What is UI Localization? 6 Best Practices for User Interface Localization

UI (user interface) localization is where localization meets design. Although it may seem unnecessary to localize your product application down to the level of UI design, taking this step can significantly improve your product’s success.

Understanding UI Localization

UI localization involves more than just translating your application’s text into necessary languages — it includes adjusting interface layout, date formats, currencies, units of measurement, and even cultural references to suit your audiences’ needs and conventions. 

Effective UI localization will make your software feel native to every user, regardless of geographic location. It’s true that this process can be very involved and requires extra research and work, but, in the end, it will enhance user satisfaction, increase engagement, open up new market opportunities, and set you ahead of the competition. 

In this blog, we’ll share some of our best practices for user interface localization to help simplify the process for you.

6 Best Practices for User Interface Localization

1. Design with Localization in Mind from the Start
   If you design your UI with the knowledge that your layout will need to be adapted to different languages, it will simplify the overall localization process and save money later on. 
   
   The first step is to design elements that accommodate different text lengths and characters. Word growth during translation can cause UI misalignments depending on your target languages.
   
   Utilizing Unicode, a universal character set, can ensure that the interface will handle multiple languages seamlessly. Additionally, keeping code and content separate through resource files or something similar will allow for easier updates and modifications because it enables the text and other localized elements to be modified without altering the underlying code.
   
2. Prioritize Cultural Context Awareness
   Different symbols, icons, and even colors can have varying meanings depending on one’s cultural background. A look at any country’s flag emphasizes the importance of color choices and their meaning among different nationalities. 
   
   Additionally, it is important to avoid (or incorporate) icons based on your audience. Icons such as thumbs up, piggy banks, and check marks all have different meanings in different cultures.
   
3. Streamline Translation Processes
   
   The best way to streamline the translation processes is to use a Translation Management System (TMS). A TMS will help centralize and automate the workflow of translating content. It also allows you to collaborate easily between translators and project managers. 
   
   In addition to choosing a good translation management system, it’s also important to provide contextual information for your translators — so as not to cause inaccuracies or misunderstandings. The type of context can include visual, linguistic, and even situational.
   
   Visual context involves providing images of where the translated content will sit on your application or website. Linguistic context would include glossaries with key terms and strategies. Finally, situational context would take into account more nuanced circumstances surrounding your translations such as culture, humor, and conventions of your target language.
   
   As a rule of thumb, it’s always better to provide your translators with as much contextual information as possible to ensure accuracy and relevance. 
   
4. Test in Each Target Local
   Testing, to the best of your ability, in different target locales will help ensure that the user interface (UI) design is user-friendly in all your target languages and regions.
   
   This kind of testing should involve using both linguistic and functional testing. Linguistic testing focuses on verifying the appropriateness and accuracy of translations, ensuring nuances are accounted for and that all text fits naturally within the UI.
   
   Meanwhile, functional testing examines how the localized UI operates, checking for technical issues due to language expansion and contraction, different character sets,  and locale-specific formats, including dates, times, and currencies. 
   
   By testing for these specific things, you can ensure your product not only communicates properly but also functions flawlessly among all your markets.
   
5. Maintain an Adaptive Layout
   User interfaces should be able to dynamically adjust to varying text lengths and formats across all languages and devices. Fluid layouts will help facilitate this adaptability by automatically resizing and rearranging UI elements in response to content changes. This is particularly important within the multilingual context due to text expansion and contraction that will occur when your text automatically translates. 
   
   A few techniques for maintaining relative sizing can include using flexible measurement units like percentages instead of fixed pixel dimensions, employing grid systems that allow for proportional arrangements, and implementing responsive design principles.
   
   A few important responsive design principles include media queries and flexible images — these help the layout adjust seamlessly to different screen sizes and orientations.
   
6. Incorporate Feedback Loop
   Feedback loops ensure continuous improvement for your product design — especially for linguistic and cultural elements. It is always a good idea to prioritize gathering and analyzing user feedback to gain insight into how your product is perceived across your audiences.
   
   Taking this extra step will help you not only improve your product but will also help your designers make informed adjustments to your UI.

Choosing Solutions for UI Localization

UI Localization should be a top consideration as you begin to launch your product —  and not an afterthought as you expand. Designing with localization in mind will help your product succeed from the beginning and simplify the expansion process. 

Having tools available when you launch your product that can accommodate your product’s growth will help you stay ahead of the competition, keep your processes neat and streamlined, and save money in the long run. 

A few tools that are worth investing in and  will help you with UI localization:

1. UI design tool
   For handling the design issues that occur with a multilingual app or website — particularly text expansion issues — a good UI design software is extremely helpful. Software such as Figma or Sketch offer plugins that simulate various languages’ text lengths, ensuring design adaptability.  
2. TMS (translation management system)
   A quality TMS system will provide a central platform for managing translation workflows and collaboration between linguists and developers. This is extremely helpful with streamlining the translation process and gathering analytical data on how your application or website is performing.
   
   Translation management systems such as GlobalLink Web offer automatic translation, collaboration tools, translation memory and terminology management, reporting and analytics, and quality assurance tools. 

3. Automated translation tools
   Finally, automatic translation tools are helpful throughout the localization process. While this tool is usually included in a TMS, it can be useful to leverage different translation tools to help with initial translation drafts, easing the workload on human translators who perform the necessary revisions.

Integrating these tools can help you achieve more accurate and culturally sensitive UI localization, improve user experience, and enhance engagement across different markets.