Localization: Essential for Competing in the Global Marketplace

By Julie Layden

International trade agreements such as NAFTA (North American Free Trade

Agreement) and GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) have lowered
trade barriers and opened the doors to the world marketplace. With the rapid
worldwide acceptance of ISO 9000, services and processes around the world are
being standardized, assuring the customer of a high level of quality. And, as trade
barriers fall and quality standards rise, overseas trade is intensifying and
overcoming cultural barriers has become increasingly important. Now, more than
ever, showing respect for your customer's culture is crucial to your product's
success in the overseas marketplace.

What is Localization?

Localization is the customization of all components of a product for a particular

target market. These components include user interface (UI), the help system,
printed or online documentation, Web sites, Advertise campaigns, and any other
marketing communication materials for the product. Multilingual vendors like
International Communications become your localization partner offering you the
technical staff and linguistic professionals needed to efficiently manage
multilingual localization projects.

Since different cultures interpret information differently, the localization process

extends beyond mere word-for-word translation. The translation is an art unto
itself. Translators take painstaking measures to assure that they produce a high
quality translation that reflects the original intent of the writer and reads as if it
were written in the target language. At International Communications, in-house
native professional translators lend their knowledge of the culture to every project
on which they work. Since they are natives of the culture and not just students of
the language, they are familiar with all of the nuances and recent changes in the
language. They are also able to ensure that the message is culturally appropriate for
its target market and can provide guidance to your company in writing the original
copy or text.

Internationalization - The First Step

Prior to localization, there is another very important step that prepares your product
to be efficiently localized. Internationalization (I18N) is the process of ensuring
that software can accept features specific to different target markets, i.e., time/date
formats, thereby eliminating core issues during the localization process. When
properly performed, I18N results in a generic product that can be easily localized.

When your company is targeting the Asian markets, your product must be double-
byte enabled, another I18N process. The term "double-byte" describes how most of
the Asian characters need to be specified by two bytes in computer operating
systems. When your product needs to be localized for Asian cultures, double-byte
enabling is a process in which your product is manipulated so that it is able to read
Asian characters as opposed to letters of the alphabet. Double-byte engineers can
identify where technical modifications could expedite the localization process.
After this process is complete, your product is prepared for as many upgrades as
you would like. Once a product is internationalized, it may be localized many
times which can provide greater savings over the long run.

Why Localize?
According to the U.S. State Department, U.S. firms alone lose $50 billion in
potential sales each year because of problems with translation and localization. For
global corporations or those corporations trying to expand their markets,
localization is essential to the success of a product in overseas markets. Most
global end-users prefer to use a product in their own tongue rather than English,
which to them is a second (or third) language. This process ensures that the product
will not only be translated into the appropriate language but it will also be tailored
to fit the local culture. In fact, a product that is localized well will appear as though
it was originally produced in that country.

The localization process enables your company to enter new and growing markets
and to compete effectively. In many countries, language barriers and nationalism
preclude end-users from utilizing English-language software. For example, in
China, the majority of the end-users are not proficient in English and require
software that is written in Chinese. In Germany, most of the natives also speak
English but they, too, prefer their software products to be written in German. These
will have a better chance of competing against German products.an U.S. "800"
toll-free number that terminates in your office, for American/Canadian customers
to call you.

Localization also enables your company to build credibility in non-U.S. markets.

By creating a product in a country's native language, your company conveys a
respect for the culture's history, customs and language. You also demonstrate that
their business is very valuable to you and that you are dedicated to meeting the
needs of all of your customers.

As the name implies, the World Wide Web provides the world with access to your
company's home page. A multilingual Web site is a critical component of your
company's international marketing strategy. Web site localization affords people
from around the world the opportunity to gather information about your products
and services in their own language. As in the localization of your products,
internationalization and cultural nuances will play a role in the Web site
localization process.

The bottom line is that localization can increase your sales and help you to tap into
that lost potential. As your company gains valuable exposure, demand for your
product, and ultimately your sales, will increase.

Localization Options
Depending on the scope of the localization project, you have a few language
partner options: internal staff, translation firm, single language vendor (SLV), and
multilingual vendor (MLV). Each option has advantages and disadvantages.

Internal Staff - Although your internal staff may already have a comprehensive
knowledge of the product and its target market, your staff may also have additional
responsibilities that would slow down the localization process. Your staff not only
needs to be proficient in the specific language but they must also have an
understanding of the cultural nuances. A student of foreign language may not have
the skill for translation as does a professional, native translator. If your company
decides to localize the product in additional languages, your staff would need to
have the ability to translate several other languages as well as an understanding of
the technical issues of localization.

Translation Firm - A general translation firm may provide a quality translation

but it may not have the technical expertise necessary to produce successful
localization.
Single Language Vendor - This type of vendor may have expertise in a specific
language or market but project management may be difficult. You will be
duplicating your efforts in terms of communicating with more than one vendor. As
your company becomes more successful and your market grows, you inevitably
will need to expand to other languages to accommodate the demand in other
countries.

