Multilingual “Lite”: How to include other-language content on your website
When you can't commit to the work & expense of a fully multilingual site, but have some other-language content to share, we have some ideas.
Many of our clients come to us with questions about multilingual content. In particular, they want to have a site that can accommodate some other-language content — without committing to a fully multilingual site where every single piece of content can be toggled to a different language.
We approach this challenge in one of two distinct ways. Each method has pros and cons!
Method #1: Put it together in one multilingual post
Consider a situation where you have a feature story ready to go in both English and Spanish. Sometimes it makes sense for both languages to appear on the same page or post, one after the other. Then we use anchor-link buttons at the top of the content to let the user choose their language.
Pros
Cons
Method #2: Separate (but linked) pages/posts
Other times, it makes sense to publish each version of the story content as its own post, and then add buttons at the top to link to other version(s).
Pros
Cons
It’s up to you!
Your particular site’s needs may best be served by either one of these options.
Whichever you choose, we have some recommendations for helping site visitors find this content.
Make a category or tag for each additional language
Are you using WordPress or a similar content management system? It’s helpful to make sure folks could see all of your other-language content in one list if they want to. For instance, if your site is mainly English but with a few important posts in Spanish as well, you may want a Noticias category or an En Español tag. This way, you can easily point site visitors to content in their language.
Pro tip: Remember to add a description for your category or tag — in the appropriate language. 🙂
Consider adding a “hub” page for these other-language speakers
These days, there are many browser tools or other services that can quickly translate a website from one language to another. But there can be value in purposefully creating a page just for certain language speakers. Rather than just translating another page verbatim, you can use the opportunity to speak directly to this particular audience.
For instance, one of our website project clients has a primarily English-language site that highlights their work in the United States and internationally. We worked with them to make a special “Hispanohablantes” page for Spanish speakers that gives a summary of their whole organization — plus specific information about their work in Peru and with Hispanic Outreach in the United States. The pictures are catered to this audience as well. And a feed of recent posts in the “Noticias” category shows relevant Spanish-language stories. This intentionally curated page is welcoming and on-topic.
How can your site intentionally welcome others?
Top photo by Luis Desiro on Unsplash
