Wiredelta

Multiple Languages

A multilingual website opens avenues we normally wouldn’t have access to. In fact, with the rapid growth of technology and globalization, the competition has been leveled up. Where only two decades ago we all focused on our local markets, today more and more businesses are aiming at the global market as the potential market.

 

But before they can even try and approach an international market, their online platforms – apps or websites – have to be set up in a manner that allows them to communicate with the different target groups. In other words, they need a multilingual website that caters to both their local market and the international market.

 

Consequently, if you only focus on a single language or the local language, you are actually limiting your business more than you know. First, and the obvious point is that a local business has very little chance to expand internationally if their digital communications are in a local language, like e.g. Danish, Swedish, German, etc.

 

But at the same time, we live in a world where people relocate more than ever and both professionals and students move to different countries for new opportunities. More and more, our once local target group is not so local, and not having a multilingual website means not catering to them either. In this era of frequent relocations, having a user-friendly moving cost estimator on your website becomes paramount, as it caters to a diverse audience of professionals and students seeking opportunities in different countries.

 

So, yes, a multilingual website is vital for everyone who wants to be able to communicate with their users, local or otherwise. But the benefits of having a multilingual website expand further than this.

 

Benefits of a multilingual website

When we are in an actual store, even if the customer and sales assistant don’t speak the same language, they can probably find a common ground. For example, use body language or facial expressions to communicate successfully.

 

benefits of a multilingual website
Source: cmmlanguages.com

 

So, language, be it in the real world or the digital world is a crucial factor that determines whether your business can thrive or not. And if you do it right, having a multi-language website will lead you to more than one type of success.

 

1. Open up the new market

Providing multiple languages will open up new opportunities for your business. If the products or services that you are selling is not bound by your location, offering one more language means that you are making your business visible to millions of potential customers.

 

Did you know that 1.13bn people speak English and another 1.12bn speak Mandarin? Based on these numbers alone, by simply providing and English and Mandarin Chinese translations, you are open to over 2 billion potential customers.

 

Take for example giant online retailers like Wish, Amazon, Alibaba, and many others like them. Do you think that if they would have catered to only one market, in one language, they would have become the household names they are today?

 

Sames goes for Google, Bing, and other search engines, or social media giants like Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube. Having a multilingual website is an inevitable step to a sustainable business.

 

2. Level up SEO efforts

Most successful online businesses put a lot of effort into SEO. Everyone is striving to be on the top of the search results in as many search engines as possible, and setting up a multi-language option is something that won’t be forgotten.

 

When presenting searchers with responses, most search engines take these three things into consideration:

  • Relevant – Your content has to relate to their search. You can give users apples when they are looking for oranges.
  • Useful – Your content has to be useful to them. If they are making an apple pie, they need the recipe not a picture of an apple pie.
  • Fast – How fast does your content load. If your page loading time exceeds 3 seconds on desktops and 1 second on mobile, you increase your bounce rate exponentially with every second after.

 

Of course, a multilingual website doesn’t make it faster. But, giving your visitors a multi-language option means your website is relevant and useful for them, which is a big plus in SEO. Furthermore, SEO is not just about Google, many countries use different search engines.

 

For example, China mainly uses Baidu and Yandex is the dominating search engine in Russia. In this case, if you have content in Chinese or Russian, it will give you an advantage in those search engines as well.

 

However, note that multilingual doesn’t just mean a simple translation, and especially not a Google translation.

Make sure all of your website’s versions are respecting the same quality standards and they are all indexed on search engine result pages (SERPs). Also, don’t cut corners. the website should be 100% translated, including meta description, meta tags, and keywords. They must all be translated and inserted. It is even better to have a translated URL in that language as well.

 

Multilanguage website

 

These steps can make your website easy to be scanned and indexed by the search engine bots, and the more effort you put into it the better result you can expect.

 

3. Sales increase and customer behavior data

It is common sense that customers will not buy things that they don’t know. We like to know exactly what we are paying for, understand the information about a product or service, every detail around it.

 

So having different translations enables different language speakers to spend more time on your site, browse more, and actually understand what your products and services are about. Isn’t that what all the digital marketers want? To prolong the visitor’s time on the website.

 

The best part is that not only you can increase your chances of a higher conversion rat4e, but you also gave a chance of learning about your users’ behaviors. Basically, the more time on your website your users spend exploring, reading, and clicking, the more chance you have to learn their pattern and experience with the user journey presented to them.

 

And by analyzing their footprints, you will have a better idea of what customers are hoping to see or interested in, where if your UX fails and where it did good, and use this information to adjust your content, layout, and overall user journey.

 

The more care you show to your users, the more they will want to come back over and over again. which will eventually lead to a higher conversion rate, but more importantly, it will gain you your user’s long-term loyalty. And that is priceless.

 

4. A strong and professional brand image

“A strong brand can market itself.”  Every good marketeer believes this to be the ultimate goal. A renowned brand is imprinted in the customers’ minds. Do a quick test, think of a smartphone. The first two brands that came to mind are Apple and Samsung, right? Fastfood restaurants most likely make you think of McDonald’s, KFC, or BurgerKing. Beer brand takes you to Tuborg or Carlsberg.

 

We could do this all day, but the point is, a brand that is easily recognizable performs better simply because people know it. Not always because of superior quality in their products or services, or because they have some magic potion.

 

And the reality is, a local brand, that caters to one market and one market only, simply cannot become a household brand outside its borders. Having a multilingual website is the same as the traditional internationalization process. You are using this channel to reach more users in different markets, and that is the key to a future household name.

 

As you see, many international brands have a multi-language option for their customers. It not only gives customers a sense of welcome and appreciation but also showing your deep understanding of professionalism and multiculturalism, and that is something that has been highly valued for a long time, and will always continue to be.

 

Also, remember to pay attention to details. If you can, go the extra mile to have your translations proof-read by a native speaker. We understand it’s easier and more affordable to ue a translation tool, but a robot or AI cannot speak like a native, they don’t know the slang and how to use expressions.

 

Using an actual native speaker will help you connect with your users at a personal level. They will instantly know you did not just run your content through Google Translate and they will appreciate you more for the effort.

 

In the end, it’s all about our users, they make and break our businesses, and the more care we show for them the more they will remember, value, and respect our brands. And one loyal customer is worth ten new customers and costs half as much. So don’t scare them away because you cut corners or you didn’t take the time. In the long run, you and your brand will have only to gain.

 

All in all

It is true that building a multiple language site is not an easy task. It takes a lot of work, communication, and commitment.

 

But just think of how a single feature can greatly enhance your business, open up new markets, increase sales, strengthen your online presence and customer trust, and finally, build a brand image that users will remember. Isn’t this everything a digital business wants?

 

So check your website on our website analysis app, and see if you already have that feature or not. All you have to do is follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Go to app.wiredelta.com
  • Step 2: Type in your website address and click “Review”
  • Step 3: Just wait a few seconds, and then you will get your answer!

 

Enjoy, and if it runs out you don’t have the multilingual option yet, or if you need help or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Our team is here for you!

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