Website Translation for Beginners

Most businesses are always seeking ways to expand their reach and appeal to new audiences to increase revenue. One of the best ways to increase sales and revenue is to translate your website. If you have been neglecting non-English speaking audiences, then you may have overlooked an addressable and easy way to gain new business within secondary markets; for example, if your primary target market is mainly in the USA, investing in a better Spanish customer experience for the US Hispanic population can impact a business quickly!

Luckily, if this is your first time translating your website, the resources on website translation and localization below can help you get started.

Below we try to answer some of the most frequently asked questions surrounding translation technology and when and how to partner with a translation partner. Let us take you through the basics of website translation and how the latest trends in translation technology can help your business grow both domestically and globally.

Q1: What are the Different Types of Website Translation?

Website translation strategies can vary depending on the translation type. There are different levels of price, translation quality, and scale. Depending on your priorities, you have a few different options:

• Machine Translation (MT): MT is a time-saving option for translating large volumes of content quickly. However, it might lack context and lead to inaccuracies, making it more suitable for informational content than marketing materials.
• Human Translation: Human translators bring context, cultural understanding, and creativity to the translation process, making it ideal for marketing content, branding, and customer communications.
• Website Localization vs Website Translation: Localization goes beyond translation to consider cultural nuances, idiomatic expressions, and local preferences. It ensures that the content resonates with the target audience and feels native to them.

Choosing the right translation type depends on the nature of your content, your target audience, and the desired impact of your website in the target market. Regardless of which choice you make, your internal resources would likely benefit from avoiding all the extra workload.

Additionally, the cost of doing translation in-house can become out of control, with factors like translators, project managers, quality assurance, website engineer, etc. Your best plan of action is to work with a concierge-level translation partner who can handle your workload and who offers a combination of machine and human translation to keep costs low.

Learn about the many ways to translate and launch a multilingual website!

Q2: How is Technology Used to Translate Your Website?

The process of translating a website has undergone a significant transformation over the years, largely thanks to advancements in translation technology. The inclusion of AI in the translation process has significantly reduced both the time to market and overall cost of website translation.

When you use smart technology to translate your website, you can save up to 60% on the cost of human translation. Website translation with technology typically involves three main methods:

• In House Teams or Freelancers / LSPs Use TMS Systems or Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) tools: These tools aid human translators by offering features like translation memory, glossaries, and terminology databases. CAT tools improve translator productivity, consistency, and overall quality by allowing them to leverage previously translated content.
• Machine Translation (MT) software: MT software is AI, advanced algorithms, and machine learning automatically translating text from one language to another, this improves as time goes on. This method is fast and cost-efficient by itself, but it can be combined with human review to maximize translation quality.
• Translation Management Systems (TMS): TMS are platforms designed to manage the entire translation process. They help streamline workflows, facilitate collaboration between translators, and provide project management capabilities.
• Proxy Translation: The best proxies use a server-based proxy platform to automatically collect and translate content for websites with little to no user effort. It stores those human-quality translations and when a site visitor requests any translated page, the proxy server renders the translated content on-the-fly, all while keeping the original website structure. This method offers the benefits and flexibility of all the technologies mentioned above. Its high-quality translations, scalability, and reduced development effort are the main reasons to pursue a server-based translation solution.
• Translation Integrations: Translation integrations, like connectors and APIs, involve integrating translation services directly into a website’s code or content management system (CMS). This approach provides more control over the translation process and allows for precise customization. It can handle complex scenarios and interactions but requires more development effort and maintenance. But struggles to consistently translate dynamic content or content that is being pulled into your CMS through third-party systems.

With these technologies at hand, businesses and individuals can efficiently translate their websites, breaking language barriers and making their content accessible to a global audience.

Check out our complete guide to website translation to learn more!

Q3: How Can You Localize Your Website After You Translate It?

Localization is the process of adapting your website to the specific cultural, linguistic, and regional preferences of your target audience. After translating your website content, you should consider website localization services in order to ensure that the content resonates with a specific audience. You need to change the way you communicate with each new market you target not only so they can simply read the information you put out, but so they can feel like they can connect with your brand, products, and services.

A professional website localization services partner will have the tools and the knowledge to localize the most important aspects of your website, such as:

• Cultural Elements: Tailoring images, symbols, colors, and visuals to align with the cultural norms and preferences of the target audience.
• Date, Time, and Currency Formats: Adapting date, time, and currency formats to match the conventions of the target country.
• Measurement Units: Converting measurements, such as weight and distance, to the local standards.
• Local SEO: Ensuring that your website ranks well on local search engines by using relevant keywords and language variations.
• Legal and Regulatory Requirements: Adhering to local laws and regulations related to data privacy, product labeling, etc.

By implementing localization strategies, you can create a website that feels like a native experience for your international audience, fostering stronger connections and increasing engagement.

Learn about how your business can take advantage of website localization services

Q4: What are the Best Website Translation Tools and Services?

Numerous website translation tools are available, each offering unique features and benefits. You not only have to decide what kind of technology you want to use to translate your website, but also if your company would benefit from partnering with a website translation service.

The best website translation services will give you multiple options for running your multilingual site and make it as easy as possible for your internal team. For instance, if you partner with MotionPoint, you have the power to choose from different technologies and plans, such as:

MP Core

MotionPoint’s MP Core is the first and fastest proxy based website translation solution on the market. It produces the best quality translations while allowing you to maintain full control over your website. It works by detecting all new content, assigning it for translation, and then publishing it to your site using the same look, format, and feel as the original website.

MP Core uses our proxy technology, our industry leading tool that reduces cost and speed-to-market. With either of our plan options, you get some amazing benefits:

• No burden to your internal team, who may not be able to handle end-to-end translation
• Full translation management
• Quality assurance that eliminates errors and misalignments
• Savings up to 60% on human translation costs
• Ability to bring your own technology for translation

Adaptive Translation™

The goal of our Adaptive Translation™ technology is to deliver human quality translation at a fraction of the cost. It combines translation memory, algorithmic translation, and artificial intelligence to automate cost reductions and automatically translate all your content. There is an optional added layer of human review to ensure the best quality possible.

The key to getting the most out of this technology is the AI, which takes the form of a Branded NMT that learns your brand over time and thus produces the most customized translations possible. The branded translations get added to your translation memory. We continuously improve it so that you can rely less and less on human intervention.

Connectors/APIs

Translation APIs and connectors are software integrations that allow applications to connect with translation services programmatically. Translation APIs and connectors streamline the localization workflow by connecting various content platforms and automating the translation process. They are particularly useful for multilingual websites and applications with constantly updated content. These tools ensure a smoother, more efficient, and quality-driven localization process.

MP Lite

MP Lite is MotionPoint's newest offering for companies who are looking for a base-level model at a lower price. You still get the best quality translations on the market. We will fully integrate, translate, and launch your multilingual website for just $99.99 a month.

By incorporating these tools into your website translation strategy, you can optimize productivity, reduce costs, and enhance the overall translation process.

Learn more about the best website translation solutions

Translate Your Website Today

When it comes to taking your business global, the power of website translation cannot be understated. The right translation technology and strategies can break down language barriers, allowing businesses and individuals to reach a diverse and vast audience.

Lean into the power of machine translation and take advantage of enhanced productivity and effectiveness, reduced cost, and greater speed-to-market. Additionally, by localizing your website, you can create a more meaningful connection with your target audience and boost engagement.

Whether you are a multinational corporation in need of help for a large project or just looking for a simpler solution to test new markets, website translation can be your key to unlocking global success.

Have more questions about website translation? Reach out to us today to find the right solution for your business.