Could website localisation give you a global edge?

Translating your website for foreign markets is an increasingly important move for many businesses. But there’s a big difference between translation and true localisation, and many firms are only getting half way there. Lots of free online services offer literal translation for your website, but copying and pasting your content won’t give you a truly localised feel for the foreign markets you want to tap into.

For a start, it may be full of errors. Secondly, unless it’s had a translator’s intuitive feel and been keyword checked for multilingual SEO it will probably not read very well to a native speaker. Professional translation services can give your website the edge, when it comes to all important first impressions and converting sales in new markets. Cultural factors can be as important as grammatical ones, especially if key search words differ from your existing markets, and the opportunities offered by multilingual text have never been greater.  If a customer from the USA was searching for a holiday they would use the word “vacation” whereas an UK customer would use the word “holiday” and subtle changes like these also effect search terms and website content in non-English speaking countries as well.

Capita translation services have created this infographic to highlight some of the facts you might not know about how the world is reading – and spending – online.  Take a look at the infographic to see how many facts you’re aware of, and whether your business is as ready for the future as you think.