What is App Store Localization?

Explore global market: Guide to App Store Localization

In a continuously changing world where globalization is taking center stage, your game can be played by people worldwide. Keeping these players within the app or game is crucial as App Store and Google play control more than 95% of the app stores market worldwide. There are currently more than 6 million apps in the Apple Store and Google Play, so it is especially important to stand out in the market. But how can this be actually achieved? App localization is the answer. 

Localization of applications is translating apps into other languages so that more people can find and install them on the App Store or Google Play. But this is not just a translation that can be found when reading a translated book, namely a translation taking into account all the cultural and national peculiarities of the region in which the application could be launched.

App localization allows you to make your app more accessible and targeted and makes it more attractive to people from different parts of the world. Moreover, localization of applications can bring in new users, which can aid in the growth and monetization of your product. Localization of your application is an advantage for App Store Optimization (ASO) that helps to reach out to more potential users by allowing them to search for your app using keywords. It helps your app stay at the top of searchers in any app market. 

An example of localized App Store Optimisation can be the SplitMetrics’ case with ZiMAD and their game Magic Jigsaw Puzzles. SplitMetrics localized app store screenshots of the game for the Japanese market. This helped to increase conversion rate by 36%.

What is the Best Way to Localize your App?

What languages should I translate into?

The next thing to be considered is which direction to take in terms of app localization to reach most people of different cultures. The most popular languages in app marketplaces are European Spanish, French, German, European Portuguese, simplified Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Russian, Latin American Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese.

Do not, however, attempt to convert your apps into each of these languages. You must conduct a statistical analysis. The best method is to analyze your app’s demographic situation and point out regions where your app is more demanded and languages there. Then, it would be best if you examined the possible percentage of the consumers in these regions. Lastly, competition matters in any sphere, and you need to conduct an analysis of the potential rivals in the field close to the theme of your application, whether it is a game or an app with filters for photos. 

But the analysis is not over yet. The next step is to consider the most popular language groups and combine them in families. For example, you do not need to localize your app to European Spanish and European Portuguese for your app to be purchased in Spain and Portugal. In this case, the languages belong to the same group, they are similar in written and spoken language in most cases. Your application can only be translated into one language by launching the application in these two markets. 

One more useful step is to analyze the purchase data. Try to track the regions where the purchase of your application or assets most often occurs, and then localize the application for this region.

What should be translated? 

You can translate screenshots of your app or some videos that show how your application works. However, do not try to translate the title of your app because it is your market sign. The most useful way, in this case, is to add keywords in the title in the language of the market. This step is also a plus for localized App Store Optimization. There is no secret that people prefer great visuals. Try to localize videos, screenshots, icons, etc. It will positively affect localized App Store optimization as well. 

Do not forget that there is a character limit: for example, 4000 characters on Google. So, some languages may take up a lot of space or may have more grammatical constructions than in English. To avoid the reluctance of potential consumers to read long texts, although they may be written in their native language, you need to try to highlight important information that the user needs to know so that they want to download applications. In this case, again, as in the case of the title, the selection of keywords helps.

Specialists in intercultural communication can help with language localization work and properly selected copywriters. They can offer their ideas on localization texts and visuals based on cultural differences. Properly selected copywrites may even suggest the best-selling app store promotional text for the description and advertising. 

Should I localize the whole app? 

Full localization of the application requires a lot of money and time. If you have just launched the application, there is no need for this yet. It will be enough to localize the things described above, such as the title, description, and visual component of description/advertising. But in this case, it must be written that the game remains in the developer’s language (for example, English). It is important because the user may have a false idea that they will be able to use your application completely in their native language. However, they will not have such an opportunity, which may encourage them to delete the application.

If you want your app to grow and attract more users worldwide by localization of the application, contact SplitMetrics experts to increase your position among competitors in the markets of specific regions.