🤔 Did you know that the Hispanic demographic accounts for 19% of the United States population? It’s only natural that you, as a forward-thinking business owner, have wondered more than once “I should really translate my website to Spanish”. Here, we’ll give you 3 tips that are a must for an effective website translation:
1️⃣Research Your Potential Clients and Choose the Right Dialect
Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. Each country, and even each community has its variety of the Spanish language, especially when it comes to vocabulary: Common words can have different meanings or completely different words may be used in different dialects.
The importance of researching your potential customers lies in the fact that it will help you not only get to know their identity, values, and history better but also pitch in their dialect, by using words and expressions that are semantically and culturally relevant.
Linguistically speaking, during recent years there has been an increase in the usage of the so-called U.S. variant of Spanish:
This dialect is a unique form of Spanish spoken among the Spanish-speaking population of the United States. This variant is heavily influenced by Mexico, due to its geographic proximity and the large Mexican-American population present in the country, but it also incorporates aspects from other Latin American countries reflecting the diverse Hispanic community in the U.S.
This variant includes specific expressions and vocabulary that have emerged within the U.S. context, often as direct translations from English to Spanish, which may not be used in other Spanish-speaking countries. For example, phrases like “parquear el carro” (to park the car) or “me puedes romper uno de cien” (can you break a hundred?) are commonly understood among Spanish speakers in the U.S.
2️⃣Localize rather than just translate
When it comes to effective communication, localization is just as important as translation. Localizing is all about adapting your current content to a new and different culture.
It goes beyond just translating, as it also involves adjusting the layout, graphics, cultural references, and other non-textual elements to make the product or content suitable for the target audience.
Furthermore, an essential part of localization is cultural adaptation: the goal is to create an experience that feels natural and intuitive for the target audience and local market.
3️⃣Plan your Spanish SEO strategy
Undoubtedly, when crafting an entire new website in Spanish you should not left behind the rest of your marketing efforts. The most important one is your SEO strategy, as it will help you build organic traffic and reach your potential Spanish-speaking customers.
During this instance, we advise you to carefully perform keyword research, just translating during this step can be detrimental to your website: most of the time, a direct translation or a Spanish equivalent may not be the word people use to search things up online.
Focus on capturing the same intent using culturally relevant items.
Related content 📍
How to Boost Revenue with SEO Services in Spanish
Spanish Translations for Websites: The Dos and Don’ts
Alpha Co. Marketing & Media Translation Services
🚀Alpha Co. is a Houston-based digital marketing agency that specializes in providing comprehensive bilingual marketing techniques. Our expert team of translators along with our marketing and IT specialists are able to craft Spanish websites that will help you target the Hispanic market.
If you’ve ever wondered “I need to translate my website to Spanish” then you’ve come to the right place, get in touch with us now!🚀
