Localization | Meaning, Context & Examples
Localization adapts content, software, and services to meet the linguistic, cultural, and technical needs of a target market.
Localization and translation are not the same; translation is one step in the localization process.
- Translates all content to Mexican Spanish.
- Swaps out its English catchphrase for one that feels more natural in Spanish.
- Edits their menu, adding options with Mexican flavors, like a guacamole burger and a mole chicken sandwich.
- Convert prices from U.S. dollars to Mexican pesos.
What is localization?
Localization involves adapting and customizing products, services, and content for different markets so that they feel as if they were originally made for users of those markets.
Unlike simple translation, localization ensures that the experience feels native to the target audience by adjusting elements that go beyond language, like imagery, formatting, legal requirements, and cultural nuances. Below are some critical elements that may need adaptation during the localization process.
| What to localize | Why localize | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Language | Localized language should feel natural to the target audience, and maintain the original tone and nuance. This includes translation and adapting language to local dialects. | An American company launching a product in the UK will want to localize it using British English. No translation is involved, but they will have to adapt many aspects of the language, like spelling, vocabulary, and idioms. |
| Imagery | Images and symbols carry different meanings around the world. | A thumbs up is considered a positive gesture in the Western World. But in parts of the Middle East and Africa, it’s the equivalent of putting up the middle finger. A team localizing content for that area will want to adapt any thumbs up emojis or images to something more appropriate. |
| Colors | Colors represent different things in different cultures. | In Western culture, white usually symbolizes purity, faith, and innocence. However, in some Asian and Slavic cultures, it symbolizes death and mourning. |
| Date formats | Dates are formatted differently around the world, and some cultures use different calendars. | While Americans use MDY (e.g.,“March 12, 2025”), many other countries use DMY (e.g., “12 March 2025”). |
| Currency | Currency symbols, their placement relative to values, and the format for expressing numbers change across countries. | Five-thousand dollars would be written “$5,000.00” in the US (with the symbol in front, a comma to mark the thousand, and a point to mark the decimal). But in Spain, this value would be “4.589,66 €” (converted to euros, point and comma reversed, and symbol after value). |
| Measurements | Different countries use different systems to measure distance, weight, temperature, etc. | Most countries in the world use the metric system and Celsius, but some (including the United States) do not. |
| Phone numbers | Phone numbers are formatted differently globally, and each country has its own country code. | A New York phone number might look like +1 (212) 123-4567, but a London one might look like +44 (20) 1234 5678. |
| Legal and regulatory | Laws and regulations vary based on location, and it’s important for businesses to adapt to them. | The European Union has the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This may affect where, how, and for how long a foreign company stores and manages user data. |
| Interface | The user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) may need to be adjusted to accommodate different languages. | German words are often longer than English ones, so call-to-action buttons may need additional space. Some languages, like Arabic or Hebrew, are written right-to-left. |
| Documentation and support | These resources also need to be localized, so all users can get support. | If you’re localizing a software in Japan, local users may need documentation available in Japanese in order to get up and running. You may also want to have support resources or a team member available for Japanese users. |
- GSM localization determines the location of a mobile phone
- Robot localization figures out a robot’s position in an environment
- Sound localization is the biological ability to identify the origin of a sound
The localization process
The localization process involves specialists from different backgrounds, like marketers, translators, engineers, UX/UI designers, and lawyers.
The process has several key steps, which generally include:
- Research the target markets to understand their needs.
- Analyze what needs to be localized, including text, visuals, and functional elements.
- Create a localization strategy.
- Make sure any websites are coded in a way that allows for different versions.
- Do keyword research for local SEO.
- Translate text while maintaining cultural relevance and linguistic accuracy
- Format dates, currency, measurements, etc. appropriately for target audience.
- Ensure content meets local laws and regulations.
- Conduct user testing to ensure a seamless experience.
- Market to the new target audience.
All in all, localization aims to make the experience as seamless for the target audience as possible. For example, people will feel much more comfortable buying a product if information is in their local language, prices are in their local currency and expected format, and there are no culturally offensive symbols involved in the transaction.
For example, if using generative AI to translate texts, you should have a human review its output. This is doubly true if the language you’re localizing for is highly complex, uses a non-Latin script, and/or has limited training data available for use in AI testing.
Benefits of localization
Localization offers various benefits both to businesses and users:
- Content feels more natural and engaging to the audience, leading to a smoother user experience.
- Businesses can expand into new regions and attract more customers, growing their market reach.
- Users are more likely to trust and interact with content that aligns with their culture and language, which results in increased trust and credibility for the business.
- Localized content ranks higher in region-specific search results, which improves Search Engine Optimization (SEO) performance.
- Localization ensures adherence to local laws and industry standards, protecting both businesses and users.
Localization examples
Localization may look slightly different based on what you are adapting. Below are some common examples of localization.
Website localization
Before a website can be localized, it should be internationalized, meaning the code is written in a flexible way that allows for different versions of the same site.
Teams also need to ensure that their Content Management System (CMS) supports multilingual functionality and that their UX/UI design can support longer or shorter text (and when necessary, right-to-left scripts).
When localizing QuickBite for these markets, the team:
- Ensures that the website is internationalized, allowing for flexible display of longer or shorter copies in the UX/UI.
- Translates copies to French and German using native expressions (and avoiding literal translation) to maintain the tone and brand voice of QuickBite.
