How to Translate WordPress Websites Using the Weglot Plugin

Key Points

• Translation of a WordPress website into multiple languages ​​can expand its reach and increase traffic, which may lead to more conversions and improved SEO rankings. This can be effectively implemented by using the Weglot Translate plugin.
• Weglot Translate plugin allows automatic translation of WordPress websites into over 100 languages, with the option of manually fine-tuning the translation. It is compatible with all WordPress themes and plugins, including e-commerce solutions like WooCommerce.
• Before translating a website, it is important to consider which languages ​​best meet the needs of the audience based on website analysis and keyword research. Compatibility and implementation of translation solutions should also be considered.
• Weglot Translate not only provides automatic translation, but also conforms to Google's best practices for multilingual SEO. It creates a unique URL for each translated version of the page, automatically applies the hreflang tag, and allows manual editing of the translation to ensure accuracy and context.

This article was originally published by Torque Magazine and is reproduced here with permission

Expand your WordPress website audience and increase website traffic. The method is very simple: website translation! If your website is available in a single language version only, you may be missing out on a large number of leads and conversion opportunities.

Luckily, you don't need to be proficient in multiple languages ​​to translate your website - the Weglot Translate plugin makes the translation process a breeze. With this plugin, you can automatically translate every part of your WordPress website and quickly and manually fine-tune the translation results.

This article will explore why you may need to translate a website. We will then introduce the Weglot Translate plugin and its main features and guide you through it step by step to add more languages ​​to your website. We will also explore some of the key customization options for the plugin. Let's get started!

Why translate your WordPress website?

It is estimated that there are nearly 7,000 different languages ​​in the world, however more than half of the websites use only one language: English. This is somewhat reasonable because it is the language most commonly used by Internet users. However, it is far from the only language. In terms of the number of users, it is almost the same as Chinese, which accounts for less than 2% of all websites. Similarly, while 500 million users speak Spanish, only slightly more than 5% of websites use this language.

In short, the website that is only available in English versions actually limits its scope of influence. If your website is international, such as an e-commerce business, you should not expect all users to be proficient in a single language. Therefore, many websites are taking steps to provide translated content to better serve a wider audience. For example, WordPress has its Polyglots team, who are committed to translating the platform into as many languages ​​as possible.

In addition to making your website more accessible, translating it also brings you many benefits:

• You can target a larger audience.
• It can improve your search engine optimization (SEO) ranking if you create a unique URL for each translated version of the page.
• It increases the number of potential conversions because if the website uses the user's native language, they are more likely to convert.
• You can build trust with your audience.

With all this in mind, you should consider making your website more international. But, before you do so, let’s take a look at some key considerations.

Things to consider before translating a website

There are some things you should remember before translating your website. First, you need to consider implementation and compatibility. We'll discuss this in more detail later, but you need to use a solution that is easy to implement on your website, such as a WordPress plugin.

You also need to consider the language you want to use. This can be done by investigating the analysis of your website to understand where the visitors are located. You should also conduct keyword research, focusing on multilingual keywords. This should give you a clear understanding of who the visitors are and which languages ​​can help you expand your audience.

We also recommend studying "language pairs". Basically, this is a combination of the language your content is currently in and potentially translated languages. In short, consider the most common language pairs and which languages ​​are best for your website.

Finally, you need to find a translation solution that works for you. Let's take a look at some solutions now.

Overview of WordPress dedicated translation solutions

The most basic way to translate a website is to simply hire a translator. While this can produce good results, it is not without problems. You may need to hire a translator for each language you want to use, which can be expensive. If your website is quite large, it also takes a lot of time, not to mention maintenance as the website grows.

The more effective option is to use machine translation. If you've ever used Google Translate, you'll be familiar with this concept. Essentially, it is a process of automatically translating your website without human intervention. This saves a lot of time and is usually cheaper, but it is also notoriously imperfect. Therefore, you need to make sure that the solution you are using allows you to customize the generated translations.

You can use several WordPress plugins such as Weglot Translate, WPML, and Polylang. You need to make sure that the plugin of your choice is compatible with your website and your other plugins. For example, if your website runs WooCommerce and your plugin is incompatible, a large amount of content will not be translated.

Introduction to Weglot Translate

Weglot Translate is a plugin that enables you to automatically create a full translated version of your entire WordPress website. This plugin is one of the easiest and easy to use of options available to translate your website in seconds. It offers over 100 different languages ​​and is fully compatible with all themes and plugins, including e-commerce solutions like WooCommerce. Weglot also offers contact with professional translators, giving you the option to order translations (if needed).

Main functions

• Translate your entire WordPress website and be fully compatible with any theme or plugin, including WooCommerce.
• Due to the fast plug and play settings, minimal configuration is required.
• Automatically apply Google's SEO best practices for multilingual pages.
• Let you complete control over your content and translations, allowing for easy collaboration.

