5 Online Tools To Manage A Multilingual Website
Though English is a really popular
international language, it's only one of nearly 7,000 languages in the
world.
In fact, English isn't even the most widely spoken language
in the world. Chinese is the most spoken language in the world, followed by
Spanish and then English.
It just goes to show, while English might be
internationally known - there are tones of other languages that are being used
every single day.
This only highlights the importance of building websites
that offer natural, practical ways to be available in multiple
languages.
The only issue is, not many website builders offer this
option. This begs the question; are there any tools that can be used to create
a multilingual website?
Why having a multilingual website is important
As stated, English may be known worldwide. It's almost the go-to language for translation and communication internationally.
However, when you provide your website in multiple
languages, you're catering to a much bigger market. Regardless of whether or
not they speak English, too.
If you provide your website in a customer or client's
native language, you have a much higher chance that they will engage, and
return.
It provides a positive user experience and expands your
market. That's why, if your analysis shows that you have a large market in
another part of the world, you should absolutely consider using their
language.
Using a translator, and offering your website in a
different language also benefits SEO. Keywords and locations are imperative
when trying to place high on search engine results.
For this reason, offering different languages also proves
to be a marketing technique. This is especially beneficial if you're attempting
to reach new markets.
Useful tools
It's not only building the website, but it's also all about managing it too.
You have to make sure that your website updates at the same
time, and also stays consistent.
Any language or cultural changes, your website much accommodate
to. Any reviews, complaints, or suggestions brought forward by the user should
also be considered.
So, what are the best tools, and all their benefits?
Squarespace is a leader in website design. So if you want
to create a site that looks great and serves an international audience,
Squarespace is the right platform to use.
Squarespace has several page types for different kinds of
content, including regular pages, gallery pages, and product pages. As a user,
you can select the "Page" button to create a basic page with text,
images, and links. You can customize each page and element of design to your
taste.
Squarespace allows building a single site with a set of
pages for each language. If you use this website builder, visitors from
different countries and continents will be able to access your content in their
native languages.
Site123 is another great website builder that allows setting
up localization, SEO, and plugins in the menu.
"It manages things old-style and does not offer
drag-and-drop features. So if you have never built websites before, it might be
tricky for you to use this tool for the first time. However, if you have at least
some experience in web design, you will truly like all the features that
Site123 can provide," says Jeffrey Zimmer, a senior editor at PickWriters.
Site123 offers free hosting, custom domains, and essential
SEO tools. It allows creating a mobile-friendly eCommerce website and
localizing it to reach a global audience.
Do you want to manage a multi-language website
successfully? Use Trello, a project management tool that allows content
creators, web developers, and translators to work more closely.
Using Trello, your team can create boards, lists, and cards
to organize tasks and projects in a fun, flexible way.
Trello is compatible with such tools as Slack, Google
Drive, Maps, Jira, InVision, and many others. If you already use one of them,
it will be easy for you to integrate the new app directly into your workflow.
Also it worth mentioning that Trello helps to track the
progress of your team members. So you can see who works faster and who works
slower.
For instance, you may notice that the content creator
writes five articles a day, and the translator translate only three articles a
day. In this case, you may decide to hire one more translator to boost the
performance of your team.
Monday.com is another project management and time tracking
solution. It has such features as project templates, team collaboration dashboards,
and file sharing.
No matter how complex your project is and no matter how big
your team is. Using Monday, you will be able to organize the workflow in the
right way.
You can use colourful columns to capture and visualize all
the information you need. Also, you can track time and see who’s in charge of
what. You can add mark locations, text, numbers, links, and so much more.
Monday is an easy-to-use tool with an intuitive interface.
It allows getting new team members on board fast and easily.
So if you start using Monday, writers, graphic designers,
as well as experts in content localization will get a chance to collaborate
more closely. It will boost team efforts and bring your company to success.
Of course, one of the most widely used translators on the
web is Google Translator. It's an easy-to-use editor that helps users all over
the world enjoy your content.
Of course, there are certain discrepancies when using this
tool. However, the benefit is that most people use Google, and many people use
this handy tool - providing you with a free, useful, and widely recognized
tool.
However, it doesn't always translate accurately, nor will
it pick up on a particular culture or branding linguistics.
We would recommend that you find a translator to proofread it, this takes less time and the translator will charge you less to just proofread it. Depending how much text you have on your website or if it is just a landing page you could just have someone that speaks the language proofreading it.
Google translate nowadays is getting really accurate, and even lets the community contribute to translate, to help people all over the world understand different languages a little bit better.
Google translate nowadays is getting really accurate, and even lets the community contribute to translate, to help people all over the world understand different languages a little bit better.
Consider navigation
You must consider whether or not your website has comfortable language navigation. For example, your site may attempt to translate content based on their geographic location, but there should always be a choice to manually change this.
A drop-down menu on your website is the best option for
this. It makes it quick, simple, and completely painless. The most common is a
smart button (usually featuring a flag), which when clicked reveals a list of
options.
Some companies have a separate landing page, which allows
users to click the language before entering the website. This is an excellent
choice for some companies.
Left to right and right to left difference
Some languages are read from left to right, and others are read right to the left.
A multilingual site that offers this should adapt
accordingly - even if it means that the website may have to be designed a
little differently. To ensure that your site will be able to properly
integrate reading direction changes, it’s preferable to have a web development
or mobile development team to supervise this transition. Ideally, however,
you’d want to anticipate such steps at the moment of design creation.
What if I don't have a website yet??
For information on how to build a website in 4 easy steps, click HERE
What if I don't have a website yet??
For information on how to build a website in 4 easy steps, click HERE
Conclusion
Developing a multilingual website is complex and involved
specific rules and changes. This makes it incredibly hard to do all by
yourself.
With tools online, you can achieve a seamless website - all
that will help build it, and also manage it. Whether this is through
automation, smart memory, or human translators.
It may be tricky, but owning a multilingual site will
provide fantastic customer service, and build excellent relationships with your
customers.
Donald Fomby
At a relatively young age, Donald Fomby has already amassed
impressive experience as a writer.
He studied
Computer Science at Texas A&M and is a loyal Aggies football fan to this
day.
In his spare time, Donald writes Sci-Fi short stories. He has a passion for technology, social media, and travel.
In his spare time, Donald writes Sci-Fi short stories. He has a passion for technology, social media, and travel.
5 Online Tools To Manage A Multilingual Website
Reviewed by Mili Ponce
on
Friday, October 11, 2019
Rating:
Reviewed by Mili Ponce
on
Friday, October 11, 2019
Rating:
Mili Ponce
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