Every mobile app developer wants their app to win the market and reach its maximum potential. The main goal is to get as many new users onboard, by improving the app’s quality, exposure, visibility, and features. But, if you only adapt your app to a certain market, you’re only targeting a limited number of users. That means you can’t go very far. That’s why you should consider app localization.
Localizing your app means making it available in different languages for people from different regions and countries. It also means expanding your reach and going for the global market. This article will break down the process of app localization for you, and help you understand how to conduct it.
Here are 6 tips for proper app localization that you can start applying today.
Table of Contents
Choose a Target Market
Before you turn to the actual process of localization, you first need to conduct meaningful research. You have to decide which market you wish to target with your app, and base that decision on data.
To make sure you’re choosing the right language for the localization, you have to:
- Do market research for potential target countries
- Learn about your competition and potential users
- Learn about your current users and which countries do they come from
- Read your app reviews and feedback to see what people from different countries have to say
If you’re certain you have a shot at making it work on a target market, you can proceed with app localization.
Adjust Your Text
Before you translate the text and entire content of your mobile app, you have to make the right adjustments to it. Localization is not the same as translation.
Localization includes:
- Paying attention to the customs and habits of the target audience
- Removing content that could be potentially offensive to a certain nation
- Using appropriate symbolism and references
What might be funny to an American, could be completely confusing to a German, if translated literally. Although the professional translator should be able to make these adjustments himself, it’s better that you take a look at it yourself.
Once you feel like you’ve made the adjustments with the target audience in mind, you can proceed to hire a translator.
Hire a Translator
If you were considering asking your relative who “speaks a bit of French” to translate, or use Google Translate, let us stop you right there.
Without a quality translation, your entire project is worth nothing.
That’s why you need to invest your money into hiring a professional translator who will:
- Translate your text to make it sound natural to natives of the target language
- Use appropriate symbolism and structures
- Find a way to translate the overall tone and style of the original copy
“A professional translator is a must s don’t even hesitate for a second. Find someone you know will do a great job and you’ll see it was worth it,” says Marissa Pearson, a localization expert from Studicus.
Additional Changes
Apart from translating the content of your app, you also have to pay attention to all the other elements in your app. With the new target market in mind, you have to adjust:
- Currency
- Metric system
- Date and time format
- Images and app design
- Visuals
Make sure that everything is right for the target user on the new market and make the app suitable for their ways of functioning.
Remove images that might be offensive and replace them with something more appropriate for the eyes of your target audience. Here’s an example:
- You’re targeting the market in India
- You change dollars to rupees
- You adjust the images to not offense their culture; a cow is a sacred animal in India so if you have any images portraying cow funnily or offensively, you have to replace it
This way, you go through all the segments of your app until you’re certain you’ve made all the necessary adjustments. Your app engagement will skyrocket.
Conduct App Store Optimization
Don’t forget to translate and optimize the text displayed for your app in the app store. You have to make sure your app is highly visible and easy to find.
Pay attention to:
- Title of the app
- Keywords used in the description
- Respecting the local SEO
This way, you’ll be certain your app will find its way to the new audience and get more users faster.
Viber for Serbia, source: Google Play
Check Your Accuracy
Finally, there’s one last thing you need to do before you wrap things up. You have to revise what you’ve written and make sure there are no mistakes.
So, if you want to be a professional, make sure that you:
- Remove any grammar or spelling errors with the help of a spell check online tool like Quillbot
- Follow a meaningful structure
- Used proper vocabulary
Only once you’re certain you’ve proofread everything can you go ahead and publish it.
In case you need help with the written part of your localized app, here’s a list of useful tools and resources you could use to get some help:
Trust My Paper – Editing can be pretty hard, especially when you’ve written the text. You can send your written content to this service, and they’ll edit it to perfection.
Grammarly – If you want to proofread on your own, but need just a bit of help, this online tool can help you. Just paste your text and revise the highlighted areas.
WowGrade – You have to proofread before you publish and this online service can do it for you.
Hemingway App – This app will help you improve your readability and accuracy. It will remove all the mistakes and help you rewrite for a better structure.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, the process of app localization is more than just translating the content of your app. You need to do proper research, outsource for translation, and get things just right.
The steps above will help you localize your app right and accomplish the goals you’ve set. Soon, your app will have a global outreach and the number of your users will keep growing.
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Estelle Liotard is an editor for IsAccurate. She enjoys working on new projects and learning
something exciting every day. In addition, she works as a freelance writer for Best Essay
Education and Grab My Essay. Her passion for innovation is guiding her through all the different
fields of her career.
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