Software globalization: Best practices and key differences from localization

Software companies can streamline their expansion into new markets when they build flexibility into their products from the start. A program designed to handle multiple languages, currencies, and scripts is easier to adapt for regional audiences. 

That’s the purpose of software internationalization—flexible website architecture that enables developers to adjust web and app content for cultural and regional preferences. Carefully internationalized software saves time on localization, reduces workaround costs, and enables a multilingual experience that feels native to users everywhere. 

This guide will discuss the core concepts of software internationalization and localization and explore best practices for building software with a global reach. We’ll also highlight tools that facilitate the process, helping you scale to new audiences with confidence. 

What is software internationalization?

Software internationalization (i18n), also referred to as software globalization, is a design and development process that builds adaptable program architecture. Internationalized software uses a content management system to support multiple languages, scripts, number formats, and regional variations.

Internationalization allows software to accommodate linguistic differences, like reading direction, date and time formats, currency symbols, and character sets. For example, an internationalized app can support right-to-left languages like Arabic and Hebrew, as well as logographic scripts like Japanese and Mandarin Chinese.

Internationalization sets the groundwork for accelerated localization. Globalized frameworks can easily tailor software to specific regions, whether translating content or adjusting cultural font preferences. This saves time and reduces costs when products are adapted for diverse markets. 

Localization vs. internationalization

Some consider internationalization to be the opposite of localization. However, localization and internationalization are more like teammates — their work compliments each other perfectly, ensuring software appeals to diverse markets. Let’s break down their distinctions: 

• Internationalization: Internalization is the foundation that prepares software architecture to support multiple languages and regional needs. It ensures products can handle numerous formats, characters, and scripts without significant design and coding changes. 
• Localization: If internationalization is the foundation, localization is the frame built on top. It involves adapting content for specific markets by translating text, adjusting designs, and modifying functionality to meet the needs of local users. Localization tailors the user experience and content to resonate with the needs and preferences of regional audiences, often using professional localization services. 

Small details like fonts, color schemes, or local expressions can make or break engagement with a new regional audience. When betting on a business expansion, the right internationalization tools allow you to localize and translate your products, ensuring you connect with users from day one. 

Smartling’s AI translation solution streamlines the localization process, providing human-quality translations at half the cost and twice the speed. Whether it’s user interfaces, error messages, or documentation, Smartling translates your content across hundreds of language pairs. Plus, Smartling can integrate directly with developer tools like GitHub and Lingoport, helping you streamline your internationalization process with your existing tech stack.

Best practices for software internationalization

Internationalization and localization don’t need to be complex processes. Follow these best practices to guide your internationalization strategy and enjoy smooth and successful software adaptation:

Use placeholders instead of hard-coding text

Avoid hard-coding text strings directly into your app. When you hard-code text, you have to manually edit the code for every new language, which is time-consuming and error-prone. Instead, build your program using placeholders that link to external content files. This way, the software automatically displays the correct translation based on the user’s language preferences. Unicode is a common text encoding choice to ensure smooth formatting.

For instance, instead of hard-coding the search bar to say “Search for products,” you can use a placeholder to automatically replace the text for each locale (e.g., “Buscar productos” in Spanish). If possible, you may also attach metadata to placeholders to give translators additional context.

Create translation-ready content

Good translations require good source material. Make sure your source text is clear, well-written, and consistent so it’s easier to translate later on. Images of text are harder and more expensive to translate, and they won’t be detected by machine translations, so avoid them in favor of coded text. 

Prioritize flexible UI design

During the localization process, user interface elements must adapt to different languages, which can significantly vary in length. If the UI isn’t adaptable, you may be left with awkward layouts or cut-off text. Pseudolocalization is a technique that involves testing your internationalized software with filler text that mimics the length and variety of translated content, helping you identify potential UI issues before actual localization begins. 

Additionally, select icons, images, and colors with customization in mind. You may need to adapt visual assets to different cultural expectations, so make them easy to alter without completely overhauling the code or UI.

Consider culturally-specific formatting

Even content that doesn’t require translation may need reformatting to remain clear for global audiences. For example, dates, addresses, and phone numbers are displayed differently across various locales. Ideally, your software should automatically detect a user’s locale and format these elements to suit cultural norms.

Consider address formats. In the United States, an address is formatted in the following order: street number, street name, city, state, and ZIP code. In other countries, the street number comes after the street name, or the postal code precedes the city name.  

Internationalization tools to streamline global expansion

As your business moves towards internationalization, developers need the right tools to simplify the process. The following software platforms and features will help them reach multilingual markets and simplify localization processes:

Translation management system (TMS)

A translation management system complements your internationalization framework, organizing the localization process. A TMS centralizes all your translations in one place so you can manage multiple languages and ensure consistency throughout your software. 

Smartling’s cloud-based translation management system integrates multilingual capabilities throughout your tech stack. Our AI-powered translation services eliminate manual work with machine translation and employ a robust QA framework to ensure top-quality localization that matches your brand’s unique voice. 

In-context translation software

Computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools are a cornerstone in the localization industry, as they allow translators to see exactly how translations will appear in the final user interface. This software allows you to view translated text within the actual layout to ensure each string fits and avoid broken design interfaces, text overflow, and mismatched formatting. In-context editing saves time and reduces revisions so you can achieve polished, design-friendly copy. 

Webhooks

Webhooks are instant commands or notifications apps send to one another under predetermined circumstances (e.g., when a translation is updated or downloaded). You can implement webhooks to ensure your software is always updated with the latest translation. This is particularly useful when working with large volumes of content translated across different languages. 

Developers should test webhooks extensively before localization for a more seamless integration.

Low-code solution: Website translation proxies

Website translation proxies like Smartling’s Global Delivery Network (GDN) are a low-code solution that make managing a multilingual website a breeze. Software like the GDN detects new website content and sends it for translation automatically, rerouting the translated content to your live site when translation is complete. This solution guarantees your global customers enjoy a cohesive and efficient localization experience, without a ton of heavy-lifting from your development team.

From internationalization to localization: Optimize with AI

When you internationalize and localize your software, you ensure it’s globally accessible while meeting region-specific needs. Smartling can help you deliver software that’s accessible to global markets through a seamless localization process.

Want to learn how you can use the latest translation tech to efficiently localize your software? Download our free eBook, “AI-Powered Localization: Achieving Quality, Cost, and Speed Objectives,” to learn how AI-driven solutions can help you scale, streamline workflows, and maintain high-quality translations across all markets.