Global Expansion: Master the Challenges of Localization
Global expansion is a crucial step for scale-ups and companies looking to grow their reach and tap into new markets. The increase in globalization has led to a growing demand for multilingual content and communication. As such, translating and localizing products and offerings helps companies overcome language barriers to provide better user experiences.
The effort involved in managing translation projects is often overlooked in business expansion strategies. This results in teams getting caught off guard when a sharp increase in translation volume comes tumbling through their inboxes and onto their laps.
With the right tools and strategies in place, teams can handle this increased demand for translations in a way that is affordable, sustainable, and scalable.
In this blog, we explore 3 proven ways companies can effectively deal with this, including a business case on how Orbus Software successfully put a new strategy in place to manage an escalating volume of translations.
- Invest in Localization and Translation Technology
- Work with Professional Translation Services
- Establish a Clear Translation Process
1. Invest in Localization and Translation Technology
Technology is a game-changer, especially when dealing with large volumes of translations. Localization and translation tools have many benefits, including hugely simplifying translation processes, improving translation quality, shortening translation cycles, and reducing costs by up to 90%.
Popular translation technologies include:
- Translation Management Systems (TMS) can help companies manage translation projects and workflows more efficiently by being the ‘single source of truth’ for everyone involved.
- Machine Translation (MT) can quickly provide a first draft of translations, which human translators can then refine. This process, called Machine Translation with post-edting, saves time and resources and increases accuracy. Find out more about our Machine Translation offer, and request for a free trial.
- Translation memory (TM) is an essential tool for translation projects. According to a study by CSA research only 12% of translators who rely on CAT tools do not use this technology. TM is a database that stores previously translated content so it can be easily reused for future translations. This reduces the time and resources required for each translation and ensures consistency in language used.
2. Work with Professional Translation Services
You might think you got it. But translating large amounts of content in multiple languages means coordinating between internal and external parties, sending back and forth multiple versions of files, and other organizational challenges.
Language Service Providers (LSPs) can remove the trial, error, and stress in your localization processes. Such companies have the expertise and resources to handle large volumes of translations quickly and efficiently while ensuring the quality, accuracy, and cultural relevance of your content. Additionally, they can also provide support for multiple languages, which is essential for companies looking to expand into multiple markets.
3. Establish a Clear Translation Process
Establishing a clear translation process is critical to ensure translations are done accurately and efficiently. A good translation process should include:
- A content translation guideline: what needs to be translated, who is responsible for managing the process, and how the translated content will be used
- Guidelines for translation quality, terminology management, and style guides
- A workflow for reviewing and approving translations to ensure they meet the required standards
A clearly defined process ensures that your brand voice is consistent across countries and that technical jargon and terminology are accurately translated. Such processes will also make scaling translations easier in the future.
Business Case: Orbus Software
Customer-centricity lies at the core of Orbus Software‘s vision. This means that a key component in their user experience strategy is providing different language versions of their SaaS product. With global expansion taking place at break-neck speeds, the team sought support from Milengo and Lokalise to deliver on their rapidly expanding translation and localization needs.
Translation Requirements:
- High-quality translations for software – An experienced translation service provider who understands software localisation’s technicalities and nitty gritties.
- Automation – To increase efficiency in managing and publishing translations with a modern localization tool that contains out-of-the-box integrations and APIs
- Fast roll-out – Rapid deliveries based on short sprint cycles
- Scalability – A trustworthy, long-term partner capable of ramping-up localization efforts when needed
Translation Solution:
- Established a quality assurance framework to guarantee reliable, precise, and consistent software translations
- Ensured all translations were culturally and technically relevant, and adherent to ISO standards, with a team of native industry experts
- Streamlined translation management through Lokalise’s localization management system
The creation of this highly productive localization process by Milengo and Lokalise empowered Orbus Software to translate its web app into four languages within the span of a few months. Download the case study to find out more.
In conclusion, it is critical for companies embarking on global expansion to account for increases in translation volumes, which can be a challenging and expensive exercise if not managed properly. However, by investing in translation technology and tools, working with professional translation services, and establishing a clear translation process, companies can overcome these challenges and expand globally with one less worry on hand.
Want professional translators and localization consultants to support your company’s global expansion? Book a free consultation call with our experts.
