Imagine launching a localized version of your ecommerce store. You’ve hyped it up for months through your marketing channels, and potential customers are ready to buy. Yet support messages start pouring in on launch day.
Common issues include messages on social media that mention a blunder with translation or wording with a less-than-favorable interpretation where translations missed the source text’s nuances.
If you have the right resources, you could fix this issue quickly—within a few hours, even. But it’ll be tough to make up for a bad first impression. It’s better to avoid situations like this in the first place. This is where localization testing becomes invaluable.
Today, we’ll look at localization testing methods and their benefits. You’ll learn how localization testing works, why it should be a priority, and what best practices will create confidence in your multi-language websites and apps.
Website and software testing can be complex, but it has advantages. Testing helps you understand how your website or app will perform in real-life scenarios and allows you to identify and fix issues pre-launch.
Localization involves adapting various elements of a site or software product’s user experience for a specific region or culture. These elements include:
That said, localization testing ensures the complete localization of all website elements in the target region or culture. It’s a necessary quality assurance step in your workflow.
You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. In the earlier launch day scenario, you’d likely lose some customers for good. The negative effects would be even worse if there were a more complex, embarrassing, or time-consuming issue to fix.
Localization doesn't just protect you from mishaps. It protects end users, too, by ensuring that they have a positive experience. This can promote ongoing engagement, generate sales, and increase customer retention.
There are multiple ways to conduct localization testing. Manual, automated, and crowd-sourced testing are all options, and each has benefits and drawbacks to consider:
Manual localization testing leverages professional, in-country language speakers to test localized content the old-fashioned way. Human testers evaluate translations for nuance, cultural appropriateness, functionality, and user experience. However, this expert testing is expensive and time-consuming.
Crowd-sourced testing is similar in that the process is human-driven. However, it engages non-professionals to test localized content, meaning it’s often less expensive but can lead to inconsistent evaluation speed and quality.
Automated testing uses software to algorithmically test for common encoding, grammar, linewidth, and truncation issues. It’s much faster than a fully manual process but is not always as good a judge as a trained human eye. Automated processes may miss subtle localization issues.
Often, the best bet is to use a combination of manual and automated testing to balance quality assurance, speed, and costs.
Localization encompasses every part of the native user experience. Translating content into a new language is the tip of the iceberg and won’t be enough to deliver native experiences.
These four types of localization testing assess different elements of user experience:
Before launching a website or software application, you must conduct all four tests to confirm that nothing unclear, nonfunctional, or insensitive goes live. Doing so guarantees that users can seamlessly navigate your localized product experience, which makes them more likely to enjoy it.
After launch, you should also perform regression testing whenever you change your website or app code. Retesting confirms that updates haven’t broken any existing features.
Localization testing requires a systematic approach to ensure that all website assets and functions offer a seamless, native experience. Follow these steps to ensure the smooth localization of target market sites:
Before anything else, scope your testing process by creating a test plan that includes the following:
Starting with a detailed plan like this prevents issues from going unnoticed and spares you trouble—and perhaps embarrassment—post-launch.
Whether using an emulator or a physical device, set up the test environment you outlined in your test plan. The goal is to mirror the exact experience a website visitor would have, so your tester will need to view your site under the following circumstances:
Once that’s done, you can begin testing using the localization tools of your choice.
At this stage, start regional, linguistic, and UI or visual layout testing (the first three types we discussed). Ensure the following conditions:
After your testers have finished checking these areas, they can go on to ensure that the localized version of the site works as intended.
Checking website functionality and usability requires the tester to ensure that all buttons and hyperlinks direct users to the right places. They must verify that all pages load properly in the languages you support. Testers should also look for anything that is out of order along the user’s journey (or within the checkout process) on your website.
Compile all observations from testing in one place. Share them with your translators, developers, and other relevant team members so they know what issues to address and can do so right away.
The process for localizing apps is similar but more complex, with several additional parameters to consider.
Testers should account for:
Since there are more loose ends to tie up here than with websites, test cases are especially critical when testing localized versions of apps.
As we mentioned previously, test cases define scenarios that need to be tested, but they’re more than basic descriptions. They require several elements:
You should provide space for testers to record their results after running each test case and comment on any observations.
Need a better idea of what test cases look like? Here are some examples of what you might see on an actual localization testing project:
| TEST CASE ID | DESCRIPTION | REPRO STEPS | INTENDED RESULTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case_01 | Confirm that the correct currency displays for the target region. | Visit the pricing page. | All pricing should be displayed in euros. |
| Case_02 | Verify that all links are functional. | Click the “Schedule a Demo” and “Get Started” buttons on the pricing page. | “Schedule a Demo” should link to the contact page. “Get Started” should link to the account creation page. |
| Case_03 | Verify that validation messages appear for input fields. |
| Visit the “Schedule a Demo” page and fill out the contact form. | The contact form submits successfully if inputs meet the requirements. |
| Case_04 | Verify that password creation rules are working. | On the “Create Account” page, enter an email address and a password of at least nine characters. | Account creation will be successful if the password meets the minimum requirements. An error message will appear if the password does not adhere to the requirements. |
What are the potential obstacles you may run into as you implement the above processes? Here are some of the most common ones:
Working with a reputable language service provider that offers localization testing services, like Smartling, can help you bypass many of these issues.
Smartling offers various options for localization testing while maintaining high accuracy and consistent tone and nuance throughout translation projects. These include:
Machine translation: Automating website localization cuts weeks out of the process and seamlessly produces updates for website content.
Localization project management: Localizing content for native appeal and accuracy can be a daunting task. Managed services give companies access to expert advice and assistance with managing localization activities.
Native speakers: Human translators offer linguistic expertise and cultural insights to ensure accuracy and capture nuance in localization. Their understanding of local idioms, colloquial phrases, and context-specific language ensures that localized content resonates with the target audience.
For every testing scenario, consistent adherence to best practices improves your localization projects’ accuracy and quality. To ensure that your content and copy are the best they can be, integrate the below practices into testing and future upgrades:
For the most efficient localization process possible, do your due diligence. Get familiar with the target market you’ll be localizing your products for. Learn your target audience’s cultural nuances and preferences. And, as much as possible, work with professionals (qualified translators) who have deep knowledge in those areas.
You should, of course, perform localization testing at or near the end of the website or software development process as a final quality assurance measure. But that shouldn’t be the first and only time you test.
It’s most efficient to test at several points during the process (on various devices and browsers) and fix issues as they arise. When you push future updates to your site or software, you should perform this testing again.
A good localization testing process is both thorough and efficient. Automation can help you strike the right balance.
For best results, you shouldn’t include just any human tester in your process. You need to have the right kind of testers involved at the right time. Let’s get into that next.
To illustrate our previous point, you’ll want native speakers and local experts to provide feedback on translation quality. However, they may not be able to provide equally high-value feedback on the technicalities of your website, web application, or mobile app. You need testers with relevant expertise for each type of testing you conduct.
Before choosing suitable testers, we recommend also sharing additional context beyond test cases, such as:
These resources will make it easier for testers to identify anything in the localized version of your site or app that doesn’t meet your predetermined standards.
Ultimately, being smart about how you approach localization can make testing faster and easier. For instance, a top-tier translation management system can save you time and money, all while helping you maintain high-quality standards.
Smartling customers in particular request 48% fewer changes, meaning there are fewer issues to resolve after testing. Overall, this contributes to a 42% faster time to market.
For more on how Smartling can simplify localization for your websites, apps, marketing materials, and more, schedule a meeting with one of our experts today.