How to Localize a Website in Simple 6 Steps

Written by:Maya Desouky
Localize a Website in Simple 6 Step

If you want to take your website global, localization is key. This is because different cultures and countries have different preferences when it comes to language, layout, and design.

In this blog post, we’ll let you know how to localize your website in six simple steps.

Keep reading for tips on everything from translation to cultural considerations!

But first what is localization?

Localization is the process of making a product or service available to a specific target market. This includes translating and adapting content to fit the local language, culture, and regulations.

It’s important to note that localization goes beyond translation. It’s about taking into account the different cultural norms and preferences of your target market.

So, when you want to create a multilingual copy of your website, you need to consider localization, not translation only.

Here are the 6 Steps you need to follow to localize your website:

1. Choose the right language for your website:

You need to start by selecting the languages you will localize your website into. The best way to do that is to look at your target market and analyze your website traffic data. Identify which countries generate the most traffic to your site.

Once you have that information, you can decide which languages will be most beneficial for your business.

You can do this easily by having a look at your Google Analytics data.

2. Use a localization service provider:

Yes, you can do the website localization in-house with your team. But this can turn into a nightmare. Website localization involves many moving parts, so it’s best to leave it to the professionals.

A localization service provider (LSP) can help you manage the website localization project from start to finish.

They will assign a project manager to your account who will work with you throughout the process. This project manager will have the required skills to run the website localization process smoothly.

3. Target local search engines and online directories

One of the most important aspects of website localization is making sure your site is visible to local search engines.

To do that, you need to ensure your site is properly indexed by Google and other major search engines. This means creating separate versions of your site for each language and country.

At this stage, you will need to consider multilingual SEO practices. This includes localizing your keywords, metatags, and title tags.

You should also submit your site to local online directories and search engines. This will help you generate traffic from your target market.

4. Test your website in the target languages

Many companies ignore this step, while it is a crucial one.

At this phase, you will have the localized website test for both linguistic and functional issues.

For the linguistic tests, you will need to look for issues such as typos, grammar mistakes, and misspellings.

For the functional tests, you need to check if all the website features are working properly in the target language. This includes forms, videos, images, and buttons.

5. Consider cultural aspects when localizing your website:

You also need to consider cultural aspects when localizing the website.

For example, Think about the images you will add to your site. Do they reflect the local culture?

You should also consider the colours you use on your website. In some cultures, certain colours are associated with specific meanings. For example, white is often associated with death in Asian cultures.

6. Launch your localized website:

After you have completed all the steps mentioned above, It is time to launch the website and make it live.

But this does not end the process.

You will need to monitor your website regularly and update the content to ensure it is relevant.

You should also track your website traffic and analyze the user data to see how your site is performing in different markets. This will help you fine-tune your website localization strategy and improve your return on the investment of website localization.

  1. Define your target audience. Who are you trying to reach with your localized website? What are their language, cultural, and religious preferences?
  2. Hire a localization expert. A localization expert can help you assess your website’s needs and develop a localization strategy.
  3. Internationalize your website. This means making sure that your website’s code is designed in a way that allows for the content to be easily translated into other languages.
  4. Create a translation glossary. This will help to ensure that your content is translated consistently across all languages.
  5. Test your localized website. Make sure that all of the content has been translated correctly and that the website functions properly in all languages.


Localization is the process of adapting a product or service to meet the needs of a particular language, culture, or desired population’s “look and feel.” It goes beyond simple translation by taking into account cultural differences, terminology, and technical requirements.

The localization process typically involves the following steps:

  1. Planning and scoping: This involves defining the scope of the localization project, identifying the target audience, and gathering all of the necessary source materials.
  2. Translation: This is the process of converting the source materials into the target language.
  3. Localization: This is the process of adapting the translated content to the target culture, including things like changing dates, currency, and measurements, as well as adapting images and other cultural references.
  4. Quality assurance: This is the process of ensuring that the localized content is accurate, error-free, and meets the quality standards of the target market.
  5. Deployment: This is the process of making localized content available to the target audience.

The localization process can be complex and time-consuming, but it is essential for businesses that want to succeed in international markets. By taking the time to localize their products and services, businesses can ensure that their customers have a positive experience and that they are able to communicate effectively with them.

Web localization is the process of adapting a website to a specific audience by translating its content into their language and adapting it to their cultural norms. It is more than just translating the text on a website. It also involves adapting the website’s design, images, and content to be culturally appropriate for the target audience.

The goal of web localization is to create a website that is accessible, usable, and relevant to the target audience. This can help to improve the website’s traffic, conversion rates, and customer satisfaction.

Conclusion

Website localization is a complex process. But it is worth the effort as it will help you expand your business to new markets and reach a wider audience.

Hiring a professional website localization provider can make this process easier and help you achieve your goals.

By following the steps mentioned above, you can ensure a smooth website localization process and achieve success in your target market.

Maya is the Customer Success Manager at AfricaLocalize. She is a polyglot in the making as she speaks 3 languages (Arabic, English, and French) and currently is learning her fourth language (Japanese). She likes to read fiction books and has two black cats “Lucifer and Misty”.