 11 Min. Read |
 Christian Connors |
 September 15, 2023 |
In 2022, global retail e-commerce sales rose to $5.7 trillion worldwide. That is expected to reach $8.2 trillion by 2026. E-Commerce website translation helps you tap into global audiences without needing physical stores.
But how can you ensure that your online store is optimized for multilingual markets, so you achieve the sales you're looking for? The answer: e-commerce localization. Go a step further than language translations for e-commerce and localize your content as well.
E-commerce localization is the process of adapting an online store’s content, interface, and user experience to suit the linguistic, cultural, and regional preferences of consumers in a specific region or country.
It goes beyond just website translation, as the goal is to provide a shopping experience that feels native and familiar to users from different geographical areas. It considers factors like local customs, values, payment methods, and even legal regulations.
This approach not only boosts user trust and engagement but also increases the chances of successful transactions and repeat visits. E-Commerce localization ensures that global audiences can seamlessly navigate, understand, and transact with a retail platform as if it were a local website. This means that elements such as product descriptions, pricing, images, and even the shopping cart functionality could be tailored based on the local context and preferences of a target audience
You may not think international e-commerce localization makes a big difference once your website is already translated, but providing a customized experience to your audience goes a long way. Here are some long-term benefits of investing in e-commerce localization services:
It can be hard to decide when to grow your business as you always need to assess risk. You also need to decide if there is a demand for your business in a new market.
While localization is the perfect first step in a global expansion plan because it requires low global integration, you still need to make sure you have an audience in the new market. So, when should you localize your e-commerce website?
Around 75% of global internet users use social media to research brands. Additionally, 71% of consumers who have had a positive experience with a brand on social media are likely to recommend the brand to their friends and family.
Creating a local social media page for your brand is a great way to create relationships with local buyers. They will have a positive perception of your brand and will be more likely to make a purchase and recommend you to others. The content you publish on these accounts will have to be localized, but a professional e-commerce translation service will be able to handle the job easily.
By providing currency options tailored to the user’s region or country, customers avoid the hassle of currency conversion and can concentrate on completing their online purchase.
This approach decreases shopping cart abandonment rates, especially when you consider that 16% of shoppers leave their carts if they can’t immediately determine the total order cost
Localize your product descriptions and reviews to create a more optimized experience for customers in different countries. Localization helps you offer an accurate description of the product in the customer's native language and ensures that there's no room for misunderstanding.
Additionally, presenting product feedback in the customer's native language fosters more trust in what you offer. A significant 73% of consumers prefer reviews in their language, assuring them of the product's quality and boosting their shopping confidence.
Customer support is one of the most important parts of any e-commerce retail business. Your customers need to feel like you care, and strong customer support will keep them coming back time after time.
Make sure your multilingual users have access to shipping and return policies, payment information, contact information, chatbots, terms and conditions, etc. The buyer journey doesn’t end with a purchase; you must take care of them to make sure they want to continue to think of you as a good resource for their needs.
In 2023, mobile platforms are set to dominate e-commerce, accounting for 43.4% of sales. This surge is attributed to consumers' habits of researching items, contrasting prices, immersing themselves in augmented reality, and finalizing purchases via their mobiles.
For businesses, enhancing the mobile user journey by reducing barriers can lead to increased sales conversions.
Global outreach demands more than just translating website content. Recognizing linguistic standards, cultural peculiarities, and specific regional traits of your clientele is paramount for a stellar user experience. This involves focusing on naming norms, date configurations, and currency appearances, ensuring your platform remains culturally synchronized.
Working with a localization expert like MotionPoint can be pivotal. We goes a step further than standard translation, encapsulating the context, emotion, and intention behind words, ensuring content retains its essence during translation.
Taking a business to international markets without understanding the local laws and regulations can have consequences. Thorough due diligence is crucial before a product rollout.
Given the complex landscape of consumer laws, data safeguarding norms, and IP rights, coupled with specifics like the U.S.’s “consumption tax”, it’s wise to liaise with local legal counsel when making regional adjustments.
There aren’t many international e-commerce solutions that can handle a successful localization project, but MotionPoint has the technology and expertise to help you thrive in new markets. In 2022, the retail industry invested $2.7B in professional language services, and there's a good reason for that!
Your team won't have the time or resources to handle all the aspects of an e-commerce localization project. Luckily, the MotionPoint Platform uses the best technology in the industry to make the process seamless, cost-efficient, and stress-free.
For a limited time, you can even get more translations for less! Take advantage of our BOGO offer-two new languages for the price of one. Drop us a line today to learn more.
