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Our goal is to provide you with in-depth knowledge regarding localization.

Learn how CMS localization can boost your online presence, expand your reach, and optimize for international success with our informative article.

CMSs: industry state and how to localize them best

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Localization Blog

Translating content inside a CMS (content management system) is always challenging when you don't use the right tool. That's why the Lingohub team released a new, updated, and improved Storyblok integration to make the stories translation easier than ever. This article will overview the new opportunities for **Lingohub-Storyblok** integration and describe how to use it with the most significant productivity. 
## What is Storyblok?
Storyblok is a headless CMS (content management system) that empowers companies by providing flexible tools for developers and content creators. Released in 2017, it now provides a top-notch content management experience and independence for teams worldwide.
## How has Storyblok transformed the content creation process?
Storyblok is a headless CMS, meaning content management and presentation are separate processes. The front and backend are split; users can utilize different frontends (heads) with the same backend code (body). Thus, developers can use any framework and technologies that increase the project's flexibility. 
**Other advantages of the Storyblok are**:
- Intuitive **interface** for content management;
- Simple **content structuring** with different components and blocks;
- The previous point provides **easy scalability** and content re-usage - you can re-use the same blocks for different pages;
- **Internationalization** - Storyblok provides creating different language versions of your content;
- **Versioning** to track changes or roll back to previous versions;
- Simple integration with third-party tools by Storyblok's **API-First Approach**. 

In conclusion, Storyblok is a robust content management system that allows flexible implementation of technical solutions compared to a user-friendly interface, making it a perfect solution for any size company, independent of the technologies they prefer. 
## 5 challenges during the manual CMS localization
In our blog, we already overviewed [CMS localization](/blog/cms-industry-state-and-how-to-localize-them-best) and the ways to do this best, but here, we want to focus on the challenges the companies face during this process if they don't use a supporting solution. Below, we identified five main points that are most complicated to handle:
1. **String management**. In addition to the content itself, the software always includes various elements like buttons, navigation, pop-ups, notifications, etc. Managing these content strings and maintaining consistency throughout the project can be challenging when the team handles them manually. Managing and organizing strings and building a simple and scalable process for them is nearly impossible without tools created for this task. Something can be lost; others use non-actual versions or missed, etc.
2. **Content translation**: To translate CMS content without a translation management system, the team should constantly import/export files, which becomes annoying, especially when it is needed to update small changes. Imagine that when you decide to change, for example, a feature name or make some terms translation differ, your team should spend a significant time importing and exporting all the needed files or opening each page and changing them one by one. 
3. **Collaboration**. Localizing CMS content requires the involvement of developers, translators, and often designers, marketers, and QA. Thus, all these people need a transparent communication and collaboration process, which is hard to build from scratch. 
4. **Multilingual SEO**. Besides the content for users, when going to a new market, companies should consider the requirements of the [search engines](/blog/seo-for-multilingual-websites), such as metadata optimization, hreflang preparation, interlinking, etc. 
5. **Continuous localization**. As with any other product, the CMS localization is an ongoing process, and the translation should go in parallel with the development process to have a fast time-to-market. If your translators wait for the ready feature/page/etc. to start the translation, the company will lose precious time. 
As a localization management platform provider, we know about all these main and other tiny nuances. That's why our team is always focused on processed optimization by their automation.

### How does the Lingohub support the Storyblok localization?
Previously, our users had to use the Storyblok import/export abilities to extract data from their workspace. They uploaded the files to Lingohub for translation and then exported and re-uploaded the translated files back to Storyblok. It doesn't sound like the most effective way, does it? 

To save our clients time, we built a smooth integration that allows them to connect their Storyblok workspace to Lingohub with a few clicks and pull/push data within seconds. Setting up this authentication is as easy and takes minutes to prepare. You only need to generate an access token and enter it into the Storyblok workspace plugin inside the Lingohub app.

Read our Help Center → How to connect the Storyblok workspace to Lingohub.


Let's overview a few cases that Lingohub-Storyblok integration can successfully cover. 
1. **Terms consistency keeping**. The Lingohub [term base](/features/term-base) can contain all the project-related terms and their translation rules. You can mark the term untranslated or provide preferred/admitted options for translators. The best thing is that the glossary applies to your entire Lingohub workspace, no matter which type of project you created, which means that besides Storyblok content, your other texts, like emails, will use the same terminology.
2. **More context**. We usually repeat in our blog that [context](/blog/why-is-context-important-in-localization) is essential to success. We are not only talking about this but also designed a list of tools aimed at providing it, namely:
- Terms' **images and descriptions**. Besides the translation inside the glossary, you can add the image that represents the term and helpful information;
- **Context images** are screenshots of your software so translators can see where exactly the specific text segment is located. To simplify the process, they can be uploaded manually or automatically to Lingohub.
- **Segment descriptions** that all localization participants can edit — developers in the resource file and translators/managers inside Lingohub Editor. 

