Multilingual website
Your website speaks one language, and some of your possible customers speak another. FastSolve extends the site you already have, without rebuilding it, so that it answers each of them properly and can be found in their own language.
This very site is an example: it is published in five languages, each with its own addresses and its own titles for search engines.
The translation that was never properly done
Adding a language looks simple, until you look at what it actually requires.
- A Dutch speaking customer lands on your home page in French, understands one sentence out of two, and leaves for someone who speaks their language.
- Someone pasted a machine translation into a corner of the site. The text is there, but the address is the same for both languages, so neither one is found properly.
- The menu, the buttons and the error messages stayed in the original language and only the content was translated. The whole thing feels half finished.
- Nobody knows who updates which version when a service changes, so nothing gets updated at all.
What the engagement covers
1. One address per language. Each page exists at its own address, for instance a distinct English version and Dutch version. That is the condition for each version to be indexed separately and for a search engine to offer the right one to the right visitor.
2. The whole site, not just the body text. Menu, buttons, forms, confirmation and error messages, the 404 page. Everything the visitor reads moves into their language, including what only appears once in ten visits.
3. Titles and descriptions for search engines. Each language receives its own titles and descriptions, written for the words people actually type in that language. Translating a title word for word rarely produces the term a Dutch speaker is searching for.
4. The language switcher and the links between versions. A visitor can change language and stay on the same page instead of being sent back to the home page. Search engines receive the markup telling them these pages are versions of the same content.
What this service does not do
- It does not replace a professional translator on brand copy. We produce a correct and proofread translation, and if your sector demands a writer's touch, we integrate the one you choose.
- It does not guess your trade vocabulary. The technical terms of your profession are validated with you, once, and then serve the whole site.
- It does not bring you foreign customers on its own. It removes the language barrier; it does not do your prospecting for you.
- It does not maintain itself. Every new page will have to exist in every language, and we leave you the structure that makes this simple rather than painful.
Frequently asked questions
How much does making a site multilingual cost?
The amount depends on the number of pages, the number of languages and whether the translated text already exists or not. A five page brochure site in two languages and a hundred page catalogue in four languages are not remotely comparable. The price is set after the framing stage. As a guide, excluding VAT, most multilingual conversions fall between 600 and 2,500 euros. A hundred-page catalogue in four languages can reach 5,000 euros.
Do I have to supply the translations?
If you have them, we integrate them. If you do not, we produce them and you validate them before publication. In both cases, nothing goes online without you having read what is about to be published in your name.
Would a machine translation not be enough?
To understand a page, often yes. To sell, rarely: clumsy phrasing shows, and above all a translation placed on the same address creates no new page for search engines. You would carry the cost without the benefit.
Does the site have to be rebuilt to add a language?
Not in the vast majority of cases. We work on the existing site. If its structure makes the addition impossible without rebuilding, we tell you at the framing stage, with both options priced.
Can a language be added later?
Yes, and it is planned for from the start. The structure we put in place accepts an additional language without everything having to be redone. The first language added is the most expensive one; the following ones are considerably less so.
Tell us which languages your customers speak
See how a project runs, from framing to delivery
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