Multilingual Website Design

 search engine marketing

We  webpage designhave used our marketing and website design expertise to build websites in many different languages, including:

  • French, German, Dutch
  • Spanish, Italian, Portuguese
  • Arabic
  • Russian, Turkish, Greek
  • Chinese (traditional), Chinese (simplified), Japanese, Korean
  • Latvian

Some of these websites are maintained by the client using our multi-lingual CMS (content management system).

We can also provide Internet Marketing (search engine optimisation and paid search) in these languages.

Issues to consider when designing websites in other languages

The issues fall into three main areas.

  • Language translation and character set issues
  • Cultural translation
  • Search engines

Language issues for International websites

Translation

Firstly there is the obvious issue of needing to translate the text into the other language. This should be done by a native speaker to get the best translation, and the context is important too. For example, translating the English "home" into the French "maison" may work in a holiday brochure, but not for the homepage of a website which the French call "reception".

Character Set

Different languages use different alphabets. Many Western European languages are based on the Latin Alphabet, but there are differences in letters used and especially accents. Other languages are based on different scripts, for example Cyrillic. These all require different character sets to be used within the website.

Text Direction for International websites

Most languages in the world are written left to right. The most common exceptions are Arabic and Hebrew which are written right to left. And Chinese and Japanese which may be written top to bottom. Most Arabic websites will have text running right to left, For Japanese and Chinese this is more variable, and can even be mixed on one website. Japanese is either left to right or it is in blocks going top to bottom and right to left.

Cultural translation or localisation issues

Formatting of numbers, dates and currency

Different countries use different formats for dates, numbers and currency. Of course many countries with the same language also have differences here. For example the US and UK format dates differently and use different currencies. Other items to consider include telephone numbers and weights and measures.

Cultural issues

The most popular local websites look very different in distinct areas of the world. This is influenced by local media, and cultural values. When translating websites from one culture to another it may be necessary to change visual appearance to match. As an example Chinese websites look very different to Western European ones in terms of amount of content on a page and colours used.

Websites in Other Languages

Website development and Ongoing Internet Marketing

We have also produced micro websites in the following languages:

  • Croatian
  • Korean
  • Latvian
  • Polish
  • Turkish

Contact Us

For a FREE Web Design Quote

Call us on:

+44 (0) 330 555 4680

Web Design Quote

Drop us an Email

Or Follow us on social networks

Browse our site

Website design

Testimonials

Website Design

"For the record I think that you have done a great job for us on our website to date. I greatly appreciate your efforts and hope to continue working with you in other search marketing areas.."

Dominic Higham,
Patient Choice

Website Design

As you know we were really pleased with the Rethink the Horse Tax website you put together for us, and we’re proud to say that the campaign has so far been well received. Over 10,000 people have signed the petition to which the website links, which is great news.

Jonathan Ware, 
PLMR

View what other clients have said

ISO 9001


ISO9001 website design

Email usTel: +44 (0)330 555 4680
X

Our site uses cookies to help provide you the best experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.
Find out more about cookies and how to change your cookie settings in your browser.