- **Quick "try-on" of new languages**. To understand the design changes for a new language, you need to see what it will look like inside current layouts. Waiting until the translation is fully ready isn't a best practice; the more suitable option is to use our AI pre-translation feature. The process will take less than 5 minutes: pull the stories you want to translate inside Lingohub, pre-translate them in a few clicks, and push back. That's all — your pre-translated content will be visible inside Storyblok.
- **Simplified quality assurance**. Lingohub provides an inbuilt [quality check](/features/quality-checks) tool that prevents issues with HTML tags, markups, duplications, line breaks, etc. Thus, you can reduce the number of tasks for the QA team, and they can focus on the more essential things that look for human error described. 

## Let's start right now
It's better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times. That's why we suggest you try all the abilities of Lingohub-Storyblok integration for yourself. Sign up to Lingohub and test all the features and integration for 14 days for free. No credit card is required. 

If you need any support or have questions, schedule a [demo call](/demo). Our team will show you how Lingohub works and provide the best practices for your organization. 

**Stay awesome!**


Want to translate your Storyblok content faster and easier? Read this article to learn the key to success.


Localization of your Storyblok CMS

One of the important aspects of localization is the technical side, as this is a significant factor in localization speed and cost. Developers work with resource files, implement new translations, and are responsible for the correct work of localized software versions. But what will happen if developers, instead of the technical part, upload and download resource files and spend time and effort on manual tasks? The technical team will be frustrated by the constant back and forth of the files, distracting them from important tasks and slowing down the processes. 
However, we know how to prevent this situation and ensure everything is done correctly. Let's start with the basis and overview of Git and its ability to be used in development. Then, till the end of this article, you will get the best practice of organizing the technical side of localization.

## Git in a nutshell
Git is a utility for tracking and maintaining a history of file changes. The system enables developers to track modifications and work on the same project simultaneously with colleagues. 
The primary function of Git is to provide developers with version control and tracking changes; thus, engineers can roll back changes, compare and analyze versions, or merge changes into a repository. 
**Here, we combine the list of factors that condition the popularity of Git:**
- Free and open-source;
- Small and fast - all operations are local;
- Data safety: Git is efficient at storing backups.
- Simple branching: Git makes branch management much easier and more efficient.
- Version control: Simplified code rollback to a working state and avoided spending hours looking for errors.

For comfortable collaboration with the code, teams often use web Git hosting services, which fit the requirements for teamwork and provide a list of abilities for CI/CD. Take a look at an example of such solutions:
- GitHub
- Bitbucket
- GitLab
- AWS
- CodeCommit
- Azure
- JetBrains Spaces
- etc.

Let's overview Git's collaboration with the web hosting services on the Git+GitHub example.

## Git + GitHub: how does this work?

As mentioned above, Git is a tool for implementing a distributed version control system. GitHub is an online Git-hosting service with all the distributed version control and source control functionality — everything Git supports and more. In addition to GitHub, other services such as Bitbucket and GitLab also use Git. 

Let's take a look at GitHub's additional capabilities.
- convenient UI,
- boosted access control, 
- issues tracking, 
- task management,
- analytics,
- wiki for each project,
- **CI/CD pipelines** (actions),
- and more 

Let's examine Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery more closely. This approach speeds up development, automates the process of building, testing, and deploying software, avoids early-stage mistakes, and minimizes risks. 

GitHub actions allow the creation of any automated workflow with the code. For example, developers can provide tests across multiple operating systems and versions, validate code, compile and log all changes (CI process), and automatic assembly deployment in production, test, or development environments (CD process). After committing to GitHub, the changes will be automatically built, tested, and placed in the needed environment. Different events can trigger GitHub actions, e.g., after pushing a commit in the branch, pull request, or by schedule (once per day/week at the same time.)

Regarding localization, CI/CD pipelines allow easy handling of software versions in different languages. Developers can configure a **separate pipeline for each localized version**, ensuring the localization changes are appropriately integrated, tested, and deployed. To create such a smooth and automated localization process, teams require a translation or [localization management system](/) (TMS/LMS) that allows file transfer between the editing environment and the repositories. 

## Why does the TMS system need repository integrations?
The market for translation management systems is vast and offers various solutions. One essential thing to consider when choosing a solution for your team is the support of repository integration. Localization implies communication between at least two teams — translators and developers, so the smoother this process is, the more time and cost-saving localization you have.


We designed Lingohub with customers' needs in mind, so our solution supports GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Azure, etc., integrations which, in combination with CAT tools, will allow translators and developers to do their work without worrying about manual file transferring. The file import or export can be done in a few clicks, and you will know that all placeholders and technical nuances are correct as they are controlled by the [quality checks tool](/features/quality-checks). 

In the context of this topic, an additional Lingohub feature that requires a deep overview is **branching support**. This magic wand allows your team to take advantage of all the advantages of Git and repository integrations we provide.

## What is branching?
Branches are a tool that allows developers to work separately on different features/processes and keep the main code clean. For example, you can have a branch "main" with the clean project code, a separate branch for a new feature "**feature_1**", or release, "**release_1**", etc, and work with each independently. At the same time, you can create unlimited branches, and in each branch, you can commit changes. Also, the additional branches can be merged with the main one if/when needed. So, this is a safety and collaborative feature that ensures code correctness and isolates the development of the specific part of the project.

In turn, we at Lingohub provide a branching feature that allows our users to localize branches’ files and work with them directly. With Lingohub, you can connect as many branches as you need and filter them to keep only the required ones. Thus, the localization process does not violate the logic of project development; your team can work with individual parts of the project and easily implement the localization into the CI/CD process, which ensures continuous localization. Let's take a quick look at how Lingohub branches work.

