{"id":23895,"date":"2022-11-11T09:02:11","date_gmt":"2022-11-11T08:02:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/creative-words.com\/?p=23895"},"modified":"2022-11-11T09:02:11","modified_gmt":"2022-11-11T08:02:11","slug":"translation-and-ux-5-mistakes-to-avoid-making-on-your-website","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/translation-and-ux-5-mistakes-to-avoid-making-on-your-website\/","title":{"rendered":"Translation and UX: 5 mistakes to avoid making on your website"},"content":{"rendered":"

Translation and UX<\/span>: this combination is often overlooked, but actually quite critical in improving the browsing experience on your website. What aspects should you keep in mind when translating a website. And what, on the other hand, are the errors and oversights that could harm the user experience, effectively reducing visits and sales?<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are certainly many aspects to consider when it comes to improving UX<\/strong> (User Experience). Writing readable<\/strong> test that also converts, having accessible and easy-to-find<\/strong> buttons and menus. As well as clearly visible contacts<\/strong> and important forms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

While these aspects certainly contribute to improving the overall user experience, there is another equally important factor that is often overlooked. The importance of translation within user experience<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"translation<\/p>\n

Expanding you business?<\/h2>\n

Let’s assume that after a lot of work, a lot of A\/B testing<\/strong>, and a significant financial investment<\/strong>, you finally managed to create the perfect user experience for users in your local market<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Some time later, you decide to expand your business<\/strong> and localise your site<\/span><\/a><\/span> into a new language.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s so simple, you think, we\u2019ll have the text translated into the new language and it will be done!<\/em><\/p>\n

Sure, by translating your site’s content<\/strong> into the new language you\u2019ll certainly have taken a major step forward in creating a pleasant user experience<\/strong> for the new target market<\/strong> as well, but… are we sure simply translating the source text<\/strong> is enough, without paying attention to anything else?<\/p>\n

In short, are you really sure you know everything about translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>?<\/p>\n

If this topic is new to you and you have no idea where to start, fear not. In this article, we\u2019ll delve into the link between translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>, focusing in particular on the five mistakes<\/strong> to avoid making on your website<\/strong> to ensure a quality experience<\/strong> for your users in any language.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Underestimating the importance of translation for UX<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We know. This is first piece of advice<\/strong> might seem obvious, but it\u2019s actually a fundamental<\/strong> concept to get across when it comes to translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n

In other words, a quality user experience<\/strong> always starts with a (good) translation.<\/p>\n

Therefore, it\u2019s essential to rely on translation and localisation professionals<\/span><\/a><\/span> to transpose your content into another language and for another market<\/strong>. Offering your users content in a language unfamiliar to them<\/strong> can make their experience rather unpleasant<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Not being creative when translating
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Having ascertained the importance of translation<\/strong> for user experience<\/strong>, it\u2019s important to make an additional point. For truly high-quality UX<\/strong> (seamless, as we often hear) it\u2019s critical to know when and how much to modify<\/strong> and adapt<\/strong> the translation of your content.<\/p>\n

We have already extensively discussed the importance of creative translations<\/span><\/a><\/span>, especially for ecommerce. In short, no user feels truly engaged by reading texts that, while well translated, do not consider their cultural expectations, specific cultural <\/strong>reality, and, of course, unique needs.<\/p>\n

When it comes to translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>, a good translation is not necessarily faithful<\/strong> to the original, quite the contrary! An excellent user experience would be impossible without a culturally adapted translation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ignoring “secondary” aspects<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Imagine you have to translate this sentence from your site for the U.S. market:<\/p>\n

PROMOZIONE SPECIALE – solo 59,99 \u20ac fino al 25\/11\/2022 alle 20:30.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Couldn\u2019t be simpler, right?<\/em><\/p>\n

