If you are a software or app developer, it is essential that you be able to reach as many people as you can globally. The way to accomplish this is not only through effective marketing, but by creating consistent documents in different languages so that customers in different parts of the world can read them.
Software can be complicated. So you want to make as many efforts as possible to give accompanying documentation full access to people who buy it. In the sections below, we will take a look at some of the benefits from taking the time to create multilingual software documentation for software and apps and not simply relying on a default language. It will ultimately save time in the end.
What do companies gain from creating multilingual software documentation?
There are numerous benefits to companies who make the effort to create multilingual documentation that is consistent in multiple languages. It might seem like a lot of effort at the beginning, but it will be worth it in the end. And with the right tools, it doesn’t have to be that difficult. You can find many useful programs and easily start translating from the original language to the languages of your choice. Services like Rask AI Platform help you translate video content into more than 130 languages. And you can automate the process with the help of APIs.
Gain a wider audience for your company by translating into multiple languages
People might be interested in your software in theory, but if they don’t know how to read your legal documents and software manuals they will probably end up frustrated in the end. If you take the time to translate it into other languages, you are improving the user experience for your customers and providing different versions of templates to different people to meet global demand.
Users will then be able to make their native languages the default language of the programs for themselves. And this, in turn, will lead to a broader audience for your company’s products. Also, with accurate translations, your company’s image will grow.
How can you do this?
What you need to decide is which languages you want to translate into based upon your potential customer base. This will require research on your part, as you will need to figure out which parts of the world are potentially interested in your software product.
You can do this by conducting market research on your target audience and see where your competitors have high sales. Then you will have to determine which languages are most critical in these regions. And when it comes time for your product release, you will be ready.
Saved costs with an easier translation process
It might seem as if taking on the translation project of translating software materials into the native languages of other regions would be time consuming and a waste of resources, but can actually be quite easy and, with the right tools, can not only save you money that you would have wasted on multiple translators, but actually help you grow.
If you don’t take the time to translate legal documents and other types of company literature, such as software manuals into people’s desired languages, you will likely be bombarded with calls and emails asking for help. You will then have to scramble to find the right people to help you, which will not only drive up your costs, but cause confusion and throw your staff out of their regular routines.Â
If you make the effort to calculate carefully how much it will cost to translate legal documents into several critical new languages that will help you reach a significant market in other countries, you will eventually save huge costs and resources on having to translate later. It is all part of the localization process for new international markets.
Improved product adoption
Product adoption is when people not only become interested in a product, but start actively using it. If people simply purchase a product because it looks potentially interesting, but then they don’t understand its features, this does not result in product adoption. With consistent multilingual software documentation, you have to be especially conscientious about this because poor understanding will mean that customers don’t take advantage of everything that you have to offer.
When people fully adopt your product, it will mean that they fully utilize it, and you will be motivated to refine future editions even further to speak to your audience’s needs. So every translation project that you undertake into people’s native languages and localize in their countries will be well worth your while.
Brand growth
Every company wants to create a strong brand that becomes known globally. For new or small businesses, this can seem like an uphill challenge. So you need to make every possible effort to ensure that people recognize your quality brand for what it is. And part of this is conveying your brand’s consistent message to people in different parts of the world.
Brand recognition is important for many reasons. First of all, customers tend to maintain their loyalty to brands that they know and trust. If your product seems to be just one more of many similar things, people won’t have any reason to distinguish between it and other products. Beyond this, when your brand becomes easily recognizable for people, you will become a go-to company. In other words, people will automatically choose your product over others because it will be a name that they know is established worldwide.
What parts of a user manual can you translate when you create multilingual documentation?
User manuals contain several critical components that are all part of responsible software development. These include the following:
- Tables of Contents. This is where you list the features of your user manual. Tables of Contents are where you direct your users to the different parts of a manual. They are an important part of keeping your users oriented, and they serve as a useful point of reference when people need to look up something specific. If you are putting your Tables of Contents online, you can make each part into a distinct link so that people can automatically navigate back and forth.
- Main link pages. This is where the substance of your guide will be. Each page should contain distinctly separate content and features that are relevant to each page’s title. And they should be optimized for SEO in all of the source languages, and languages that you translate into. They should be integrated yet separate.
- Image and video descriptions. To ensure that your guide is fully readable by people in their preferred languages, you should be sure to translate the descriptions of your images, videos, and any other content that you include. If your guide is online, be sure to include alt descriptions and meta descriptions, as well.
- Optimize across devices. This is an important part of SEO that often goes unnoticed. Be sure that the language you use makes sense across different devices and platforms.
In short, you should make an effort to make all of the relevant user materials for your software and app usage available in the native languages of as many of your users as possible (colonial languages such as French and Spanish are popular, but there are also increasing numbers of users of other language groups). You will surely see results in the form of increased usership, brand recognition, and sales increase within a short period of time.
Conclusion
Tech is global; this is a fact. And while more and more people are learning English, we shouldn’t take for granted that this will be true for everyone who wants to use a software product. And even if people do learn some English, we should remember that software development is complicated and results in a complex subject, and one that needs to be treated with care in order to function properly. Companies that take the time to include translated software instructions and promotional materials will stand a much better chance of making sales in non-English speaking parts of the world, and show their customer support. Don’t let your company fall behind!
Also Read: Benefits of Cloud Integration in Mobile App Development
