How to Craft an Effective Content Localization Strategy with Best Practices

Have you ever wondered what is behind the global marketing success of such renowned giants in their respective industries as Coca-Cola, Netflix, and Apple? It is undeniably the concerted moves to localize content and make it feel welcoming and native to audiences and consumers all over the world. Whether it's Japan, South Africa, or Italy, people flock to these brands, and their localization efforts are much to be credited for it.

All content should be adapted if your company is to take a place among the best of the best on the global arena. And the key to achieving this high level is to have a comprehensive content strategy.

But how do you get there? What content needs to be localized for target audiences? Is there a way to streamline work and not lose quality in the process? Read on to have all your answers about content localization strategies answered.

What Is Content Localization?

Content localization is the process of adapting your texts, visuals, and other similar things to resonate with a chosen locale or region. The goal? To get noticed, of course. What makes it difficult is the sheer amount of material that needs to be carefully reviewed, translated, and tailored to create the authentic feel that will draw attention for all the right reasons.

Take McDonalds, for example. The fast food titan is known for appealing to very diverse markets through adapting content, menus, marketing campaigns, slogans, and more to stay relevant and delicious. Serving almost 70 million customers daily in 118 countries and territories, from Argentina to Japan and Sweden to Indonesia, is no small feat and requires the company to stay on top of their localization efforts.

Is Effective Content Localization the Same as Translation?

Although the two terms appear similar, they are not interchangeable. Translation makes a big part of localization, this is true, but localization goes beyond a mere word-for-word translation. Content needs to be translated AND adapted to make sense to customers in target markets.

As an example, take the 2024 word of the year according to the Oxford Dictionary, "brain rot". Translated directly into French, it becomes "pourriture du cerveau", which can confuse French speakers if no additional context and/or adaptation is applied. In this example of trends and language colliding, a direct translation will make little sense.

In a broader context, when it comes to marketing content, there always needs to be a degree of creativity and focus on the target audience rather than a direct, black-and-white approach to having a perfect translation. Your end goal is to communicate with consumers rather than having a bizarre monologue.

Why It Is Important to Localize Your Content

People are more likely to trust and stick with brands that feel familiar. To make that happen, you need to meet them where they are—speaking their language, reflecting their culture, and showing you understand what matters to them. It’s about creating content that feels personal, like it was made just for them.

And here’s the proof. Studies show how much localization matters:

• 40% of people will never buy from websites in other languages.

• 65% prefer content in their own language, even if it’s not perfect.

• 73% want product reviews written in their language.

Here are a few more reasons to highlight why localization is a smart move:

• It opens doors to new markets and helps your brand settle in like it belongs there.

• It makes your audience feel seen, boosting engagement and creating loyalty that lasts.

• It drives better conversions, which means more sales and more revenue in your pocket.

Local markets respond well to a well-performed content localization process. In 2024, HBO Max, a US streaming platform, continued its global expansion by arriving in Europe's myriad of countries. This came with a set of localization challenges, which the company carefully addressed. The result? Its subscriber base peaked at over 100 million in the second quarter of 2024.

What Type of Content You Can Localize

Your global marketing strategy depends hugely on the way you do content management. Here are some things you will need to focus on when localizing content:

• Spelling: Variants like “localization” in the US vs. “localisation” in the UK are a simple but important switch.

• Phrasing: Humor, slang, or phrases that feel normal to one group might fall flat with another or even offend them.

• Keywords: SEO needs fresh research for local terms. People don’t search the same way everywhere, so update those target phrases.

• Time and date formats: MM/DD/YYYY or DD/MM/YYYY? 12-hour clock or 24? These small details can become very important when delivery dates or promotion cutoff times are involved.

• Measurements: Kilometers or miles? Pounds or kilograms? Use the system your audience expects.

• Hyperlinks: Link to content that’s relevant in their language. A local news article beats an untranslated one every time.

• Images: Swap in visuals that reflect their culture—landmarks, people, or anything that feels familiar.

• Emojis: Adjust your emoji set depending on the region. Pay attention to cultural norms and country flags among other things.

• Right-to-left formatting: For languages like Arabic or Hebrew, adjust the layout to make it flow naturally.

Steps to Build a Content Localization Strategy

Your content marketing efforts in a different language will require a sound step-by-step strategy to get noticed by a local audience in a new market. Here's our guide that will help you create multilingual content that delivers results and performs translation and localization at a high level each and every time.

1. Research Your Audience

Rushing into launching your branch into a new territory without conducting proper research is not a good idea. Always lead with gauging the opinions of local customers, take the time to understand their culture and traditions, explore what is trending, and don't assume. People in France and Belgium might be close geographically but have different preferences. Even the French spoken in Paris and Brussels differs slightly (hello, soixante-dix and septante both meaning seventy).

Conducting market research is another important step in your strategy. Start by finding out if the markets you want to reach will be open to your grand arrival: do they even want or need what you’re selling? And, more importantly – can locals afford what you’re selling?

Answering these questions and getting a clear big picture of the customer landscape will be your solid base for future work. After all, no house can withstand the test of time without a proper foundation.

2. Determine What Matters Most

Once the groundwork is done, your company might be persuaded to rubber stamp the decision to just go ahead and localize every single piece of text, image, and other details. However, that is not always the best strategy, especially when tighter budgets and stricter deadlines are relevant.

The best course of action is to review what content there is and what performs best. Is it social media posts and reels or maybe longreads about your products and services? Perhaps, a bit of both. But to reach that conclusion you'll need to analyze and go over your content. The idea is to be smart and economical about your resources for the initial phase of the project.

For example, Australian customers might be more inclined to read carefully into ecological protections instituted within a business than, say, audiences in Argentina, or vice versa. The best way to determine this is to conduct market research and apply it to your content base.