## How to work with Git branches with Lingohub?


> Find detailed guidelines on how to work with branching inside our Help Center  → [How to use branching in Lingohub](https://help.lingohub.com/en/articles/6816754-how-to-use-branching-in-lingohub)?


To overview this topic, we first need to describe the Lingohub plugins briefly. In Lingohub exist two plugin types:
- **Workspace-based plugins**, which are responsible for settings across the entire workspace.
- **Project-based plugins**, which are defined by the project type and configure the connection for a specific project(s.) 

So, the Lingohub user should connect the repository (for example, GitHub) to the workspace via a plugin, create a project, and set up the Git plugin inside the project (see image below). 



## How can the branches be used?

After successfully setting up the connection between your repository and Lingohub, you can use the following advantages of the branching feature:

- **Focus only on important things with the branch filters**. Lingohub supports regular expressions that simplify the filtering process; for example, in the feature* expression, the asterisk matches zero or more characters. Read details about the [branching](https://help.lingohub.com/en/articles/6816754-how-to-use-branching-in-lingohub) in the help center article.

- **Push directly or create pull requests for the defined branch**. The second option (pull requests) is preferable because it is more secure, protects your project from code issues, and allows code review. It is the most common flow in the most significant part of a complete project. Use the push directly option only if you are 100% confident with the changes.


- **Control the progress per branch.** You can have different numbers of languages for each branch and monitor the progress separately within one project.

- **Work with separate branches in Editor**. The ready filters allow translators to select the needed branch in a few clicks.


## Bottom line

Repository integration to TMS is required for all who want to build a smooth and continuous localization process. Lingohub offers integrations with repositories such as GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure, which, in combination with the branching feature, allow organically included localization in the CI/CD process and assist the comfortable work with the translations and resource files. Our team will gladly demonstrate how this option can work with your repository at the short demo call, so don't hesitate to [book a suitable time](/demo) for you right now.  

Discover how Lingohub confidently implements branching feature for localization in our informative article. Learn more about branching abilities and Git and localization features.

Importance of branching and repository integrations in localization

> Translation Quality Assurance should be an essential section of all software localization processes. 

## Translation quality assurance basics 
Translation and localization might differ, but whichever process is in question - they should both end in quality assurance. While QA is often an afterthought, it can be a massive saviour of resources (time & costs) and ensure products are delivered to the target audience and received as intended. 

You can count on poorly translated content to raise distrust among your customers, while poor localization can downright bring misunderstandings, confusion, or even [offense](/blog/translation-versus-localization-dont-be-a-wax-tadpole). TQA is the last step towards assuring a well-adapted product that speaks to your customers through content and cultural lenses. 

## What is translation quality?
Translation quality is not easy to determine, especially if we consider how many different stakeholders are involved in the investment in the product, participate in the translation, or those who use it.

Quality translation might mean your translation of optimal accuracy, delivered within (or earlier than) the deadline. For a translator, quality translation means the right localized content. But in the end, the user makes the call, and her behavior will tell us if the quality matches the expectations. In other words: if people don't use your product, you might want to re-evaluate your copy & translation quality.

The variations are endless, but what all quality translations have as a standard solution is an intersection of all these elements and perspectives as much as possible harmony. High-quality translation and localization will provide the end user with an authentic product experience by maintaining linguistic and cultural standards within the project scope. 

## Translation quality process
A good translation quality process has a couple of different stages that span across and go in line with the development process. We are inclined to believe that the process looks something like this:
1. Internationalization
2. Localization
3. Quality assurance

While many companies opt for this approach, a couple of hidden bums are on that road. Here's what we've discovered can save you a lot of time and headache along the way:
- **Pre-localization checks: source content verification** 

Often, issues during localization come from intangible or incorrect source text. If you are fortunate and you're doing your localization with the help of a very skilled linguistic professional, they can catch the mistake and correct it. It's more likely, however, that the translator will get confused and have to check for the meaning of the source text, which results in delays and corrections on both sides. 
The worst-case scenario is if you rely solely on machine translation and have yet to assure the source content accuracy beforehand. This scenario might land you and your product with a place on a list called "The best translations fail" or similar. 

- **Functional testing: grammar, placeholders, and commas**

Functional testing comes right after the localization, or "first draft translations." Functional testing targets inconsistencies such as spell checking, grammar, presence of placeholders, formatting, multiple spaces, repeated words, [plurals](/blog/pluralization), and consistency of upper and lower case letters. 

Functional testing is often automated or implemented through machine engines and [CAT tools](/features/). This speeds up the process significantly but may lead to missed or even false checks. The missed quality checks are mistakes the computer or tool cannot see. False checks are checks the computer detects, although they make sense. For example, think of Microsoft Word and a spell checker that lights up whenever you type an unusual name. 

- **Linguistic testing: meaning behind the content**

Linguistic testing is usually the most demanding step of the process, where you will probably want to have language professionals on your team. Linguistic testing ensures the content's meaning and intention are properly conveyed in the localized, target content. 

