This is the most frightening time of year. Almost one month before the most important date for e-commerce, Halloween floods social networks, shops and apps.
Category: Web Translation
How do I avoid Brand Shaming?
A user only takes a twentieth of a second to form their first impression of the website or profile they are visiting. This has implications for all the factors that you may find on any landing page, e-commerce or profile, including the images, text, the organisation and design of buttons or options for the user.
LOCALISATION: you have probably heard of it but… do you know what it means?
Localisation in translation, or l10n, as it is known in the sector, is the process of translation, adaptation and adjustment of the texts we find in videogames, websites, blogs and many other products.
What do an instruction manual, the text on packaging and an online ads campaign have in common?
They are all texts that will be in contact with your customer this Christmas, and there’s no better time to boost your sales. If you want to expand into new markets, the first thing you should consider is translation. Your customers taking the initiative when they see an advert or trusting in your product or brand, starts with a well translated text. Read more “What do an instruction manual, the text on packaging and an online ads campaign have in common?”
Translation-ready texts: the secret to success
You’ve got a big project, a text that your blood, sweat and tears have gone into, and which works perfectly for your local audience. You’d go as far as to say it’s been a big hit. But, have you thought about how to prepare this text for translation?
Should I translate my corporate blog?
Corporate blogs have become an integral part of any marketing strategy in a world where an internet presence has become crucial to success. The only problem is, with so many battling for a piece of the pie, the internet has become glutted with banal, dull content, with one article linking to yet another and without anything particularly interesting to say. With the advent of SEO sensitive content, the unfortunate by-product has been words for the sake of words, and the more the better. Content is produced simply to insert key-words which will hopefully show up high on google rankings.
Can I get my corporate blog translated?
These days a corporate blog is a widely-used means of generating quality content of interest to our target audience. Blogs contain keywords of popular Google searches and can be about pretty much any topic under the sun. The trick is that they be an interesting read in their own right, thereby attracting the type of potential customers that we want (in the case of a business), but also that they appear high in search-engine rankings by virtue of the use of keywords.
Website translation: Making Vissually More Visible
Vissually wanted to expand to the French and British market, and so using our expert team we were able to translate their website into French and English efficiently, allowing customers from all over Europe to make the most of Vissually’s expert services, while Vissually can benefit from international business. Good news all round!
Vissually is a company which offers creative solutions to boost the sales of the brands they work with. With a carefully chosen team of engineers, graphic designers and printers, they create attractive products in countless formats, in order to meet their customers’ requirements and make them stand out among their competitors.
As with many companies, a lot of Vissually’s business is generated from their website. They have a successful website which is key to successful business, but Vissually have come up against a challenge which many successful businesses face – their market is limited to Spanish customers. They wanted to expand their business to reach out to a wider audience, and to do this, they needed to translate their website into different languages. To provide this important service, they chose BigTranslation. Here at BigTranslation we offer a website translation service into over 24 different languages, giving your business the opportunity of global success.
The key elements of website translation
What makes us unique is that we use native translators in order to make any translation sound as natural as possible. Native translators also know and understand the market needs and requirements of the audience for which they are translating, and are able to adapt the translation accordingly.
We also realise that no matter how good the quality of the translation may be, it has no relevance if it can’t be found on online searches. This is why we offer a SEO translation service, to allow your website to maintain high search engine visibility during searches from various countries. We specify key words and expressions which will increase the amount of users visiting the website.
Vissually wanted to expand to the French and British market, and so using our expert team we were able to translate their website into French and English efficiently, allowing customers from all over Europe to make the most of Vissually’s expert services, while Vissually can benefit from international business. Good news all round!
Website Translation: More Than Just Words!
As the modern world is advancing at such a rate, companies are using online resources more and more to expand and improve their business. An impressive website is essential for a successful business, but in order to really reach out to a global client base, websites need to be translated, a task which is no easy feat.
As the modern world is advancing at such a rate, companies are using online resources more and more to expand and improve their business. An impressive website is essential for a successful business, but in order to really reach out to a global client base, websites need to be translated, a task which is no easy feat.
