Isn't everything about the ultimate in Ecommerce Customer Experience? So how is it possible that online consumers still have to digest abominably translated content so often? Ignorance, laziness or a question of money? Poor translations of product information cost your customers. You insult the cosmopolitan consumer with defective sentences and crooked constructions! Do you feel the same way? And do you have plans to internationalize your E-business? Read on. Because the translation of product information can be easily automated.
International online business means seriously thinking about the language and quality of your content. About the consequences of online sales communication in multiple languages for your operational systems. And about the question of how to set up translation processes in such a way that you have maximum control over them. How will you organize the translation of product information? How will you streamline and manage frequent changes in different languages? What's up for sale in translation management and multi-language management systems? And, not unimportant, how can they be integrated into your platform? Enough questions.
'Internationalizing Ecommerce sounds tempting, but there are quite a few snags'
Click on any Top-so many with Ecommerce trends and nine times out of ten will be featured Internationalization on the honors list. Logically. Because it is extremely tempting to build a worldwide network with your webshop or platform. After all, you don't have to physically go anywhere. You don't have to immediately rent a shop in a very expensive A-location in a trendy city. The Internet is your access to any location, anywhere in the world. A piece of cake, then. You paste dot.com or a specific country extension after your domain name and checkout.
It's that simple. Just kidding. Incidentally, the consumer does not stand in the way of successful international business. He will. International Ecommerce Statistics indicate that more than 65% of all online consumers buy outside their own national borders. Cross-Border Ecommerce is big and promising, but you have to do something for it.
'Speak the language of your customers, anywhere in the world and think carefully about translating product information'
Unless you're selling a unique and inimitable universal product that all people want, whether they live in China or the US, or in Switzerland or Sweden, your success is largely determined by the quality of the Customer Experience. You can't get around that. And in order to offer this, it is important that you immerse yourself in your new market and the inhabitants of the country in question. You have to speak their language. Internationalizing your E-business therefore requires thorough preparation.
In short, at the very least create an internationalization strategy. Select the countries that are interesting for your products and/or services. Inform yourself about the local opportunities, but also about the customs and pitfalls. Realize that each country has its own tax rules and sets specific (legal) requirements for Ecommerce activities. If you want to do business outside the EU, the differences are even greater.
'International success stands or falls with local insight'
Preferably make a local version of your platform or webshop for the relevant country. Make sure that your brand name has a chance of success in the target country and does not evoke something completely different than what you have in mind. Consider collaborating with local marketing professionals, ensure that your payment systems match national and local preferences, ensure scalability and build in guarantees for operating according to local legislation, for example regarding privacy.
Because the Customer Experience is so important, you prefer to address consumers outside your own country in their own language. Don't assume that everyone 'reads English anyway', because firstly they don't and secondly you will lose customers. You should preferably address potential customers in their native language. That is familiar, creates a bond and gives you an edge over the other 'foreign web shops'.
There are various options for translating product information. If you have excellent English or any other language yourself, you can do it yourself, of course. It does take time. If it concerns a limited volume of corporate content and a small product range, this may be affordable. But with a larger product range, this quickly becomes more difficult. You can also hire a translation agency. However, that quickly runs out of paper.
'Translation features with memory give internationalization Ecommerce an extra boost'
Think 'digital' instead. Surely translation programs exist? Everyone knows Google Translate and DeepL. Both are quite easy to integrate into your applications using an API. Separately or in combination with each other. Especially when you use them in combination, the quality of the translations improves and these programs are quite suitable for translating product information. Thanks to AI that quality continues to improve, at a pretty rapid pace. If you work with many product descriptions, this is an efficient way to streamline bulky translation processes.
'Product information translation functions integrated into PIM software are getting smarter'
Generating and efficiently managing translations in the product information domain according to high quality standards is a core factor for customer experience and satisfaction. In other words: quality product content in the language of your potential customers, anywhere in the world, is essential for the Customer Experience and conversion. Product Information Management (PIM) systems increasingly provide advanced translation features.
Product information translation functions integrated into PIM software are becoming more extensive and smarter. An important trend is the incorporation of AI-based memory functions, with which the PIM industry meets the demand from the international business community for greater efficiency and lower costs. Combinations of PIM and Translation Memory Systems will give the further internationalization of Ecommerce an extra boost. Because correctly translated content is king!
