page elements accordingly.
- Consider UX localization: Adjust user interface elements, date formatting, and currency display to local conventions.
- Plan for ongoing maintenance: Establish a process to update all language versions as the main site evolves.
- Leverage translation technology: Use translation memory and terminology management tools to improve consistency and efficiency.
By following these best practices, businesses can create truly localized websites that attract global audiences and drive international growth.
Professional multilingual website translation process
To ensure quality and efficiency in the multilingual website translation process, it is necessary to follow a strict and organized process. Below is the detailed process applied by professional translation companies:
Analyze the website to be translated:
- Evaluate the expertise of the website
- Determine completion deadline
- Create a glossary of specialized terms
- Record specific customer requirements
Make an implementation plan:
- Choose a suitable translation team
- Allocate time for each stage
- Identify important milestones in the project
Content translation:
- Unify specialized terminology
- Carry out translation according to set standards
- Apply translation support technology (CAT tools) if necessary
Proofreading and quality checking:
- Professional editors review translations
- Ensure consistency in terminology and style
- Check for linguistic and cultural accuracy
Multilingual SEO optimization:
- Keyword research for target market
- Adjust meta tags, titles, and descriptions accordingly
- Implement multilingual URL structures
Technical and functional testing
- Make sure all links work correctly
- Test display on different browsers and devices
- Verify functionality of forms and interactive features
Deployment and launch
- Upload translated content to the content management system
- Configure multilingual settings on the server
- Final check before publication
Continuously evaluate and optimize
- Collect feedback from international users
- Analyze performance data for language versions
- Update and improve content based on analysis results
Technology & tools to support website translation
To improve the efficiency and quality of the multilingual website translation process, professional translation companies often use a series of modern technologies and tools. Here are some popular tools:
Translation Management System (TMS)
- For example: MemoQ, SDL Trados, Memsource
- Function: Manage translation process, integrate translation memory and terminology base
Translation support tools (CAT Tools)
- For example: OmegaT, Wordfast, Déjà Vu
- Function: Speed up the translation process, ensure consistency
Terminology management software
- For example: TermWeb, MultiTerm, Glossary Manager
- Function: Create and maintain specialized terminology database
Quality testing tool
- For example: Xbench, Verifika, QA Distiller
- Function: Detects language, formatting, and consistency errors
Website localization platform
- For example: Transifex, Crowdin, Lokalise
- Function: Automate the translation process and deploy multilingual content
Table comparing the effectiveness of translation tools:
| Instruments | Increase productivity | Consistent improvement | Cut the cost | Integrate with CMS |
| TMS | 30-50% | High | 20-40% | Have |
| CAT Tools | 40-60% | Very high | 30-50% | Some |
| Term Management lý | 20-30% | Very high | 10-20% | Some |
| CHeck quality | 15-25% | High | 5-15% | No. |
| Localization platform | 50-70% | High | 40-60% | Have |
New trends in multilingual website translation
The field of website translation is constantly developing with many emerging trends. Here are some notable trends:
Artificial intelligence and machine learning in translation
- Use AI to improve machine translation quality
- Machine learning to optimize the translation process
Neural Machine Translation (NMT)
- For example: Google's Neural Machine Translation, DeepL
- Significantly improves machine translation quality, especially for complex language pairs
Dynamic Localization
- Automatically adapt content based on user's geographic location and preferences
- Personalize the experience for each specific market
Continuous Translation
- Update multilingual content in real time
- Tight integration with content management systems
Multimedia translation
- Expand translation to videos, images, and interactive content
- Uses voice recognition and text-to-speech technology
Multilingual website translation Professionalism is a complex but extremely important process in the global market expansion strategy. By applying best practices, using cutting-edge technology, and tracking key performance indicators, businesses can create smooth and efficient multilingual experiences for users around the world. .
