Localization companies are responsible for helping clients put out regional products that match the local culture and language. It doesn't have to be limited to translation, either. There are many ways to create an authentic local product without having to rebuild it from scratch.
For example, everything from the language to date and time formats, currency, measurement units and so on need to be changed. Also, there are issues regarding technical incompatibility or upgrade requirements. Every region has its own set of software, devices and readers with which the product needs to be compatible.
Then there are issues regarding the aesthetics. This means the visual impact and the colors and sounds that work best are different for each region. In order to get all this right, localization companies need to be on the same wavelength as the population in the region concerned and its culture.
The best part is that the technology that drives all this work is now in an advanced stage of innovation, and it is a sizzling hot sector at this point. Computer-aided translation (CAT) tools are now more of a commodity used by just about every provider. This tool can be used with almost any type of file format (txt, doc, ppt, xml, etc.) used commonly on the web or in software.
So it's not just about a functional local product. The challenge now is to localize the product while keeping it on par with the global version. This is where the new technology comes in very handy. It's easy to offer services and implement a lot of things on a local level using mobile or location-based apps, local search, cloud based SaaS platforms and IP-based redirection.
So the users think the site was build for and by locals, while the developer can build the site quickly without a need to start from scratch. Note that many clients these days do ask developers to build regional sites from scratch. In this case too, the use of apps or the widgets mentioned above allow for putting it all together quickly and at a low cost.
The point of all this is that local products and services no longer have to be somehow inferior to the flagship product. It's a global village now, and consumers demand the same product quality and service levels no matter what their location. This is what localization companies have to deal with today, and they can do so only if they have the technological expertise.
For example, everything from the language to date and time formats, currency, measurement units and so on need to be changed. Also, there are issues regarding technical incompatibility or upgrade requirements. Every region has its own set of software, devices and readers with which the product needs to be compatible.
Then there are issues regarding the aesthetics. This means the visual impact and the colors and sounds that work best are different for each region. In order to get all this right, localization companies need to be on the same wavelength as the population in the region concerned and its culture.
The best part is that the technology that drives all this work is now in an advanced stage of innovation, and it is a sizzling hot sector at this point. Computer-aided translation (CAT) tools are now more of a commodity used by just about every provider. This tool can be used with almost any type of file format (txt, doc, ppt, xml, etc.) used commonly on the web or in software.
So it's not just about a functional local product. The challenge now is to localize the product while keeping it on par with the global version. This is where the new technology comes in very handy. It's easy to offer services and implement a lot of things on a local level using mobile or location-based apps, local search, cloud based SaaS platforms and IP-based redirection.
So the users think the site was build for and by locals, while the developer can build the site quickly without a need to start from scratch. Note that many clients these days do ask developers to build regional sites from scratch. In this case too, the use of apps or the widgets mentioned above allow for putting it all together quickly and at a low cost.
The point of all this is that local products and services no longer have to be somehow inferior to the flagship product. It's a global village now, and consumers demand the same product quality and service levels no matter what their location. This is what localization companies have to deal with today, and they can do so only if they have the technological expertise.
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