SPECIAL PROMO – only 59,99 \u20ac until 25\/11\/2022 at 20:30.<\/strong><\/p>\n

No, it couldn\u2019t be more full of errors!<\/em><\/p>\n

Incorrect decimal<\/strong> symbol, incorrect currency<\/strong> position, unsuitable date<\/strong> format. And time expressed in a way that is illegible to the user. This one phrase is literally a prime example of a bad user experience<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Of course, the general message still seems understandable (the promotion is limited and the price will go up after a certain date)<\/strong>, but everything else is not at all clear.<\/strong> For starters, do U.S. users pay the price in dollars or euros<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

Such errors<\/strong> and oversights, which to an inattentive eye might seem superficial and unimportant, can actually entirely ruin your users\u2019 experience<\/strong>, who at best might simply judge the translation as overly careless. At worst, they might even fail to understand key details<\/strong> and, as a result, forgo the purchase<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In short, reconciling translation and UX<\/strong><\/span> means really<\/em> paying attention to everything<\/em>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Forgetting about SEO<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Although SEO<\/strong> is often only considered beneficial by website managers, enabling them to scale search engines<\/strong> and reach more users, a translation\/localisation that complies with SEO rules<\/strong> will also indirectly improve user experience<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Keywords, links, images<\/strong>, bold, bulleted lists<\/strong>, short and concise sentences, clear explanations: in addition to helping your translated site get noticed by Google<\/strong>, these will also all be extremely useful to your users<\/strong>, making your content clearer and more appealing and actually improving the user experience.<\/p>\n

In short: when we talk about translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>, we are inevitably also talking about translation and SEO<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Not adding anything, even when necessary<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A quality user experience<\/strong> isn\u2019t just about attractive designs<\/strong>, performing servers<\/strong>, and emotionally engaging text<\/strong>. Another important element to consider (if not perhaps the most important) is certainly the completeness<\/strong> and accuracy<\/strong> of the information provided.<\/p>\n

But what does this mean in concrete terms when it comes to translation and UX<\/strong><\/span>?<\/em><\/p>\n

Imagine having an ecommerce<\/strong> in Italy and after many vicissitudes, having opened a Swiss and a U.S. version as well.<\/p>\n

Of course, for your Italian<\/strong> (and EU) customers you will only need to specify shipping costs<\/strong> and times<\/strong>, as usual.<\/p>\n

With your new markets, however, you will also need to pay attention to another detail<\/strong>: possible customs duties<\/strong> to be paid by the buyer, as well as possible delays<\/strong> in shipping for logistical reasons.<\/p>\n

Perhaps your site won’t have these problems, and maybe your customers won’t even have to pay any duties<\/strong> to receive your products. However, a Swiss or American customer will expect<\/strong> to read at least one sentence about this, if only to be assured<\/strong> that there will be no additional charges.<\/p>\n

Avoiding to mention legal\/practical<\/strong> aspects relevant to the target market greatly undermines the UX<\/strong>, decreasing the confidence<\/strong> of potential buyers and discouraging them from buying.<\/p>\n

In other words: don’t be afraid to add information<\/strong> to your translation when necessary. Translation and UX<\/strong><\/span> might seem difficult to reconcile, but with the proper precautions you\u2019ll be able to create a great experience for foreign users as well.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Translation and UX: this combination is often overlooked, but actually quite critical in improving the browsing experience on your website. What aspects should you keep in mind when translating a website. And what, on the other hand, are the errors and oversights that could harm the user experience, effectively reducing visits and sales? There are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":28439,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,23],"tags":[21,161,110,30,162],"class_list":["post-23895","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-en","category-translation-localization-en","tag-localizzazione-en","tag-seo-en","tag-sito-web-en","tag-translation-en","tag-user-experience-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23895","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23895"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23895\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23895"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23895"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fancyfestival.com\/creative-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23895"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

In fact, a survey in 2020<\/strong> of users from 29 countries confirmed that more than 75%<\/strong> of ecommerce<\/strong> users prefer to buy from sites that display information in their own language<\/a><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n