Multilingual Vendor - This type of vendor is considered a full-service localization

vendor who will provide linguistic and technical expertise as well as international
project management experience for as many languages as you need. Your MLV
should be a partner that understands your global marketing strategy. Since they are
the only vendor that will manage the project, this vendor must be chosen very
carefully. During your selection process, you should: check the company's
references, visit the production sites, research whether your vendor has experience
localizing your type of product and discover whether or not they truly have the
technical expertise to handle large products.

How to Conquer the Complexity of Localization

A successful localization project requires a balance of time, cost and quality. With
preparation and communication, your company's localization process will be less
complex. Communication is the key to maintaining this successful partnership with
your language vendor. We offer the following tips:

Your Localization Partner

It is critical to establish a partnership with your localization vendor. The vendor

should meet with you to learn about your international objectives, to discuss how
to manage changes to your product, and to learn about your time- to-market
deadlines. Because localization is complex, you need to feel as though you can rely
on your partner's guidance throughout the localization process. Once you hire an
expert in the industry, you should take advantage of their resources and experience
to get the most out of your partnership. Ultimately, your localization partner should
have a true understanding of your return on investment objectives and goals.

Product Planning for Localization

It is important to plan for the multicultural aspects of your product right from the
start. While designing your product, your developers should be cognizant of
cultural allusions and regional colloquialisms that may not be easily localized.
Writers, marketing planners, technical and graphic artists, programmers and all
members of the production staff should be informed at the beginning that the
product will be utilized by a multicultural audience. Also, it is most efficient to
identify and resolve internationalization issues at the development stage of a
product.

Designate an In-house Project Manager

To ensure a smooth process, an in-house person should be designated to oversee

the localization process. Due to the complexity of the procedure, localization
should not be assigned as an additional responsibility to a staff member but rather
it should be his only responsibility. Since the localization process requires the
reviewer to filter changes, review the process and maintain open communication
with the vendor; it is a full-time commitment. This is true especially if your
product is complex and you plan to localize into more than one language.

Monitoring Changes
In most cases, the vendor is not translating from a final or finished, English-version
of the product but rather from a beta version. Therefore, the company is constantly
making changes and updates as the vendor is executing the localization process. To
avoid wasted time, the company should schedule its updates in advance so that the
vendor may anticipate and plan for the modifications. The company also needs to
clearly identify any changes that need to be made. Your in-house project manager
will be instrumental in the communication process as the main point of contact
with your partner's project manager.

Review

>The company also needs to designate a third-party reviewer, such as a distributor,

to review the localized product. You should inform the reviewer of the amount of
time and work the process will entail so that he has realistic expectations. If the
reviewer doesn't respect the company's timeline or identify his proposed changes
clearly, the localization process can be held up and the final product may be late.

Sequence of Events

The sequence of events is also crucial to a smooth localization process. The ideal is
that the vendor localizes and gets approval for the UI first. Once that is complete
and the translation style has been approved by the company's reviewers, the vendor
will be armed with the specific terminology to be used in the localization of the
help, documentation and accompanying screen shots.

Generally, the UI is the gating item. The faster you review it and abide by the
schedule, the better able your vendor can meet their deadlines. If the company
chooses to review UI, help and documentation at the same time, they will have to
review screen shots taken from software that has not been approved yet. If the
company then decides to make changes, they will have to be made to these three
elements. As a result, the vendor may possibly be repeating steps already taken
such as retaking screen shots. It is also important that the changes are clearly
identified so that the process will move more quickly.

In some cases due to scheduling pressure, you may choose to review the entire
product before the UI is final. In this case, be aware that if the terminology
changes, the vendor will have to go back and change the screen shots. As a result,
there may be an extra cost incurred and it may affect the schedule and deadlines.

Upgrades

Since only the new material needs to be localized, the localization process for
product upgrades can be completed in a shorter amount of time. To ensure the
timely execution of the project, it is important to identify the new or modified
portion of the product. By doing so, the vendor can translate and insert the
specified information into the existing localized product. Since the vendor will not
have to translate the entire product, your company will reap the benefits of a great
time and cost savings. Please note that if changes are scattered throughout the
product, it will be harder to leverage existing material.

Tools

When choosing a localization vendor, you should inquire about the translation
memory tools that your vendor uses. Some vendors will only use specific tools
while others may be willing to use the tool of your choice. In addition to being
adept with most tools on the market, International Communications offers the
services of its own open architecture translation memory technology,
ForeignDeskÙ. Through propagation and leveraging, this suite of tools saves your
company time and money in the localization process. Propagation, or the recycling
of duplicate material within a project, generally achieves a 5% - 20% savings in
localization costs. Leveraging, the recycling of duplicate material from one
upgrade to another, can achieve 10% - 95% savings.

Timing

The company should also be prepared for any unforeseen issues. When making the
announcement about the release of a product or its new version, the company
should be in contact with the vendor to ensure that the timing for the release is
realistic.

By taking the time to understand all of the elements of localization, you will help
to make the localization process faster and easier for your company. Choose an
experienced vendor carefully and get ready to welcome your new overseas
customers.