Benefits of Using the Best Software Localization Tools for You

Successful software localization allows your content to be seen as credible and authentic in any market.

A good localization strategy will incorporate all the tools necessary to ensure your product adapts well to specific cultures and doesn’t give a negative first impression. Most translation services offer localization strategies that highlight and include all of the tools they offer, but a one-size-fits-all localization strategy may not work well with your content system’s architecture.

The only way to determine if you have a good software localization strategy is to have a clear grasp of your business strategy and program needs that allows you to determine which advertised features are the best software localization tools for your product.  

Common Software Localization Tools and Their Usefulness

It’s extremely important to pay attention to the features that will help improve your localization strategy. Below are some common ones and how they can be used.

Preview Screens

Preview screens are usually advertised as a must-have tool for content accuracy and as an early indication of how live text will appear when the translation is complete. While they can be very helpful by allowing translators to have a better understanding of the context of the material they’re translating, it also isn’t a very useful feature to have if the pages aren’t created because there wouldn’t be anything to preview until the webpage exists. It can also be a redundant feature if you plan to undergo an extensive quality assurance review since all errors will be found and fixed prior to your content going live.  

File Engineering

File engineering protects your software’s code. During translation, content is treated as a string that can disrupt code markers or result in essential software code being translated that shouldn’t have been. All of this can result in a negative consumer experience and lessen the market value of your product. The more complex your software’s architecture is, the more necessary file engineering is. For software using simple HTML, it may not be as useful as other localization tools.  

Terminology Management

Terminology management is most useful for companies that have implemented a search engine optimization (SEO) strategy to increase their popularity rankings in search engines. Standard translation doesn’t factor in the SEO keywords and can halt your rankings in new markets.

Terminology management maps the keywords and phrases that are specific to your SEO strategy to preserve them across languages and maintain your SEO benefits. However, if you don’t have an SEO strategy in place, terminology management wouldn’t be useful to you and would instead be an unnecessary expense.  

Quality Assurance Review

Quality assurance (QA) review is the process of proofreading and editing content to eliminate errors or inconsistencies. It also provides feedback to linguists to prevent future errors for the same reasons found during the QA process. While most companies see quality assurance as an imperative tool for a localization strategy, it may not be as detrimental for companies with minimal content who are willing to risk setbacks to fix errors.  

Translation Memory

Translation memories monitor and store previously translated material for use in future translations of similar content. They automatically update with newly translated content and give linguists suggestions to use when similarities are noticed.

This reduces translation time and maintains consistency in updated content. For websites that update frequently, this is a crucial localization tool because it prevents linguists and editors from doing the same work multiple times. It may not be as useful for smaller software applications that rarely update their content.  

Tag Verifiers

Tags help improve the rank of your content’s site pages and also arrange content in a way that makes it easier for consumers to read and understand. Tag verification protects your source tags so they are unharmed during translation to keep your SEO strategy functioning well. Like terminology management, this may not be a useful tool if you don’t have an SEO strategy in place.  

While all tools can be advertised as necessary, their usefulness is directly tied to your content’s architecture. It’s important to know your architecture so that you can choose the best tools for your company’s use case.  

What is the Best Software Localization Tool?

A robust localization management platform is the best tool you can use to make sure your content performs well in new markets. The tools used to localize your content will be the backbone of your localization strategy as well as partnering with a platform that can help you choose the best tools to work with your content management system’s architecture. A trustworthy translation service will help you assess your content priorities and be the support system you need to make the best decisions. You need a plan for software implementation that can develop as your company does and help you expand into future markets.