Native translators make the difference
At BigTranslation, all of our translators are native to their target language, which is key to a successful translation. Primarily, this is because they are able to use a variety of language, which sounds natural to the target audience making it easy to read. For example, somebody may be able to write perfect US English, but for a British audience this will not sound natural.
Native translators also have the advanta
ge of living in the country for which they are translating, meaning that they know and understand the market needs, and therefore which points need to be emphasised, and also those that may be less relevant to the audience.
Similarly, native translators are familiar with cultural differences between countries, and therefore are able to translate a text without causing any offence or confusion to their target audience, by choosing the information included and the style in which the information is presented effectively.
Marketing, a winning bid
Once the text of a website is translated, the next step is to work on the marketing within the website. With a different target audience there comes different cultural differences and customs, and this must be taken into account when translating a website. An example of this would be considering images and colours within the website. For instance, in some countries having a moustache is deemed as mature and attractive, whereas in China it is seen as a sign of bad luck! Therefore on a Chinese website, it would not be wise to use a model with a moustache to advertise a product.
In different countries, the preferred format of website varies. For example, in some countries a simple, spacious website may be favoured, whereas others may prefer a more exciting website with lots of colours and visual stimulation.
SEO to succeed
Finally, in order for the translated website to be successful, careful thought must be taken into translating SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). SEO is when key words are used to increase the amount of visitors to a website by obtaining a high place in the list of search engine results. This makes the website much more visible and greatly increases the number of visitors to a site.
Sometimes, the key words chosen for SEO in the source text are not successful key words in the target text, or may have more than one translation, therefore it is important to choose the translation which is most successful in the target country, or choose a new SEO altogether to create a successful website.
If you are looking to translate your website, our translation agency offers this service with translators from over 25 different languages and countries. Get in touch today to improve your business!
Cultural Nuances in Website Translation
Translation agencies are now offering their translation services to translate websites in the most professional way. And professionals are what you need, as there are many things to take into account when opening up to new cultures through website translation, mainly due to the different connotations attributed to words and expressions.
With more and more of us resorting to typing into a search engine whenever we’re looking for a particular service, it has become more important than ever for websites to find ways of standing out among the rest. Translating their content and opening up to the global market is the answer. However, this process isn’t a case of simply copying and pasting from an online translator. Translation agencies are now offering their translation services to translate websites in the most professional way. And professionals are what you need, as there are many things to take into account when opening up to new cultures through website translation, mainly due to the different connotations attributed to words and expressions.
Translate your brand name or slogan correctly
So your company ha
No sarcasm please
It’s also wise to think about the tone of the content that appears in your website. As in the UK, the difference is made between formal English, which is considered professional but could intimidate some audiences, and colloquial English, which would create a more intimate relationship when trying to reach out to your potential new clients. Therefore defining your clientele is always essential. Another thing to be aware of is that content written in British English often contains a touch of sarcasm, something which doesn’t exist at all in Japanese for example, so looking for an alternative style of writing would be necessary.
Regional Localization
Thinking about the language you would like to translate your website into is crucial, but specifying it to the actual country you’d like to open up to is equally important. American and British English have some major connotational differences, as the search engine Dogpile found out the unfortunate way. Looking a bit closer and ensuring you have covered all ground in that particular culture is also useful, as in the case of Canada, it would be necessary to translate into both English and French.
Colours, symbols and pictures
Along with the written content on your website, the colours, symbols and pictures you choose to illustrate your content are equal priorities. For example red has a very positive connotation in China, whereas it can have an aggressive one in the UK. The symbol of a house for the home page needs to be treated with care as the shape of a house isn’t the same for everyone. Pictures also need to be thought through, as for example a picture of a director sitting alone in his chair would be more normal in societies with a hierarchical system, but not in those with an egalitarian system, where a picture showing the director mingling with his team would be more appropriate.
So if you are thinking of having your website translated, it would be extremely wise to have an in depth study, carried out by a professional translator, of the idiosyncrasies of the target language and culture. This will avoid any undesirable faux pas!