Localisation is the adaptation of content (from a website or an advertising campaign for example) or a product or service, to a new audience. It usually includes translation, which can also be intra-lingual - from one variety of language to another (for example: UK to USA English). But it doesn’t stop there (or sometimes doesn’t need that much language adaptation): the whole context and new audience’s characteristics and needs have to be taken into account. This means changing the currency, cultural references, and even tangible elements like materials or ingredients in the case of products or food.

• Wider audience

→ attracting audience that doesn’t speak the company’s main language

→ convincing audience that can speak the company’s language but favours content in their native language

• Improved user experience

→ allowing effortless understanding and avoiding confusion

→ building a positive image about the company through natural, familiar language and references tha reassure the user

→ creating customer loyalty thanks to the pleasant user experience and adapted customer support

• Increased visibility

→ expanding the online presence through extra domains and SEO key-words

→ developing partnerships and referrals with and from foreign companies, media or even users’ forums

Purchasing behaviour and languages

English is the most used language worldwide, and it is also the case online; however, relying on English for your online content (website, social networks, apps…) doesn’t do the trick when you want to go global and reach the widest audience possible. Firstly, because being the most used language doesn’t mean it’s actually used by everyone, and secondly, because this use of English isn't necessarily voluntary (if no other language is available, of course it’s the one used!) nor efficient (if the user doesn’t master the language, there can be misunderstanding risks and an negative impact on the user experience). To understand this matter better, and as marketing’s best practices would confirm, we need to get a closer look at customers’ purchasing behaviour in relation to language(s).

HubSpot Vice President Nataly Kelly says “there is an undeniably strong link between in-language content and a consumer’s likelihood of making a purchase.”

Let the figures do the talking:

·65% of non-native English speakers prefer content in their native tongue, even though they are highly proficient in English.

·87% of B2C consumers said they would not buy from an English-only website.

(CSA Research - 2020)

·72.1% of consumers spend most or all of their time online in their own language;

·72.4% of consumers would be more likely to buy a product with information in their own language;

·56.2% of consumers consider the access to obtain information in their own language as more important than price.

(Survey by Common Sense Advisory among 2,430 web consumers in 8 countries - 2015 / confirming the CSA Research)

·90 % Internet users, when given a choice of languages, always visit a website in their own language;

·Nearly 19 % Europeans never browse in a language other than their own;

·42% Europeans never purchase products and services in languages other than their own.

(Survey by Gallup among internet users in 23 E.U. countries - 2011  / confirming the CSA Research)

·84% of marketers said that content localization has helped grow their revenue.

(Unbabel - 2022)

 
The case of French

French is an official language of 29 countries (2nd most-used official language worldwide after English) and has 74 million total users in the world. French speakers are a considerable part of the global market and any business interested in attracting a wider audience might consider making their products or services available to this large audience thanks to localisation. 79 % of French shoppers purchase cross-border (Flow - 2019)

The French are particularly likely to favour French for their browsing/research and avoid content in other languages. It doesn’t come out of the blue: the general level of proficiency in foreign languages is quite low in France. Flow’s survey shows that the majority of French shoppers are unlikely to purchase if the website is not in French.

The top 5 countries from which French shoppers make purchases are: China, the UK, Germany, the USA and Hong Kong.

The example of Orange’s campaign in Northern Ireland: 'The future's bright, the future's Orange'
 

In a region where a civil conflict divides the people between a ‘green’ camp (Republican, Catholic) and an ‘orange’ camp (Royalist, Protestant), the use of one of those two colours, orange, as part of a marketing campaign is simply unimaginable. The complete not-to-do strategy, quite logically. It wouldn’t seem too sensible or logical if the marketing team didn’t know anything about the country where they export their campaign though.

The brand’s name Orange itself comes unwelcome in such a context; in this case, would it be pertinent to rename the brand for its Northern Irish branch? That’s definitely something to consider for a brand that wishes to export its business abroad, once they’ve studied carefully the social, economic and political context of the target country or area.

More about this event in this article in "Independent"

Localising a website requires many adaptations, based on the new market’s characteristics, habits and preferences.