Additionally, in this stage, you want to ensure complete consistency in your localized product. For example, if several translators worked on your project, they may have used different terms to translate the same thing. In this case, translation is usually correct from the functional point of view - not accurate for your specific project. Aside from professional translators, you need a [term base](/features/term-base) or [translation memory](/features/translation-memory) for this step. 

Term bases and translation memories are collections of terms and preferred translations that suit your project. This can be the perfect guideline for your translators. If you have assured it at the beginning of the project, the translators or machine translation engines will probably be able to implement it from the very start of the process. This means less editing, fewer corrections in the TQA process, and money and time saved. 

- **Visual testing: the feel-good check**

Visual testing is the perfect stage to bring in native speakers and beta testers. Once content consistency and accuracy have been verified in the previous steps, you can get valuable feedback from would-be users. They can give you input on the layout, the amount of content, and how user-friendly it is. 

This is especially relevant if you are localizing for a market that is culturally very different from the one for which the source product was developed. Visual testing is crucial if you translate into [Right-to-Left languages](/blog/right-to-left-vs-left-to-right) or vice versa. 
The essential value of the visual testing of your translation is that it evaluates the "feel-good factor" or the user experience - how well adapted your localized product is to your target users and how close to the original creation of the product is. 


## Ideal translation quality assurance team

When you think of an Ideal Translation Quality Assurance Team, your mind probably goes to an image of some multilingual version of Shakespeare. Sadly, that wouldn't be the best option for two reasons: firstly, because Shakespeare was notorious for making up new words when he couldn't find a fitting one, and secondly, well, he's currently indisposed. 
There are, however, skills and people you need on your side in this adventure:

- **Engineers & Developers** - people with product knowledge are crucial. They are the ones that are the backbone for translators and language professionals. They know what each section is supposed to do and what should be the result of each action. 
- **Translators** - make the words say what you want them to speak in as many languages as you wish. Finding reliable, trustworthy translators with a good track record is priceless. A good translator will cut your QA process significantly, and an excellent translator will give you the illusion that you don't even need a QA process. 
- **Editors** - a perfect editor is a language professional, a native speaker, and understands your product from the user's point of view. 
- **QA professionals** - QA testers will understand the process and deliver you the results you hope - they have the knowledge and experience. If you don't have access to QAs or your QA is busy on other projects, ensure your translation management platform streamlines the process for other team members as much as possible. This will not compensate for the issue entirely but will save you time and avoid trouble.
- **Beta users** - Native speakers who can do the visual testing and don't necessarily have to be software engineers or language professionals. They can give you the paramount insight if your localized product can enter the race for market domination or if you're on the slippery slope of mistranslation.

## TQA Approaches
There are different approaches to translation and localization quality assurance. The division can be made by focusing on which stage of the process QA happens, which tools are used, or simply by the ones performing the QA. 
In general, we can easily see the two main approaches: 

**1. Quality Assurance systems & tools**.
These quality checks - <a href="https://lingohub.com/blog/translation-quality-assurance-tqa-best-practices-for-software-localization">translation quality management</a> systems are automated and usually go hand-in-hand with Machine Translation. This solution is perfect for acceleration, especially in functional testing - spell checks, placeholders, formatting - all of this can be reviewed with a high success rate using CAT tools. With a high level of success, good QA can help you verify the consistency of term usage and employ a verified Translation Memory. 

The usual downside is that most TQA tools operate on a bilingual level. This means that it's possible to find inconsistencies between the source and target language, but if there are more significant issues that need to be resolved, most TQA tools won't help you tackle this issue. 

Since Lingohub founders encountered this issue so often in their localization experience, one of the main features they wanted for the Lingohub app was the possibility of editing multiple translations. This sped up the localization process by streamlining the editing and functional testing using Lingohub's Side Panel. 

It's fair to say that our biased love towards this Lingohub feature came from years of navigating between 5 or more translators and translations when only one placeholder had to be changed. Our life is easier for it, and we hope it will make your life easier.

**2. Native language professionals**. Native speakers who are native language professionals are the dream of any developer diving into localization. Using language professionals brings more accuracy to your localization than basic Machine Translation. They will be able to catch logical mistakes and inconsistencies and bring higher value to your overall UX. 

However, even the best language professionals are human, and CAT tools can only solve some things. Relying entirely on human QA testers means your process will be slower than automated QA tools. If you have fixed deadlines and need a quick turnaround, you might be in a situation where you have to sacrifice either time or quality.

**3. The hybrid quality assurance approach**. Choosing to sacrifice either product delivery time or the quality of the localized product is usually a nightmare for any Product owner and manager. We don't believe in this compromise, so the Hybrid Quality Assurance Approach works best for us. **What does it mean?**

Based on the principles of [Continuous Translation](/blog/role-continuous-translation-agile-software-development-workflows), a hybrid approach synchronizes as much as possible different stages of QA testing (source content verification, functional and linguistic testing) by applying simultaneously both QA tools and language professionals. 
- Possibility of editing source text quickly at any time. 
- Term Bases and Translation Memory are actively used by the translators in the localization process, not just for last-phase review.
- [Quality Checks](/features/quality-checks) are displayed in real-time, so translators can immediately adapt the content in the localization process.
- Placeholders are detected in a real time.
- Access to functional testing across different target languages in one window.
- History of changes at a glance and possibly reverting to previous solutions. 
- Use translators as beta testers - we recommend providing translators with access to either beta versions of your software or at least visuals and action context. This way, the translators get to provide translation that aligns with the desired user experience.

