Why Your Business Needs Localization Software

您是否遇到過本地化軟件的問題？

Do you have any idea why we start this blog post with the sentence in Chinese? This is because our topic for today is localization! With proper localization, you will handle translation issues in your software much faster!

Software localization is adapting a software product to a target market’s linguistic, cultural, and technical requirements. Usually, this process is not only labor-intensive for the development teams involved but also time-consuming.

So why is localization important, and how to accelerate this process? Let’s take a look!

What is localization, and why do you need it?

Software localization adapts software to an end user's culture and language. This technology makes the software look authentic to the target users.

If you've ever attempted to operate an electronic device that was configured in a different language, you know the importance of software localization. Without localization, a program is frustrating at best and unusable at worst.

It doesn’t get much easier if you translate the software into your language. From confusing instructions to an unintuitive design, many factors can make it difficult to use the software effectively, even if you understand the text at hand.

How does localization work?

One might think that software localization is just changing the language of some key areas so users know which buttons to click. As a rule, however, the localization of software goes far beyond that. For example, the size and position of these buttons on the page and other design elements need to be changed as part of localization. Backend code changes may even be necessary to allow employees in different regions to manage and update the software.

Suppose a software application needs to be localized from English to Chinese. With a simple translation, the texts and instructions may be reasonably clear, but there are significant problems in terms of usability. The font may be too small and difficult to read, or Chinese characters may not be supported. Also, the text can be so much shorter than the visual elements on the page look odd. And that's without considering the preferences of Chinese users, who might prefer more information on each page or a different visual layout. With all of these issues, it's clear that software localization is a larger, more complex, and more important endeavor than meets the eye.

Benefits of localization

The benefits of localization can be significant and include:

1. Increased customer satisfaction: By localizing your products or services, you can better meet the specific needs and preferences of your target audience, which can increase customer satisfaction.
2. Better SEO: When you localize your website or content, you can use language and cultural nuances that are specific to the region you are targeting. This can help improve your content’s relevance and quality, positively impacting your SEO rankings.
3. Improved communication: Localization ensures that your message is conveyed most effectively, which can improve communication with your customers and help you better understand their needs.
4. Greater market penetration: By internationalizing your products or services, you can reach a wider audience and gain a competitive advantage over businesses that do not invest in localization.
5. Enhanced brand image: Localizing your products or services can demonstrate that you value and respect the culture and language of your target audience, which can enhance your brand image and reputation.
6. Increased revenue: Localization can lead to increased sales and revenue, as customers are more likely to buy products or services tailored to their needs and preferences.
7. Higher ROI: When you localize your services, you invest in reaching and engaging with specific regional or cultural markets. By using localized messaging, imagery, and cultural references, you can better resonate with your target audience and drive higher engagement and conversion rates.

Overall, localization is a crucial component of any successful global strategy, as it can help businesses to better engage with their target audience, increase customer satisfaction, and drive revenue growth.

What is a localization strategy?

Technology allows us to communicate with each other across international borders. From the developer's and user's perspectives, this is one of the greatest advantages of technology. For software developers, globalization means a potentially unlimited market for a new program or application.

However, with the conventions you incorporate into your product that seem natural to your current customers, you may not be quite as successful in other markets with different preferences.

Without software localization, your product may not find the same appeal with international users as it does with users in your home country. A poorly localized product could even negatively impact your global sales and customer brand loyalty. By localizing the software, you can avoid some of these problems and always present your company in the best possible way.

But it's not just about damage limitation. Localized software can give you a competitive advantage when entering new markets. A user-friendly product is more likely to be recommended - thus more likely to help your company succeed globally.

If you want to get all the benefits outlined above, you need to think about localizing all elements of your program. Ultimately, everything from currency symbols and units of measurement to geopolitical sensitivities can impact the success of your software. All changes must therefore be carefully planned and seamlessly implemented. Here are some critical areas to focus on in a software localization process.

