If your content is going to reach international audiences, clarity is the goal. Translation-friendly text will not only help your global trainees better comprehend and engage the course, it will help reduce overall cost (and headaches) in the long run.

The aim of eLearning translation and localization is to give a product the look and feel of having been created specifically for a target market, no matter their language, culture, or location. There are a handful of best practices you should consider as you develop eLearning programs to ensure they are easily localized and produce the right results no matter where your audience is located.

Be sensitive to cultural differences in visual aids

Signs, symbols, and colors should be thought out carefully to ensure you’re not surprised by what is considered positive in one country and negative or unlucky in another.

For example, the “peace sign” (specifically when your palm is facing you) is the equivalent of giving someone the finger in the United Kingdom, Australia, and South Africa. In Iran and several other Middle Eastern countries, the “thumbs up” symbol traditionally translates as a foul insult.¹

Colors can also stir up powerful emotions. In South Africa, for instance, the color red is associated with mourning and in France, yellow signifies jealously, betrayal, weakness, and contradiction.²

If you take time to do your research as you prepare images, videos, or graphics for your eLearning course, you may eliminate time-consuming work later on.

Avoid slang, local humor, or abstract concepts prior to eLearning translation

Cultural sensitivity is a key element when it comes to localizing content. An offensive remark may cause learners to become disengaged or make your organization appear unprofessional. Take time to research the area the course will be completed in, including its culture and customs.

It’s essential that you write clearly and avoid unclear messaging. Try to avoid idiomatic expressions, as well as local or national landmarks or reference points, and other American-specific cultural items like sports.

For example, “taking a rain check” was a baseball term used when a game was rained out and spectators received a rain check to allow entrance to a future game. Today it’s used more widely to mean an event will be rescheduled for a more convenient date, but is still a uniquely American phrase and confusing to other cultures. You want to always be clear and inclusive in the language you use.³

Also, be aware of potential text expansion and make sure there is space to allow for it. Depending on the language, localized text can expand 20 to 50 percent in length. Make sure your source content is less text heavy or has room for expansion, so you’re not faced with localization challenges or delayed timelines.

Consider varying interpretations of time for eLearning Translation

Some cultures think of time sequentially and others view time synchronically. In sequential cultures (like North America, England, Germany, and Sweden), business people give full attention to one agenda item after another. In synchronic cultures (including South America, southern Europe, and Asia) the flow of time is viewed as a circle, with the past, present, and future all connected.

The way a culture views time should influence how the eLearning course approaches deadlines, strategy, planning, and overall training.

Infrastructure may look different in other countries

Finally, you may need to consider the infrastructure realities in certain countries. Bandwidth and hardware issues, or even computer/Internet accessibility, might influence the types of content you develop. Again, do your research and get creative when needed.

By making eLearning translation and localization a priority and taking best practices into account, you will ensure that your content is seen, heard, and experienced in the most effective way possible.

^[1] http://list25.com/25-cultural-faux-pas-you-dont-want-to-commit-while-traveling/5/
^[2] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/smartertravel/what-colors-mean-in-other_b_9078674.html
^[3] Communicating Across Cultures, ASME

The post Breaking Language Barriers: How eLearning Translation Reaches a Global Audience appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

So what are five challenges software companies experience in the global market?

Challenge One: Language

A leading challenge facing software companies is language. Text within the software would need to be translated correctly and appropriately pitched for the intended users. Incorrect software localization can result in the user having difficulty navigating through the software. This situation frequently leads to an inadequate user experience.

To solve this, many software companies partner with a software localization agency to adapt the product in each of the target languages required. Whatever your specific operating platform may be, a software localization agency will ensure that your software is translated appropriately. Additionally, your users will be more satisfied and proficient in using your product.

Challenge Two: Costs

When your operations become global, some of your projects may be completed in the geographies your business is located in. While in some cases this can be beneficial, as it can lower costs for the development of software, in other cases it can increase costs or cause delays in the completion of projects. It can also be a challenge to budget effectively since international money exchanges are always fluctuating.

Proper budgeting is the solution. Set a price in your native currency and pay that amount to your suppliers. Don’t let the currency exchange rate increase the price.

