How to automate web page translation

The first step in launching cross border e-commerce is translating your website into different languages. In fact, research shows that 65% of web users prefer reading content in their native language rather than a foreign language. But here’s the thing: for e-commerce site managers, translating web pages involves a cost in terms of time and money. Fortunately, it is possible to save time by automating the translation of your website. We explain how!
 

Choose an appropriate translation method

When you want to translate a website, there are three possible approaches:

1. human translation (100% by a human translator)
2. machine translation (100% translated by machine)
3. computer-assisted translation (100% digital tool and 50% human)

Let’s explore the differences between these three methods and those that allow you to automate the translation of your web pages.

Human translation

Human translation is a long-established method of translation which involves using professional translators who are proficient in both the source and target languages. These professionals will translate each word, without using machine translation. This will therefore take a lot of time, increasing translation costs, which may represent a barrier for companies wishing to expand abroad at lower cost.

Is it possible to automate this kind of translation? No! ❌

Computer-assisted translation (CAT)

To move faster and offer more attractive prices to their customers, translation companies have gradually turned to computer-assisted translation. Here, a human translator relies on translation tools (translation memories, terminology bases, segmentation) to translate more in less time.

With this method, translators can, for example, reuse segments of text that have been already translated, enabling them to translate more quickly, particularly when working on large or recurring projects.

In summary, CAT combines the analysis and memory capabilities of computers with human expertise to produce more consistent translations more quickly.

Is it possible to automate this kind of translation? Yes! ✅

Machine translation (MT)

There is no human intervention in machine translation (MT). This is a computer programme that translates an entire text from one language to another. We can cite examples that everyone knows, for example: Google Translate, DeepL, Reverso Translation, etc.

The biggest advantage of this method is that these tools are available for free online.

The biggest danger, however, is the quality of the translations. Machine translation can generate errors in meaning and convoluted or ambiguous sentences. In addition, MT systems can misinterpret idiomatic expressions, cultural subtleties and wordplay, leading to inaccurate or inappropriate translations.

Don’t miss this article, which illustrates the dangers outlined above: Machine Translation: 10 examples of errors.

Finally, machine translation tools are not designed to consider search engine results pages (SERPs). There is therefore a good chance that texts translated using MT will not be optimised for the web. This is why Google Translate and SEO do not mix.

Is it possible to automate this kind of translation? Yes! ✅
 

How to automate web page translation with TextMaster

A few words about TextMaster’s service

TextMaster is a global SaaS translation solution for e-commerce. It connects e-commerce companies with expert translators and makes it possible to translate web pages in over 50 languages and areas of expertise such as:

• e-commerce
• marketing
• fashion
• tourism
• finance, etc.

TextMaster’s greatest strength is its state-of-the-art translation technologies.

Our POST-EDITOR™ technology

POST-EDITOR™ technology combines the capabilities of machine translation (MT) and human review. This combination guarantees the speed of translation as well as its quality.

In practical terms, this technology relies on neural machine translation (NMT) to translate texts, which are then reviewed by human translators. In this second stage, professionals will improve the text’s accuracy, consistency and style so that it follows the editorial style and the customer’s business objectives.

Our translation API

TextMaster’s API allows you to automate the management of your translation workflows. This can be integrated directly into your content management system. Our translation API is compatible with various CMS, such as WordPress, Magento, PrestaShop, Drupal, etc.

This translation API allows you to obtain quality translations effortlessly.

It is valuable for e-commerce sites, SaaS applications and online platforms where new content needs to be translated frequently.

Here are some of the main users of our API:

• e-commerce sites needing to translate their product sheets, technical data sheets and catalogues automatically and quickly, as soon as they go online
• multilingual sites needing to translate their content, blog, web pages into several languages automatically
• publishers who want to translate their software or applications seamlessly
• online content publishers looking to automate their content creation and translation processes
• travel sites aimed at travellers speaking different languages, etc.

In short, this API is useful in all sectors of activity requiring large-scale automated multilingual translations.
 

Important: SEO optimisation of your web pages

Finally, we want to remind you of the importance of SEO in multilingual translation of web pages. Not all your pages need to be translated into 10, 15 or 20 languages. There is a good reason for this: certain keywords will have a real audience in some countries and no interest in others.

For example, an article entitled “How do you make your own Kjøttkaker?” (Norwegian meatballs) would work very well in Norway, but much less so in Brazil. It is therefore important to consider your SEO objectives by country in order to define which pages are worth translating and into which languages.

In addition, it is essential to adapt the key expressions chosen to the target languages. This is because one country will not necessarily use the same words as another in a Google search.

Finally, remember to create multilingual sitemaps and check that each language has a separate URL to help search engines index the content correctly.

To find out more, read our article: “How to find the right keywords for different countries”.
 

How to automate web page translation: a summary

Overall, there are many good reasons to translate the pages of your e-commerce site. But for the process to be effective, it needs to be adapted to the local needs of each country, to be fast, of high quality and, if possible, automated.

For this, we recommend you download our translation API for your CMS. This means all the pages on your site can be translated professionally and accurately, without you having to do a thing. Our translators will work directly in your content management system.

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