Medical Translation Insight

So, you think you really, really need a translated website? Well then, get ready for a wild ride.

If you have never been part of a localization effort, there is lots to learn. And if you deploy a content management system (CMS), you need to be aware of some unique challenges associated with these tools.

Luckily, the Search Laboratory blog has just posted a good how-to article on this subject. Beyond the usual "don't have any baseball images on your French site" advice, the post gives hands-on dos and don'ts, including:

• Don't build a user interface for translators
• Be careful using a cookie-based language selector and support language switching on every page
• Use localizable, SEO-friendly URLs
• The importance of internationalizing your database
• Remove text-based logic
• and much more

As more and more groups at drug and device companies are installing a CMS, the folks responsible for international support are gearing up for the next challenge - translation and localization. Preparation, I have often said, is rightly two-thirds of any venture.

To help you get prepared, here are some additional resources:

• Ccaps' article provides good advice, regardless of whether or not a CMS is localization-ready
• It's always a shame when international web sites fail - learn how to avoid this fate
• Learn from CaridianBCT's experience implementing a CMS

Ready to get started? Get more details about ForeignExchange's expertise in translating pharmaceutical and medical device web sites.