The hybrid approach to TQA is quick and flexible, allowing acceleration of the translation & localization process without sacrificing the quality. The downside is that a messy translation management platform might confuse team members. Simple features and intelligent solutions - that's the type of tools you want for your team. 

## TQA future 
No matter how good, at the moment, QA software is still just a machine that can overlook the nuances of human language. Just because mistakes are not detected - doesn't mean they aren't there. On the other hand, even the best human language professionals are still just human and cannot compete with machines regarding translation speed. 

With that in mind, it's fair to say that there is great potential for using Artificial Intelligence in the translation quality assurance processes. The technology is going full speed ahead, and we at Lingohub are doing our best to be part of the race with our Linguist project. In the meantime, we put our trust and faith into the hybrid quality assurance approach. 


Discover the essential strategies for Translation Quality Assurance (TQA) in software localization. Learn best practices to ensure accurate and high-quality translations for your global audience.

Translation quality assurance (TQA) - best practices for software localization

Localization is more than translation. In terms of localizing web apps, it means going beyond translating your app into different languages and onto full-on adaptation to a country or region. The goal is to provide local users with a custom-made user experience.

## Why localize your web apps?

Because English is still just another language.

Because huge non-English markets, such as [China](/blog/market-spotlight-china-app), are teeming with potential, and the key to unlocking them - is <a href="https://lingohub.com/use-cases/web-app-localization">web app localization</a>. Localizing your app allows you to enter a new market, gain visibility exposure, and thrive.


### Gold standards


- UTF-8. Everywhere. Having UTF-8 will save you a lot of trouble.
- Avoid adding text to images. Opt instead to use CSS and simply overlap the text.
- Adding a class name that relates to the locale in the body tag of the document can help you specify a layout for a specific locale in the CSS file easily.
- Geolocation is an easy solution but not always the right fit for detecting a user’s locale. Don’t forget to provide users with an option to switch between languages easily.
- Do not hardcode your content.

## Plan the localization of your web apps

Before localization - there is internationalization. Internationalization is the process of making sure your app is localization-friendly. This means it is not hard-coded, that the source code is separated from the actual dynamic content, which will be translated and localized. Internationalization done well and timely will save you time and money once the localization process starts.
1. **Select target markets**. One of the first questions that obviously comes to mind when localizing your web apps is, “Which languages and which countries?”.
2. **Focus your resources**: the best localization is smart, well-thought-out localization. Just because there are thousands of languages available, it doesn’t mean all will work for your app and your overall market expansion goals. Choose your markets carefully. If your app is already published, checking the current stats will help you see where there might be untapped potential.
3. **Analytics**. If you already have a web or mobile app, check your app analytics to identify countries and markets that are already using your product. If you don’t have an app, you might be able to do some competitive research to see which apps are localized to which markets.
4. **Market research**. Keep in mind that different countries have different popularity in browsers and customized versions of operating systems. You need to know those details before getting started with your actual localization project.


## Choosing a translation management system

Managing app localization & translation projects for web apps used to be a messy topic. Files were sent between translators, developers, and product people, resulting in outdated translations and poor quality. An <a href="https://lingohub.com">online translation management tool </a> - such as Lingohub - takes care of this process and manages all translations in one place, making it easy for everyone involved to collect, translate, and review content

Some features & benefits of a translation management system:
- **Integration in development workflow**: It allows seamless integration and sync between the development process and the translation work. Meaning: The translation is a continuous effort, and as soon as new features are programmed, the copy is made available for translation.
- **Editing & Review**: It allows translators to do the translation job and review existing translations easily.
- **Quality control tools** ensure that all translations are correct and in the right place.
- **Automation with [Translation Memory](/features/translation-memory) & [Machine Translation](/features/machine-translation)**: speed up the process and ensure consistency throughout all phases of the project.


## Managing translators
 
When translating your app, you most likely rely on human resources that can help you with your localization efforts. This means hiring professional translators or finding people on your team who speak the local language and are able to help with the translation efforts.

Great translation management systems also allow you to hire professional translators for various languages directly through their system. This takes away the hassle of manually researching, hiring, and managing them, as everything is done through one system.

Whether you opt for [hiring external translators ](/features/professional-translation)or bringing one on your team, think about the translators in time. Be sure to provide them with enough context so that they can provide you with the best possible service.
Translating text segments will go faster and easier if the translators understand the context of the text, where it will be positioned, and what outcomes actions will deliver. Consider providing the translators with either access to the source app or at least visual cues and explanations.

## Localizing text & non-string content

Text localization comes into play once internationalization is done and once you have selected your preferred locales.
The locale will then influence beyond the text, such as currencies, time and date layout, measurements, numbers, etc. This is where good internationalization pays off big time.
One of the main challenges of text localization is certainly pluralization. Make sure your text segments are pluralization-friendly and that there’s enough space in the layout for all variants.