Challenge Three: Pricing

As with costs, pricing becomes a challenge in a global market. What costs a set amount in one country will not cost the same in another. This is usually down to the value of money in one nation compared to another. Therefore, pricing a product for another country can be challenging. For instance, it may be worth $45 in the US which is negligible compared to the average salary, but in Bangladesh, that could represent a significant proportion of someone’s salary.

To earn sales in other nations, the company might have to either accept a lower valuation or risk not selling any products in that region.

Challenge Four: Global Functionality

When you are creating programs that rely on local knowledge of systems, you are creating a software package that requires a great deal of functionality. For instance, you could have a payroll, accounting or tax software program in development. With each nation’s systems and legal requirements slightly different you either need to develop several versions of your software or one that has all this functionality in one.

Creating multiple versions of your software will create significantly more work and cause headaches to work on updates and maintenance, whereas a program that is adaptable to the geographical location of the user will have to be bulky, require more system resources and be expensive to develop. It can also be challenging to develop an appropriate version if you have little experience of the processes in a foreign country. If your software package isn’t accurate, then it can receive poor software reviews.

Challenge Five: Culture

Cultural values change as you move from one location to another. These values may not seem relevant, but at the very core, they are vital to the success of your business. The look of your software and the way your software interacts with the user is representative your company. The wrong cultural references could mean that you inadvertently insult an audience in another country.

You need to check local values and cultural requirements and that your software is aligned to those values.

Conclusion

As selling your software internationally becomes a reality, you need to consider these five challenges that your software company may face. Instead of limiting your company to one region, you can develop plans to counter the challenges software companies face in a global market.

The post 5 Challenges Software Companies Face in a Global Market appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

IN 2020, INTERPRO CELEBRATED A MILESTONE ANNIVERSARY: #25. SINCE FOUNDING THE COMPANY IN 1995, WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST CHANGE YOUR COMPANY HAS SEEN?  

I would have to say that advances in technology—and especially the Internet—have constituted the biggest overall change that we’ve seen since starting business in March 1995. More than ever, people are using their mobile devices to search the web, which has brought more traffic to our app localization services. Due to the increase in technology use, the demand for a translation company that can truly customize its services to reflect the needs of its client base has similarly increased, whether those needs are for e-commerce localization, e-learning localization, dynamic website localization, or something else.

HOW HAS TECHNOLOGY CHANGED THE WAY YOU DO BUSINESS?

We now have instantaneous, worldwide communications as well as a global platform for doing business, which we call the Internet. Whereas in 1995, communications were still primarily telephone and faxed based, we have replaced that with email, Skype messaging, and of course the whole array of social network outlets that allow us to interact and share information almost anywhere in the world. That information can consist of pictures, video, and practically any type of content that you can imagine. I remember very early on how excited we got when we were able to electronically send a document to one of our translators working off-site, saving us a trip to the post office and the time lag it usually took before he would receive our diskette containing the file to be translated. Fast forward to the present: sending and receiving information now occur immediately—it’s nothing to get excited about.

WHERE DO YOU SEE YOUR BIGGEST OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTH?

Because of what has transpired since we opened our doors for business, we are no longer limited geographically to any one region of the world. We can reach anyone, anywhere, at any time by posting a message on our website, tweeting about something we would like to bring to our followers’ attention, or emailing a newsletter with information we want to share with our clients, partners, and prospects. What this all means is that instead of having to pound the pavement in the tri-state area, or the Midwest, we now view our target audience as anyone in the world who is connected to the Internet. That’s a much larger potential customer base, and creates a much larger potential for revenue growth. We just need to continue to try and focus on our “sweet spots” and stay on task.

HOW HAS THIS GLOBAL MARKETPLACE IMPACTED YOUR BUSINESS MODEL?

From the services delivery perspective, it means that we have real-time access and communication with all of our translators, editors, and proofreaders who are working in the target language geographies. Obviously the global marketplace hasn’t eliminated time zones, but for at least part of each day (sometimes staying at the office late or arriving early) we are in one-on-one communication with the majority of our teams. From the marketing and sales perspective, we—like most companies with a web presence—are globally visible. A company in Beijing can search for “Mandarin e-learning localization services” and find us among the results. Before the global marketplace was a reality, this type of exposure was almost impossible to achieve. We now have access to anywhere in the world where we would like to market and sell our services. Of course, this means that we have to truly think globally and we spend a lot of time and effort on keeping our multilingual website current and relevant for our target audience.

