Get the Most from Localization Services by Understanding Options
Expert Localization Services Offer Several Levels of Assistance
Delivering your firm’s product to an international market for the first time will require managers and employees to interact with a new set of experts, processes, and strategies from the localization services provider. There are a number of different paths your firm can take to localize its product, so it is wise to consider the principals of business process management to select the best localization strategy.
The different avenues to localize a product vary based on the cost to the producer and control that the producer will have over the process, which is inversely related to the cost, and the level of involvement of the localization service provider. For firms that have the personnel and financial resources, bearing the majority of the cost burden of localization to maintain closer control over the integrity of the final product and employing the localization services provider as early in the process as possible to take advantage of its assessment expertise earlier on tend to be the most conducive to sustainable and successful market penetration.
Even before selecting the services provider, effective project portfolio management is important for the producer to make the wisest choice for how to sequence localization within its project mix, to optimize resource use and achieve the company’s primary business goals.
Though there are multiple stages where the localization services provider can begin work, the localization process will generally be: first, assess requirements and characteristics of the target market as well as internationalization-level of the product, to generate an accurate request for proposal; second, circulate information about the localization process to internal stakeholders and award the project; third, the localization firm will apply its expertise in the region to reevaluate needs and deliver a timeline outlining costs and time-to-market.
Next, based on the type of product the localization process will involve translating the product’s language and “translating” the product itself to be appropriate in the context. Once a draft of the localization product is ready, it will be tested with natives in the market and passed through second and third round edits to ensure 100% accuracy, especially of technical language. After quality assurance, the localization services provider can help with navigating legal issues in the new market and developing advertising and marketing materials. Then it will be up to your firm to manage its product in its new market.
Please contact us for more information; we are available by phone at 425.284.7800, or email us at adainfo@adaquest.com.