## Localizing visual content
App development and design should be done with localization in mind. Since different languages require different spacing and layout, be sure your app’s interface will be localization-friendly from the visual point of view as well.
For example, your app localized to right-to-left languages might require a completely different user interface from your original one. While some languages have larger font sizes, the words are usually shorter. On the other hand, some languages have many compounds that take more space than typical English words do.

Visual localization of your web app can include changes in navigation elements, color schemes, pictures, videos, etc.
Different countries and cultures have different understandings of colors, and understanding that can be crucial. For example, the red color in some countries is used to signal danger, while in other cultures, it’s considered the bringer of good luck.

## Beyond basics
How localized your app (and how successful it is) will depend greatly on how well you have researched your desired market. For example, while you might translate the sign-up page of your app into Mandarin, it might not generate as much visibility and use as you have desired.
Why? Because the sign-up page offers a Facebook or Google sign-in option but not a WeChat account, which dominates the Chinese app market.

## Don’t forget! 
Localization of the Privacy guidelines and In-app purchases is a must, especially if the market you have your eyes set on has strict legal provisions for user privacy protection. Know your audience and deliver accordingly.

## Testing your localized web apps
Test, test, test - before releasing your app to the new market, ensure you have it checked, used, and reviewed by native speakers.

There are various web app testing approaches available. Functional testing, for example, ensures that the web app’s functionality and performance aren’t affected by the localization done. At this point, the person running the test doesn’t necessarily need to understand the localized languages.
Don’t forget to test for different browsers - Internet Explorer, Chrome, Safari - whatever your future users will be using, you need to be sure it has been checked.

In addition, conducting user tests (such as alpha or beta tests) will ensure that the app is working properly while all translations are correct. This test needs to be done by native speakers that understand the translated languages.
Lastly, stay open to feedback. Even the best localization can be improved upon. Listen to your users and provide them with an opportunity to share their feedback - and then evolve further.

Lingohub collected the main tips for web app localization. Read the best practices of how to translate and adapt your software in our blog. 


Best practices: Localization & translation of your web apps

Best Practices: Localization & translation of your web apps

Our world is focused on continuous globalization, eliminating borders between cultures and enabling people from various regions to communicate effectively. Businesses in such a globalized environment usually compete to cover as many audiences as possible and be closer to customers from different parts of the world. Because of this, localization became a trend and still keeps and empowers its position.

We are pretty sure that during your professional way, at least once, you faced situations when the procedures for some projects were built without clear rules. As a result, somewhere in the middle of the chaos, the team starts to "rake" tasks, reschedule the roadmap and fix issues in "fast mode." Localization is not an exception. It is a complex process that requires budgeting, management, and control. Because of this, the <a href="https://lingohub.com/use-cases/collaborative-localization">localization management platform</a> became one of the critical tools in localization, and our team aims to provide a detailed analysis of choosing the best solution step by step.

## Why do companies need translation management tools?

Let's look at a few cases:

1. **The business already has a multilingual software/website.** Your team regularly develop/update features, publish new or edit old pages (create unique content). The localization process should parallel the development to keep the language versions high quality and deliver them on time. Without TMS, your team will be forced to communicate much more, import/export/forward files continuously, and as a result, misspend their time.
2. **The business wants to localize existing product(s).** Adapting the entire software/website/app from scratch also requires much work. In addition to creating general documentation, glossaries, strategies, etc., adapting existing interfaces, internationalizing the project code, and establishing effective team communication is essential. This may seem like a daunting task, but implementing a translation management system can simplify the localization process by consolidating communication, KPI tracking, progress tracking, and translation activities into a single interface.

## How to choose the TMS for your project?

There is a great variety of translation and localization management systems on the market. They offer different features, pricing, packages, etc., so you are guaranteed to find something that will cover your needs and more.

### Step 1. Define your objectives and business expectations

What are you expecting from the translation management system? Which exact processes do you want to cover via it? These and the questions below will support you with the first research. Also, remember the scalability of the TMS. Will this tool at the same level cover the growing requirements, additional languages, team members, etc? Approach this issue responsibly because starting with the right tool from scratch is much easier and cheaper than switching to the other in the future.

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**Note**: We at the Lingohub team understand this point pretty well and as a result provide support and discounts for clients who want to switch to our solution.

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So, at this stage, your main tasks are:

- Determine the languages and content you need to translate. 
- Create a map of the existing translation process that shows how your team members are involved, which tools are used, and any issues that may arise. 
- Identify the areas where a TMS can improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness by identifying bottlenecks. 
- Prepare tentative forecasts of how your requirements will grow.

