Website localization - when and why you need it, checklist for website localization

Today, our client’s services are available in 196 countries. At the start of our cooperation, they were only getting to expand their business to new locations. As follows, our client needed internationalized code or website localization services. What is website localization? How to provide the foremost useful experience for website users? First of all, to speak with them in their language. But translation isn't everything. To be closer to website users during a specific country, you would like to spot their needs, create resources, and add them to the appliance files. The app should recognize when specific language must appear. Still, the bottom code of the appliance shouldn’t be changed with every new language. Why do you need to localize your website? It is pretty simple. Want to expand your business to other countries - website localization is your only option. For example, our client, JustAnswer, a service platform that has been running since 2003 and 24/7. Website localization allowed the business to grow in almost 200 countries! Service already helped more than 8,000,000 people. Checklist for website localization:

1. Choose the proper encoding for special characters (UTF-8, UTF-16, or other);

2. Decide which layout to use: right-to-left (ex, Arabic), left-to-right (ex, Western), vertical (East Asian), or probably all of the writing systems;

3. Determine on what proportion space is going to be needed to display content altogether languages you need;

4. Display colours, images, first and last names in a culturally sensitive way;

5. Check if your URLs are structured right for each language;

6. Allow the users to pick a language, albeit your display language is predicated on the browser settings or IP address. There are always personal preferences and countries like Switzerland with several national languages;

7. Make payment methods available for users from every specific country;

8. Make sure you'll easily maintain the web site and update all its versions with the first one.