3. Pick a Right Translation Management System (TMS)

Take advantage of tech to make translation way easier. Seriously, imagine localizing into Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, and Romanian—all at the same time. Sure, they’re all Romance languages, but after a few hours, they’ll start blending into one big mess in your head. That’s where Translation Management Systems (TMS) step in to save your sanity. These tools streamline and automate the whole process, cutting down the time you’d spend wrestling with it yourself. And the best part? You’re still getting solid quality. All you’ll need to do is give the final output a once-over.

Modern TMS like Localit use the power of AI, high processing speeds, and modern interface to streamline your workload and make sure your project stays on track to meet its goals. Once you've chosen the content to localize, all you'll need to do is to upload it to the platform, pick the languages you are after, and enjoy the result. When revising the output, Localit can also offer you built-in chats where you can exchange screenshots and voice notes, which eliminates the need to communicate via other messengers. And the best part is that Localit is affordable and flexible when it comes to pricing.

4. Be Creative with Your Texts

As mentioned before, it's best to avoid direct translations when it comes to localization. Take the time to figure out the keys to unlocking the hearts of your customers with wording and phrases that will speak to them. Think beyond specific words, don't get too bound by the constraints of your native language.

Language is primarily a way of thinking and reacting to what's happening around us, use this approach when it comes to your content. Localize in a way that will get the right attention, study what your competitors (especially the local ones) do and how they utilize the power of words to their benefit.

As an example, Coca-Cola took creativity to new heights with its “Share a Coke” campaign, swapping out its logo for real names on bottles. This made for great marketing and encouraged people to look for their specific bottles (to get for themselves or give to someone). But here’s where it gets clever: the company tailored this campaign for each market.

• In Ireland, bottles sported popular Irish names like Aoife and Gráinne.

• In China, where first names aren’t casually used, they opted for friendly titles like “close friend” and “classmate.”

• In India, family terms took the spotlight, with labels like “Mom” and “Brother.” By embracing local norms, Coca-Cola turned a simple label into a meaningful connection.

5. Don't Leave Images Behind

Studies show that businesses only have 7 seconds to grab customers' attention in our modern world. And nothing does that better than a carefully created image that features just what the local audience expects (or doesn't expect in some cases). But chances are the visuals you have in the "ready to go" folders are not quite ready for the regions that were not intended for.

When choosing images for your localized content, it’s crucial to pick ones that your audience can relate to. Think about the people, colors, and symbols you include—they should resonate with the local audience, not alienate or confuse them. If you’re unsure how to localize your visuals, stick with safe, globally recognized options.

Safe choices for localized images include:

• Nature or landscape images

• Universal symbols like transportation or consumer goods

• Standardized signs, such as stop signs or warning labels

• Text-free visuals that don’t rely on specific language

Images to avoid include:

• Religious symbols of any kind

• Hand gestures or symbols that might mean different things in different cultures

• Text-heavy visuals that won’t work in a different language

• Famous landmarks that don’t match the region you’re targeting (like using the Statue of Liberty for German local travel content)

• Politics—stay neutral

• Humor that doesn’t translate well and could easily fall flat

Choosing the right visuals helps your content feel authentic and respectful, which is key to connecting with your audience.

6. Plan Ahead as You Go

In the tricky business of content localization planning is your best buddy. Your localization team should always be a few steps ahead of the challenges that might seem far at the moment. A solid content localization strategy requires you to think ahead and make provisions for what comes in the future. This way, no unexpected developments will sink your efforts.

Measuring the Success of Your Content Strategy

So, what do you do once the localization is up and running? During the planning phase, you should’ve set some clear goals and KPIs to aim for. Now’s the time to check how you stack up. Did you hit your targets? Or is there room to improve?

Here are some key things to look at when measuring success:

• Reach: How many new markets did you tap into? Are you reaching more potential customers with your localized content? Expanding your audience is a great first sign things are on track.

• Engagement and Conversion Rates: Did your audience stick around longer? Check out metrics like time on site, pages per visit, or social interactions. And don’t forget conversions—are more people signing up, downloading, or buying?

• User Satisfaction: What’s the vibe? Are people in new markets happy with your content, or is there some backlash creeping into reviews or social posts? Keep an eye out for feedback—good or bad.

• Operational Efficiency: How much effort did it take to get the job done? Were there parts of the process that felt smooth, or could you save time by automating more? Efficiency is a win in itself.

• Cost-Effectiveness: Did you stick to your budget? Or were there surprises along the way? See if there’s a way to save next time without cutting corners on quality.

• Support Tickets: If localization worked well, you might notice fewer customer support issues. Fewer calls or tickets about confusing content means you’re doing something right.

• SEO Rankings: Has localization given you a boost in multilingual SEO? Check if you’re ranking for new keywords or getting more organic traffic from foreign markets. That’s where the magic happens.

These key performance metrics are not just important for stakeholder meetings, they will offer you valuable insights into how you approached the project. If all goes well, the success can then be replicated elsewhere, the world is your oyster!

Take over the Global Market with a Content Localization Strategy

Taking over the global market isn’t about throwing out the same message everywhere and hoping it sticks. It’s about connecting with people by speaking their language, understanding their culture, and showing you care enough to adapt. Every piece of content you localize, from a headline to an image, should feel personal and relevant. That’s what builds trust and loyalty.

When you translate content with an effective localization strategy, you’re not just changing words—you’re reshaping how your brand communicates. It’s an investment in your content marketing strategy that pays off in bigger audiences, stronger engagement, and better results. So, take the time to adapt your content, get creative, and meet your customers where they are. With the right approach, your brand can thrive on the global stage—and make an impact that lasts.