Price: Weglot offers a free version and multiple premium plans, starting at around USD 12 per month (€9.90).

How to use the Weglot Translate plugin to translate your WordPress website

Now, let's put all these theories into practice by using the Weglot Translate website. We will use a website that runs WooCommerce and Storefront themes, but Weglot Translate is compatible with all WordPress sites regardless of themes and plugins.

Our website is currently available in English only, but we want to create a Swedish version. This is the original website:

First of all, you need to download, install and activate the Weglot Translate plugin from the WordPress.org plugin directory.

Next, you need an API key that you can get for free by signing up for Weglot account. You will see your API key and a link to your personal dashboard. We'll get back to this later, but for now, copy your key and return to your WordPress site.

Click on the new Weglot option in the WordPress dashboard and you will be on the translation configuration page. Here you can create a new translation for your website and determine how it appears in WordPress:

First paste your API key into the first field and start creating your first translation. Set the original language to English and select Swedish as the target language.

The next section allows you to determine how the language selector will appear on your website. You can set its appearance, and you can also set its default display position on the page:

Finally, you can add exclusions to limit translations to certain parts of the website:

Click Save changes After you finish, your website will now become a multilingual website! To view the results, open your website and find the selector you created. By default, it will be displayed in the lower right corner:

Select Swedish, and the website will load a new URL extension that represents the language. In this case it is /sv/.

This looks great, but since the translation is automatic, it may take some small fine tuning to make it perfect. You can do this easily by returning to the Weglot dashboard, which you can access through the Main Configuration page in WordPress:

Click Edit my translation to access your dashboard. Here you can click on the Translation List to view all translated elements on the website:

You can see that all elements have been machine translated, but you can edit one of them by simply selecting the translation and typing the replacement.

You will notice that translated elements will be automatically saved and marked as Manual review. It will also be updated in real time on your website:

You can also use Weglot Visual Editor to add and edit translations directly on your page.

When you click to start editing , your current website will load. By hovering your mouse over any page element, you will notice a green button overlay appears:

You can click it to add or edit the translation of the selected element. A pop-up window will appear where you will see the original text and the current translation:

Change it to your request and click OK to save. New translations will appear immediately on your website, just like before. In this way, we have created a brand new translation for our website! Of course, you should repeat this for each language you want to translate.

Conclusion

Translation of your website into multiple languages ​​seems like an impossible goal, especially if you are not proficient in multiple languages ​​yourself. But thanks to the Weglot Translate plugin, you can quickly create a website that takes full advantage of all the benefits of catering to non-native speakers without spending a lot of time and effort.

In this article, we have discussed these benefits fully, including how it enables you to reach a wider international audience and improves your SEO ranking and conversion rates. We recommend that you take the time to consider which languages ​​your website will benefit from and then easily add translations to your website using Weglot Translate!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Translating WordPress Websites with Weglot

How is Weglot different from other translation plugins?

Weglot stands out for its simplicity and efficiency. It provides automatic translation and manual editing of translations. It supports over 100 languages ​​and is compatible with all WordPress themes and plugins. It also conforms to Google's best practices for multilingual SEO, ensuring that your translated content is indexed by search engines.

Is Weglot compatible with my WordPress theme?

Yes, Weglot is designed to work seamlessly with all WordPress themes. It won't interfere with your subject code, ensuring that your website design and functionality remain unchanged after translation.

How does Weglot handle SEO for translated content?

Weglot follows Google's best practices for multilingual SEO. It will automatically add the hreflang tag to your translation page, which helps Google understand the relationship between the original content and the translated content. It also creates a dedicated URL for each translated version of the page, improving visibility of your website in search results in different languages.

Can I manually edit the translation provided by Weglot?

Yes, Weglot provides an intuitive interface where you can manually edit automatic translations. This feature allows you to ensure the accuracy and context of translated content.

Does Weglot support right-to-left (RTL) languages?

Yes, Weglot supports right-to-left languages ​​such as Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian. It automatically adjusts the layout of your website to suit the orientation of these languages.

How many languages ​​are supported in Weglot?

Weglot supports more than 100 languages. This broad range of supported languages ​​allows you to reach a global audience, no matter which language they speak.

Can I use Weglot on multiple websites?

Yes, you can use Weglot on multiple websites. However, each website requires its own Weglot subscription.

Does Weglot translate media content?

Yes, Weglot can translate text in images and other media content. However, for the best results, it is recommended to use text-based content where possible.

Will Weglot affect my website loading speed?

Weglot's design has minimal impact on the loading speed of your website. Translations are loaded asynchronously, meaning they do not slow down the initial loading of your website.

Can I use Weglot on my e-commerce website?

Yes, Weglot is fully compatible with e-commerce platforms such as WooCommerce. It translates all parts of the online store, including product descriptions, checkout pages, and email notifications.

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