“Entering a new market provides the opportunity for immense growth, but only if done with care and the intention to speak directly to the audience within said market,” says Stephen Light, co-owner and CEO of mattress company Nolah. “Tailoring both your product and content to match these customers’ unique needs, customs, interests, and more is key to communicating with them in the most human way possible and eliminating any possible barriers between your brand and a new audience. “Reaching new audiences broadens a brand’s horizons and can see massive increases in sales and revenue. An ecommerce store with local language, currency, content, and more is vastly more likely to make a sale.”

Specific domain structures

A domain that indicates the country it’s designed for can be more easily shown in research results, but also inspire trust to local audiences. There are various ways to adapt the domain to a specific country or region:

• Subfolders (brand.com/es-mx)

• Subdomains (mx.brand.com)

• Country-code top level domains (brand.com.mx)

Currencies

Showing the correct currency upfront is essential to keep the customer interested and give a sense of transparency: they won’t be surprised and disappointed when discovering the corresponding amount in their local currency once proceeding to confirm their command.

There’s a 40% increase in conversation rates for product pages with localised currencies.

Payment methods

The payment practices and preferences vary by country: first come the credit card payments (53%), then the digital payment systems (43%), followed by the debit card systems (39%). Some countries in Africa, Middle East and Asia tend to favour payment in cash on delivery. These various methods need to be adapted for each market.

SEO

SEO is essential for a website generally speaking - it is even more so when localising it for new markets. The keywords might vary - a mere translation of the original keywords used in the primary language of the website won’t be enough. A new keyword research should be made to meet the criteria and needs of the local market. A specialised translator or SEO expert native in the target language can step in to adapt the whole SEO strategy to this new specific market.

Language

Last but not least: speaking the new audience’s language. This corresponds to translation with a domestication approach in some cases, adapting everything that should be adapted for the new audience so they can understand the content and references, but also feel comfortable in their user experience as everythings sounds familiar and inspires trust.

I would go further by including the notion of invisibility of the translator, meaning the translation shouldn’t be seen as such by the user, who instead should have the feeling that the company is addressing them directly. 

As seen in the figures above, people prefer to browse/shop in their native language, and the more they can understand (and again, not just understand but also consider as natural and familiar - i.e. not automated translation!), the more likely they’ll spend time on the website and eventually buy products or book services. Shopify confirms this phenomenon: there is “a 13% relative increase in conversion when buyers were shown a store translated into their language compared to the same one in the default language.” It doesn’t only include website pages, but also email campaigns and other complementary content.

Depending on the type and use of the product of course, it might be changed and adapted to a local audience.

Food and beverage is also concerned by this type of localisation: some adapt their ingredients geographically (local ingredients), culturally (type of cuisine, ethics like vegan or vegetarian choices…) or according to religion (prohibited meats or alcohol). Others actually fail their localisation’s attempt when “forgetting” to conduct a pre-localisation research. Here a few examples:

Starbucks launched 90 stores in Australia and then realised the coffee they sold didn’t match the Australians’ habits and preferences. An error that cost them $105 million…

Ikea intended to sell their products in Japan without any changes in the products themselves or in their marketing strategy. No luck: the Japanese didn’t have the same type or aesthetics of furniture for smaller homes, nor the same assembling habits. What had made Ikea’s success in Europe was now causing their failure in a country for which they hadn’t taken into consideration the culture.

Uber started off their establishment in China with their usual occidental and capitalist approach, failing to realise the Chinese system works differently, professionally and culturally. Early work on local markets and networks would have completely changed the game and maybe the outcome of this localisation’s attempt.

Clues: Localisation company founded by Lanna Koshel, focusing on the cultural dimension of business exportation and cross-Cultural Communication — “Bridging Cultures for Better Connections”

DePalma, D. A., O'Mara, P. D. (2020) “Can’t Read, Won’t Buy – B2C - Analyzing Consumer Language Preferences and Behaviors in 29 Countries”, CSA.

Ethologue: Research centre for language intelligence, offering insights on the languages’ use and evolution in the world.

Kelly, Nataly (2012) “Speak to Global Customers in Their Own Language”, Harvard Business Review.

 
Polyglot Translation Services (2022) “Why Do You Need To Speak To Customers In Their Own Language In the Hospitality Industry?”, LinkedIn.

Translation fails