### Step 2. Understand the localization team's needs

One of the essential tasks of the transition management system is to support your team and, as a result, increase its productivity. Include their feedback in your checklist - ask them about pitfalls, bottlenecks, and issues. Generally, the localization process included the following roles:

1. **Developers (for software companies).** The main task of developers is to deliver the code for the project and keep it stable. The worst thing you can suggest for developers to do is manually import and upload files to the repository and then search for the missing tag or placeholder that ruined a page or code. So, look for a solution that allows smooth integrations, API, and other features to improve automation in development.
2. **Localization/product managers.** It will be helpful to find a system that allows a simple overview of the project's progress, and budgets, control localization documentation, and communication with the team. 
3. **Linguistic team.** Experienced translators often already work with some CAT(computer-assisted translation) tools. When choosing a TMS, be sure it will at least cover the same tasks. Ask the linguistic team in detail to describe what additional things they would love to implement - the speed of translators often dictates the speed of the complete localization.
4. **Designers.** Your interfaces, animations, and general images will be changed during the localization. The ability to get fast feedback and fit the texts in a short time is essential for designers' work. 
5. **Sales, marketing, and support teams**. These teams do not directly translate content, but all their appeals to the audience must have a single tone of voice and terms. In the new version of the app, it's important that everyone uses consistent terminology. For instance, if your feature is called "glossary" in the original and in the new language version named "словник (vocabulary)," the support team and marketers should use this exact word in their communications and materials. With the correct TMS, you can get not only a management solution but a single source of trust for the entire team.

### Step 3. Evaluate TMS features and functionality

After the previous steps, you have a list of requirements from the business and team sides. It is the best time to create a complete checklist that will include 100% of your localization needs and begin testing the market propositions.

Start with the banalest - ensure that the solution is user-friendly. The intuitive interface with clear navigation, suggestions, and ready documentation for tech and non tech teams will save you much time during onboarding. Remember that part of your team (translators, linguists) will spend a lot of time in this interface, so the app should be straightforward, bug-protected, and visually pleasing. The following general things you may check are:

- Repositories, applications and other integrations.
- Supported file formats.
- Management features based on your team requirements, but mostly it will be abilities to track progress, money spending, activities control, etc.
- Check CAT features - how they work, which file formats support? Will importing some documents (translated texts) into TMS be easy (if you already have them)?
- Also, we suggest considering the machine translation quality(which engines are under the hood.)

#### 3\.1 Automation abilities

Automation features are one of the main advantages of TMS systems. Exclusion of users from part of the processes can save a lot of resources for your business and avoid human mistakes. We already discussed the integrations preventing manual file forwarding, but let's look deeper. For example, Lingohub provides a list of features and their combinations that can significantly save time. Let's look at one for each participant of the localization:

1. **For translators.** [Prefill](/p/prefill)\+machine translation/translation memory. That means all empty segments could be automatically filled, and your team skipped the pre-translating stage. 
2. **For managers.** [Quality checks](/p/lingochecks) that check segments according to predetermined rules (missed or additional placeholders, line breaks, additional spaces, etc.) 
3. **For developers.** Smooth [integrations](/p/integrations) of your resource files will reduce hours of manual work. Your development team can push your changes directly to the GIT repository(into a specific branch) or create a pull request.
4. **For designers.** <a href="https://www.figma.com/community/plugin/1091712683693829044" rel="nofollow" target="\_blank">Figma plugin</a> that allows fast fit of the pre-translated/translated texts to understand required changes.

   #### 

#### 3\.2 Security and сonfidentiality

Data security is paramount when dealing with sensitive or confidential information. Ensure the TMS you choose adheres to industry-standard security protocols and complies with relevant data protection regulations. Look for features such as secure data storage, user access controls, API logs, and audit logs. A TMS provider should have a strong track record in data security and be transparent about their practices.

### Step 4. The company's reputation and responsiveness

"*Web remembers everything."* The company's reputation is also an essential part of research. The review platforms like <a href="https://www.capterra.com/p/176248/Lingohub/reviews/" rel="nofollow" target="\_blank">Capterra</a> or <a href="https://www.g2.com/products/lingohub/reviews" rel="nofollow" target="\_blank">G2</a> can give you a more detailed understanding of the TMS provider and its system. You can find the solution's pros and cons faster and understand the critical disadvantages (if they exist).

Also, take your attention to the politics of the company about localization support. Will they help you in case of some problems? When implementing and using a TMS, it's essential to have a reliable customer support system in place. You should evaluate the available options, such as email, phone, or live chat, to ensure they meet your organization's needs. Also, look at the localization service provider's training and onboarding resources - help centers, developers' documentation, etc. With comprehensive training documents, your team members can become proficient in using the system and take full advantage of its capabilities.

## The sum up

Selecting the appropriate translation management system is essential for boosting your team's efficiency and the accuracy of your translations. Lingohub was created with the aim of delivering a comprehensive localization overview, easy management, and effective CAT tools for our customers. Our feature list caters to all localization participants, including managers, translators, designers, and developers.

We could say more, but it's better for you to see it with your own eyes. Schedule a quick [demo](https://lingohub.com/demo) call with our team to get exhaustive information about Lingohub in context with your business and answers to your questions.

Choosing a translation management system is often a challenge. Which one to choose, and how to find the best one? In this article, the Lingohub team overviewed this question. Click and read more in our blog.


How to choose best translation management system for your business?

As soon as a company decides to grow and expand internationally, the localization process becomes essential. The accurate-adopted content, culture-oriented communication, and unique selling point ensure that the company reaches relevant audiences with the correct language at the right time. Localization requires a clear understanding of users' needs and cultural sensitivities. It must consider various factors, such as the target audience's expectations, preferences, habits, etc. A successful localization strategy involves careful planning and collaboration among C-level, marketing, development, analytics, and other teams. This article will discuss some of the most important factors to consider when developing a localization strategy for your business.