To achieve optimal results, it is essential to cooperate with a professional translation unit like Idichthuat. With extensive experience and a professional working process, Idichthuat can help businesses overcome the challenges of website translation and create a truly effective multilingual online presence.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
1. How long does it take to complete multilingual website translation?
The time to complete a multilingual website translation project depends on many factors such as the number of words, the number of languages that need to be translated, and the complexity of the content. On average, a website translation project of 10.000 words into 3 languages can take about 2-3 weeks. However, with supporting technology, the time can be shortened to 7-10 working days.
2. How are multilingual website translation costs calculated?
Website translation costs are usually calculated based on the number of words and language pairs. For example, the average price for English-Vietnamese translation can range from 80.000 - 120.000 VND/1000 words. Rare languages such as Arabic and Hebrew can be 30-50% higher. There are also additional costs such as multilingual SEO optimization, interface adjustments.
3. How to ensure consistency in multilingual website translation?
To ensure consistency, professional translation companies often apply the following measures:
- Use Translation Memory to store and reuse translated passages
- Build a specialized terminology database
- Apply a multi-step quality inspection process
- Use translation project management tools to track progress and ensure consistency
See more Be careful when translating multilingual websites shared by many industry experts.
4. Should machine translation be used to translate websites?
Machine translation can be useful in the early stages of creating drafts, but should not be used strictly for professional websites. Research shows that machine translation only achieves about 60-70% accuracy for common language pairs. For complex marketing or technical content, the intervention of a professional translator is required to ensure quality.
5. How to optimize SEO for multilingual websites?
Some SEO optimization methods for multilingual websites include:
- Use appropriate URL structure (e.g. example.com/vi/, example.com/en/)
- Implement hreflang tags properly
- Keyword research for each language market
- Optimize meta title, meta description for each language version
- Create separate sitemaps for each language version
6. Is it necessary to translate the entire website content?
It is not necessary to translate 100% of website content. Priority should be given to translating the most important pages such as homepage, main product/service page, contact page. According to the survey, about 60-70% of website content is enough to create a good experience for international users. However, it is necessary to ensure that important information is translated completely and accurately. See the article now: Instructions How to quickly translate a website, the most effective is shared on the website.
7. How to handle cultural factors in website translation?
To handle cultural factors, it is necessary to:
- Use local translators who understand the local culture
- Conduct market research to understand your target audience
- Apply localization techniques instead of just simple translation
- Adjust images, colors, and icons to suit local culture
- Consult cultural experts when necessary
8. What tools are there to support multilingual website translation project management?
Some popular tools include:
- SDL Trados: Supports project management, translation memory, quality testing
- MemoQ: Provides collaborative translation and terminology management features
- Smartling: Translation management platform that integrates with many popular CMSs
- WPML: Multilingual translation plugin for WordPress
- Crowdin: Supports community translation and version management
See details of top 13 translation support tool best quality available.
9. How to handle frequent content changes on multilingual websites?
To effectively manage content changes:
- Use a content management system (CMS) that supports multiple languages
- Implement a continuous translation process
- Apply automatic content synchronization technology
- Set up a notification system when there is new content that needs to be translated
- Use the Translation API to partially automate the process
10. How to integrate multilingual chatbot into the website?
To effectively integrate multilingual chatbots:
- Use a multilingual chatbot platform like Dialogflow or Botpress
- Build a question and answer database for each language
- Integrated automatic translation to support unprepared languages
- Ensures smooth transition between languages during conversations
- Regularly update and improve chatbot performance based on user feedback
Nguyen Trung Khang - Talented interpreter and translator, passionate about translation
Nguyen Trung Khang is a talented interpreter and translator, with many years of experience in the field of translation and linguistics. He graduated from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, majoring in Linguistics in 2015.
After graduating, Mr. Khang participated in a professional interpretation and interpretation training course at the University of Foreign Languages - Hanoi National University. He achieved a high-level certificate in interpreting and interpreting, and was also awarded a master's degree in linguistics.