Text and writing systems

Software localization takes into account all the effects of language on a program. This goes far beyond just translating. There are different character encoding standards and alignments to consider, such as right-to-left languages like Hebrew, Arabic, and Farsi. Localizing software for regions where these languages are spoken involves modifying not only text fields, but also resource files—including menus, dialog boxes, and interactive buttons—and user interface files, such as localizable strings.

Graphic design

Localization also allows you to customize the non-linguistic elements of your user interface. When your software engineers see all the changes made by localization software, they can review your icons and images, making sure they make sense and are not offensive to the target audience.

User experience

While your primary focus is what your users see and read, you also need to think about organizing the information presented to users when they interact with your product. There can be significant differences between cultures. For example, Japanese users like it when they see more options and information on a page in the form of sidebars, information boxes, and links. A more reduced, rational design, which is more popular in the US, for example, could give Japanese users the impression that they do not have enough information at their disposal. This could prove to be a big problem for your conversion rates.

We recommend considering suitable localization tools to make your localization successful and strategically reasonable.  

How to find the best localization tool?

In order for the software to be adapted to a target region, the internationalization of the software product is also an important prerequisite. This means the source code must have already been developed for international use. This is i.a. important if your source code contains variables that contain numbers or words as values. You can localize your software manually or use the localization tool to do everything for you.

Must-have features of the localization software

So that a software product can be marketed well internationally, your localization tool should have the following features:

1. Translations management within the project: A localization tool should have a user-friendly interface for managing translations within the project. This includes uploading source content, tracking translation progress, and managing translation workflows.
2. Users management within the project: The tool should allow for easy management of users involved in the localization project, including adding and removing users, assigning roles and permissions, and monitoring user activity.
3. Export/Import from/to all required formats: The tool should support the import and export of files in various formats, including text files, spreadsheets, and other common file types used in the localization process. This includes support for popular file formats such as XLIFF, CSV, XML, and JSON.
4. ChatGPT integration: Integration with ChatGPT, or other similar chatbot platforms, can be a useful feature for automating translation tasks and improving efficiency. This can include the ability to integrate with ChatGPT for machine translation, as well as chatbot integration for managing localization workflows and tasks.
5. Collaboration tools: The tool should include collaboration tools, such as commenting and feedback features, to enable teams to work together more effectively and efficiently.
6. Quality assurance: Quality assurance (QA) features are essential to ensure accurate and consistent translations. The tool should include QA checks and review workflows to help catch errors and ensure high-quality translations.
7. Reporting and analytics: The tool should provide reporting and analytics features to help users monitor progress, track key metrics, and optimize localization workflows over time.

Overall, a localization tool should provide robust features for managing translations, users, and workflows, as well as support for multiple file formats, collaboration tools, and quality assurance. Integration with ChatGPT or other chatbot platforms can also help improve efficiency and accuracy in the localization process. We have the best-fit tool for you. Let us introduce Libraria!

Why choose Libraria?

Libraria is a powerful collaboration tool designed to streamline the localization process for software developers and localization teams. With its user-friendly interface and robust feature set, Libraria makes it easy to manage translations, collaborate with team members, and ensure high-quality localization for software projects of any size.

One of the key features of Libraria is its intuitive translation management system. With Libraria, developers can easily upload source content and track translation progress, while localization teams can access translations, provide feedback, and collaborate in real-time. This translation management tool makes it easy to manage translations across multiple projects and languages and ensures that translations are accurate and consistent across all software components.

Another key benefit of Libraria is its support for a wide range of file formats. With Libraria, developers and localization teams can easily import and export files in a variety of formats, including text files, spreadsheets, and other common file types used in the localization process. This makes it easy to work with translations in the format that works best for your team.

Conclusion

You can't do without software localization if you want to make your products more attractive to new markets, attract new users, and take your business to global success. With more and more programs and apps being used internationally, localization is also a cost-effective way to reach new markets. Done right, you can deliver a significantly better customer experience.

If you want your app to become the next worldwide viral success, Libraria is an essential collaboration tool to streamline the localization process of your development app. With its robust feature set, intuitive interface, and support for a wide range of file formats, Libraria makes it easy to manage translations, collaborate with team members, and ensure high-quality localization for any software project. Go global with Libraria right now!