## What is the localization strategy?

A localization strategy includes the direction for the company's communication with the new audience, correct content adaptation (images, texts, etc.), marketing campaigns, design (UI/UX), and other elements. It also includes optimizing marketing channels, purchasing policies, pricing systems, etc.

## How to build a successful localization strategy?

Building the localization strategy is a complex challenge that requires time, a professional team, and budgeting. This process aims to prepare:

- a clear understanding of your product and industry on the other local market;
- a transparent timeline and scope of work;
- exact steps to reach goals and KPIs.

## Stage 1. Analytics

At this stage, you need to research all the information about the target market, audience, and competitors deeply. Clarify the following things:

- is your product relevant in this region;
- does your product fit cultural values;
- what language(s) are preferable in the region? (For example, in Switzerland, German is spoken by about 60%, French by about 20%, and Italian by about 8% of the country's population.) Read more about interesting language facts on our [twitter](https://twitter.com/Lingohub?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor).

- **Who** will be your customers, and what are the differences between the current audience and the new (from financial, social, etc. sides)?
- **How** significant is the market share of your product?
- **How** your competitors talk to the clients?
- **What** services do your competitors use for payments, call scheduling, etc?
- **What** advantages and disadvantages your product has in comparison with other providers?

Also, you need to calculate your resources (team members, working hours you can spend on localization) and timeline. Decide how many additional costs you can allocate to the localization tools and employees like translators, local experts, etc.

## Stage 2. Planning

Once you have all the data, let's plan what will be localized. In this list besides your product can be included:

- help documentation;
- marketing content (decide if you will create additional social media pages for the region, adapt tutorials, informational videos, presentations, etc.)
- sales content - unique selling propositions, pitches, emails, presentations, etc.;
- visual content (images, symbols, etc.;)
- other content (currencies, day and time format.)

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With the information from the first two stages, you will have clear answers to the following questions:

- **Where** will you promote the product?
- **For whom** will you promote the product?
- **What** are the nuances of the new market?
- **How much** work is expected?
- **What** resources do you already have?
- **What** additional resources does your product need to be localized in time?

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## Stage 3. Unification

Great, you already know how to talk to your customers, have planned the scope of work, and are ready to start. Wait a little more.

Localization is a long-term process that means different people will work on it at different times. An example, you will need to hire extra translators in the middle of the process or adapt one more landing page after the launch. One more situation -  imagine if your sales and marketing team will use different narratives in the communication process with clients.

You must create the exact rules to ensure understanding inside the team and between your product and customers. In the localization process, it can be:

-  [Style guide](/p/style-guides). The document will detail all audiences (age, category, etc.) and the linguistic rules for talking with them (tone of voice, grammatical person, and so on.)   
- [Term base](/p/termbases) or glossary. This document will prevent a list of issues with titles, untranslated word usage, and proper names.) Additionally, you can add the right keywords for multilingual SEO to cut time in the future.

Style guide and term base allow you to include the new team members anytime without long immersion into business processes (an example is when you want to hire a freelance translator.) You will be sure your team understands the business audiences and uses the same vocabulary for communication.

## Stage 4. Choose the right tool for localization

Of course, you can say that you do not need any tools. Your developers manually upload files, managers check all documents, and translators work in the spreadsheets. Moreover, you have all the project info inside Google Drive. What bad can happen? Spoiler - all.

Without the localization tool, your team spends time on manual tasks and, consequently, fires the budget. Translators make human mistakes and break the developers' files, and managers focus on error checking rather than planning and coordinating tasks. The appropriate application will help you avoid a pool of problems and make your localization effective for you and your teams.

**At Lingohub, we say - you create, Lingohub translate**. And this is not an empty phrase. We continuously improve the Lingohub application to cover all possible scenarios and support customers. Let’s take a look how the process works with and without TMS.

### Automate localization with:

- repositories and other tools [integrations](/p/integrations) (GitHub, Gitlab, Figma, Azure, etc.);
- [translation memory](/p/translation-memory) that allows your team no longer translate the same text twice;
- [term base](/p/termbases), which provides the appropriate term spelling;

### Control localization with:

- detailed reports;
- contracts for translators;
- customizable notifications;
- translation history.

### Prevent issues with:

- customizable [quality checks](/p/lingochecks);
- [style guides](/p/style-guides);
- [proofreading service](/p/translation-orders);

### Save time with:

- [machine translation](/p/machine-translation);
- automatically costs calculation;
- [professional translators](/p/translation-orders) service;

**And that's not all.** Branching support, ability to control the user roles, security opportunities (two-factor authentication, SSO, etc.) All these features and many others support developers, designers, translators, and managers on their way.

## Bottom line

A well-designed localization strategy is hours of analysis and planning for different teams. The more responsible you approach this process, the more likely your project will be recognized in the new market, and the localization process will go smoothly and on time. One of the critical aspects is also the suitable localization software choice. The right TMS (translation management software) will cut costs by automation, provide a single source of truth for all the teams, and simplify the entire process.

If you have questions about your project or need more information about Lingohub, our team is always in touch. Book the [demo](/demo), and let's grow together!

Have no idea how to start the localization process? We combined a list of recommendations for creating a perfect localization strategy. Read more in our blog. 