Learning About Language and Localization Podcast with Alok Juneja: Pepper Spotlight

“Localization is not just translation into another language; it is taking the content to the end-user in the form that resonates with them—taking into consideration all the final nuances of culture, dialect, or the demographic profile of the audience.”

This brief statement perfectly encapsulates what localization is, as Alok Juneja stated in the podcast’s first three minutes.

Often localization is confused with translation, the process of converting text from one language to another. Though these terms are vaguely similar, translation is just one aspect of localization, with the latter being a more extensive process between the two.

In the most basic sense, localization is talking in a language that you understand, and by language, it isn’t just the language alone. It is how the language naturally flows for a person—how you frame the sentence. For instance, the language of a college student will be far different from a working professional.

Localization ultimately boils down to the demographic profile, dialect, and audience persona, and all these nuances put together are what resonate with the end consumer.

A Brief History of Localization

When you look at the history of translations, it goes as far back as when languages started to grow. In fact, it can be seen carried out as early as the Mesopotamian era, which dates back to the 2nd millennium BC, when the Sumerian poem, Gilgamesh, was translated into Asian languages.

However, with localization’s history, though there are various thoughts about it, the adaptation of content into different languages, specifically content in the marketing sense, began in the 1980s, when US software giants went global. That is when localization became a dedicated field. In this decade, companies began building in-house teams to create content to go global.

By the 1990s, there was a rise in outsourcing of localization as a concept with an increase in the development of Globalization Management Systems. The companies worked with Single Vendor outsourcing back then, believing that in-house teams and experts still work the best.

Only the early 2000s saw the development of Translation Management Systems. This has helped scale localization to a large extent. Today, language service providers have become partners to the business in a real sense.

Why Is Localization in Translation Important?

Localization ensures that the localized version of the translation resonates with the local audience. This strategy is crucial for any business in any industry whose main goal is regional or global growth. In fact, 75% of consumers said they would likely purchase goods and services if the corresponding product information were in their native language.

Localization ensures the message is conveyed to the audience in a way they understand best. And not just in the language but in the overall experience of communication which encompasses culture, brief, opinions, and demographics.

Localization has three very clear benefits. These include:

• Builds a sense of inclusiveness in the target audience

When the audience feels that the way a brand communicates with them is something they can relate to, it creates a strong sense of inclusiveness for the target audience.

• Reduces challenges associated with geographical expansion

When companies want to go Bharat (regional) or global, agility is crucial to these businesses. With a well-defined localization strategy in place or a strong localization partner guiding toward this growth agenda, it significantly reduces the challenges in this growth.

• Improves search engine optimization

SEO optimization is one of the most important demand-generating levers. So, localized content is crucial if you’re branching into various geographies; otherwise, the SEO won’t work optimally.

How Pepper Content’s Services Can Help With Localization

Localization adapts a piece of content’s whole meaning for a new region, including translation, associated imagery, and cultural elements that influence how the content will be perceived. Localization is all about making your website feel like it was written with that audience in mind.

Pepper Content has always been known for its stellar language and translation services. As we have an extremely strong pool of creators across various languages, it makes it easier to localize across the content type, from normal text, including technical papers, legal papers, blogs, articles, ebooks, and more, to digital content, which includes localizing websites and ap. Lastly, we help localize across media content, including adding dubbing, voiceovers, subtitling, transcription, and more. This makes us a full-scale language provider that will help you with any and every localization need.

In Closing

As per surveys, only 25% of internet users worldwide are English users. 72% prefer consuming content in the language they understand. Moreover, 90% of internet users in India prefer consuming content in their preferred language. These are just a few numbers that show the importance of the localization of content.

We have covered all the essential points from the podcast; however, you can listen to the entire podcast below if you wish to learn more about language and localization from Alok Juneja.