But what if some of your target audience doesn’t speak your native language? Or what if you have viewers from seven different countries?
In this case, you either need to create multilingual sites (i.e. manually rewrite every page of your site for each language) or you can use a multilingual plugin for WordPress.
There are several to choose from, but the two we will be discussing today are WPML and Polylang.
Things to Consider Before Choosing a Translation Plugin
Now, there are a few things you will want to ask when choosing a multilingual plugin.
Let's take a look.
How to Translate Your Website?
Some website owners use a mix of manual and automatic translation. With the manual option, you use a professional translator. And with the automatic option, you only use a plugin for translation.
Most use a mixture of the two.
The problem with the manual option is that it can take a long time to complete. While automation plugins can make translation faster and easier, there is still the possibility of incorrectly translated phrases.
In this case, you will need to use a professional to fix the gibberish.
How Much Can a Plugin Translate?
Multilingual plugins make life easier for webmasters, but only if they list of malaysia cell phone numbers can translate your entire site. There are those that will do the page but not the text in the menu.
So you'll have to see if it can translate:
Extension strings
Special Areas
taxonomies
Page builder content
Theme series
Widgets
Menu items
It is also good if the plugin has a visual interface that allows you to see your content as you progress and fix errors.
Search Engine Optimization of Translated Text
You have gone through a lot to optimize all aspects of your website. When you translate, you also expect it to be optimized. This is because your optimization efforts for local and international audiences should be equal in order to achieve better rankings. It is imperative to focus on your website as a whole in addition to the translated content because User experience affects SEO performance to a large extent.
On that note, you want a plugin that will provide proper SEO for the translated version. Choose a plugin that will:
Rewrite URLs for internal links for Google's crawl bots
SEO plugin support to optimize meta description and title
Separate URLs for translated content
Ability to translate URL information
You can add hreflang attribute
So let's see how WPML and Polylang hold up.
WPML
WPML (WordPress Multilingual)is a widely used WordPress plugin for business owners. It has been used to translate over 400 websites and is highly appreciated for its ease of use.
You can docreate a multilingual websitewithout worrying about breaking your features and functionality. You can even use it to translate all areas of your site, from the content on your page to the text in your WordPress theme.
Other areas it can translate include widgets, WP admin area, and more.
There are licensing options that give you the power to create multilingual versions of WooCommerce store sites.
Now, there are three versions of this plugin, plus multiple add-on modules that you use to translate other areas of your site (as mentioned earlier).
You can translate your site into over 40 different languages.
There are three packages you can purchase, each with an annual fee. The first is called Multilingual Blog for $29, Multilingual CMS for $79, and Multilingual Agency for $159.
The annual renewal rate is lower – $21, $59 and $119.
Let's take a look at the different packages.
Multilingual Blog
This is the basic plan that comes with support for tags, posts, custom types, pages, categories, WP menus, browser language detection, custom taxonomies, and standard translation controls.
Multilingual CMS
This is a popular choice because it comes with all the features without breaking the bank. It comes with everything in the blogging version and can do things like translate WooCommerce websites.
Some of the features it comes with are custom field translation, admin menus, Multilingual e-commerce support, and widgets.
Multilingual Agency
In the agency version, you get everything in the CMS package plus unlimited websites to sign up to. In the basic package, you can only sign up to one, while in the CMS package, you can sign up to three.
Pros and Cons of WPML
Alright, now it’s time to dive into the good and not so good things about the WPML plugin.
Here's a look at the pros:
Simple to use and quick to learn
Comes with regular bug fixes and updates
Provides excellent support and has a large forum
Integrates with many plugins and premium themes
Affordable
RTL support
WordPress can be used with multisite networks
And to the cons:
not free
More bulky for larger networks and sites
Can be slow and unfair on unstable and cheap servers
Some find it overwhelming and complicated (first-time users)
Uses large database
Next, let's review your competitor.
Polylang
Polylang stands out from the rest because it’s a free plugin. It can do the same thing as WPML (which is why the two are often compared). It also comes with a paid version that offers more.