IS THERE ONE PARTICULAR LANGUAGE THAT IS IN MORE DEMAND FOR YOUR TRANSLATION SERVICES THAN OTHER LANGUAGES?

If you figured that Spanish would be the number one language in terms of volumes of words translated, you would be right. However, if you thought that Chinese would be a close second, you’d be wrong! For the past two years, English to Spanish translation has accounted for 14 percent of our total project volume. The second highest language by volume is Russian (9.6 percent), followed by German (9.3 percent) and then Chinese and French (both 8 percent). These numbers reflect only the projects we work on for our clients. 

WHAT MOTIVATES YOU TO START YOUR DAY?

I know it sounds like a cliché, but it happens to be the truth: I absolutely love what I do. Interpro enables me to combine my passion for foreign languages and cultures, technology, and entrepreneurship on a daily basis. I love the challenges of solving problems for our clients, and our worldwide network of linguistic resources means that I’ve got close friends on six continents. I am so thankful I’m not stuck in a position where I have to watch the clock slowly tick away the minutes of the day. 

HOW DO YOU ENJOY SPENDING YOUR FREE TIME?

I enjoy spending time with my family and Payton, our Yellow Lab named in honor of Chicago Bears great Walter Payton. I really enjoy working in the yard and tending to our garden. Being Italian, that of course means tomatoes, Melrose peppers, basil, eggplant, parsley, and rosemary. For our Mexican friends we always throw in some habaneros and jalapeños as well. We barbecue a lot when the weather is nice, and like to relax with some adult beverages, good food, and good friends on the deck. During Bears season, the games take priority over everything else! My needs are actually quite simple, so after a long workweek, sometimes just a nice dinner followed by reading or watching an old movie does the trick.

The post Meet Ralph Strozza: Founder of Interpro Translation Solutions appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

You can dramatically grow your eCommerce company with eCommerce localization services.

Benefits of eCommerce localization

If you are not selling your products internationally, it is likely that your competitors are. Thanks to online global shopping events such as Cyber Monday, internet shopping has skyrocketed within the past the past few years. As the global landscape becomes more narrow, communicating in the language of your target audience grows more important.

Question 1:

What exactly is eCommerce localization?

The art of translating your online profile, product descriptions, database-driven content, and graphic images into the language of your new target audience with cultural sensitive accuracy.

Question 2:

How exactly can this benefit me?

Firstly, you have the ability to reach a wider audience with minimal effort. Once your website is localized, you can keep costs low since products can be shipped relatively quickly.

Likewise, customers are more likely to build trust in your product if your product descriptions are in their own language. It is also a good idea to own country-level domains for target countries and to provide a simple way to convert the price into their currency.

You should consider your target audience when designing your eCommerce site. Although there is a general movement towards a single global set of best practices, keeping the persona in mind when designing your country-level domains adds to the customer experience.

The user interface for your website should reflect the needs of the persona you are targeting.

The Amazon example

Amazon has great examples demonstrating how to localize your eCommerce site to specific markets. Amazon’s website in the UK has a different design from the website targeted towards customers in the United States. Amazon also focuses on different products depending on which market is being targeted.

Both the UK and US localized sites focus on eBooks and Kindles.

Amazon’s UK site

Amazon’s US site

Amazon’s Japan site

The Japan localized site focuses on entertainment and electronics.

Amazon’s India site

The India localized site focuses on mobile phones.

Sometimes, you can learn new things from merely looking at a localized website. Based on the above examples from Amazon, it appears that Indian consumers are more tolerate of advertising as there are third party adverts along the right hand side. There are no third party adverts hosted on the other three sites.

Understanding these cultural and local needs with eCommerce localization is imperative if you would like to succeed in the global market. If a consumer doesn’t see what they want almost instantly, they are likely to leave your website and find a different eCommerce site better suited for their needs.

Conclusion

When you have a retail business that has limited opportunities to grow because of competition, prices or technology– you should consider going global by growing your target audience, and one of the best ways to do this is by localizing your eCommerce website.

Nowadays, the possibilities of who you can reach with an international eCommerce site are virtually endless. With a little market research and an eCommerce localization service provider, you can explore those outlets in no time.

To learn more about how the right localization strategy can benefit your business, please click here.

The post Take Your Business Global: The Power of eCommerce Localization appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.