- Adds commonly used payment methods to the checkout process per the conclusions drawn from their market research.
- Makes cultural adjustments to the food shown on the homepage, like changing out fish and chips for baguette sandwiches and döner kebabs.
- Adds elements necessary for compliance with GDPR privacy regulations and French and German labor laws.
Software localization
Localizing software is similar to localizing a website, perhaps with extra focus on the UX and UI of the software or app.
To localize the app, the team:
- Redesigns the user interface to support Arabic, including menu alignment from right to left.
- Translates all UX/UI copies to Arabic, using expressions and phrasing native to the variant spoken in Saudi Arabia.
- Adds an Islamic calendar option in addition to the Gregorian calendar.
- Default avatars are redesigned to be culturally appropriate in Saudi Arabia.
- Adjusts scheduling options to reflect the Sunday to Thursday workweek common in Saudi Arabia.
Content localization
When localizing content—articles, marketing materials, multimedia, etc.—it’s important to determine which content is relevant to your target market. You may not need to localize all the content you have, and you may need to create new content to fill existing gaps.
The localization team:
- Checks that their CMS supports multilingual sites and that adding the localized content will not affect their domain rating or SEO performance.
- Verifies that the UX/UI of their blog can properly display Japanese.
- Translates articles about trends and the general contemporary art scene to Japanese, focusing on maintaining their hip tone.
- Decides they will not translate locally focused content like the New York gallery guide or exhibition reviews but will instead create new, similar content focusing on the Tokyo scene.
- Incorporates references to Japanese concepts (e.g., “wabi-sabi,” the beauty of imperfection) and art forms (e.g., manga and anime) to the translated and new content in order to make it feel more native to a Japanese audience.
- Confirms which social networks are most used in Japan and focuses its marketing efforts there.
Localization vs translation
Translation is just one part of localization. Translation prioritizes language accuracy, while localization prioritizes cultural, social, and linguistic nuances. Another way to think of this is that translation focuses on the message, while localization focuses on the entire experience.
For example, a German website launching in Austria and Switzerland doesn’t have to translate its copy, given that people in all of these countries speak German. However, each country has its own variant, with different vocabulary and idioms. Therefore, it should localize—swapping out words and phrases in the same language—to make its content feel natural to Austrian and Swiss users.
The term transcreation (a portmanteau of “translation” and “creation”) is used to refer to the process of translating while maintaining tone, style, intent, and context. Transcreation is more creative than translation, as you are essentially recreating content in the target language.
A company may transcreate its web copies, marketing materials, ad banners, and anything else that they’d want to have an emotional impact and call-to-action. On the other hand, translation may be sufficient for converting content like knowledge base articles or software documentation, which are more technical and less creative.
When translating, try QuillBot Translate, a free tool that works with 50 languages.
Localization vs internationalization
Internationalization refers to designing and developing products, software, websites, or content that facilitates localization for diverse target audiences. Internationalization usually takes place first, as it paves the way for efficient localization.
Internationalization and localization are two parts of the broader “GILT” framework, which helps organizations reach wider, global markets:
- Globalization (G11N) – the business practice of “going global,” when an organization develops a strategy for developing an international presence (globalization encompasses the other three processes below)
- Internationalization (I18N) – the design and development of a product, website, etc. that enables easy localization (e.g., using a CMS with multilingual functionality)
- Localization (L10N) – the process of adapting products or content to align with the preferences of a particular target market
- Translation (T9N) – the act of converting text from one language to another
These numeronyms include the first letter of the word, the last letter of the word, and the number of letters in between. For example, “L10N” includes the number 10 because that is the number of letters between the opening “l” and closing “n” in localization.
Frequently asked questions about localization
- What is language localization?
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Language localization is the process of adapting a product or service’s translation to a specific country or region so that it feels relevant and accessible to the target audience.
It goes beyond translation by considering linguistic and cultural elements (e.g., idioms, tone, date formats, currency, colors, and images) to ensure the content feels natural and native to the target market. Localization often includes transcreation, a type of creative translation.
QuillBot’s free Translator is one of many tools that can help throughout the localization process.
- What’s the meaning of localize?
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The verb “localize” can mean:
- To concentrate or restrict something to a specific place
- To adapt something to meet the requirements of a specific area
The third definition refers to the process of localization, when products or services are adapted to a specific country or region so that they feel relevant to the target audience.
Localization relies on translation tools (like QuillBot’s Translator) and specialists well-versed in the target country’s language and culture.
- What is SEO localization?
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SEO localization is the process of increasing organic traffic to a website with search results in the target language or region. It is one facet of the wider localization process.
It goes beyond translation by adapting keywords, meta descriptions, URLs, and content to match local search habits and cultural nuances.
Translator tools and SEO software can help, but good localization requires careful analysis by an SEO expert.
SEO localization helps businesses rank higher in local search results, attract relevant audiences, and improve engagement in international markets.
- How to localize a website?
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Here’s how to localize a website in 10 steps:
- Start with a clear localization strategy
- Do market research on your target areas
- Put a team together, considering translation, transcreation, and engineering
- Do keyword research in your target language
- Internationalize your website with flexible code
- Translate and adapt content
- Adjust formatting and localize visuals
- Localize the user experience and interface
- Test your new website before launching
- Market your website in the new market
There are many tools, like QuillBot’s free Translator, that can help localization teams throughout this process.
