5 Crucial Insights for German Website Localization

Germany, the largest national economy in Europe and the fourth-largest GDP in the world, must be a potential market for any online commerce plan. And to reach success, it might take more than website translation only and you have to adapt to German website localization.

When localizing your website to the German market, consider these five distinctive features.

1. Types of German Online Consumer

Germany is the third-largest importer of products in the world and the second-largest exporter of commodities. In contrast to other European nations, a sizable portion of Germany’s educated population regularly shops online.

German Internet buyers often work in the saving mode of time and energy. They also have a strong sense of urgency. In general, there are three specific types of online buyers that your German website localization will focus on:

• Impulsive consumers: These German Internet shoppers have a propensity to ignore brand, shopping, and product distinctions.
• Pleasure seekers: These consumers are often motivated by emotion and overwhelmed by the “too many choices” they have.
• Enthusiastic shoppers: These customers find interest in shopping for both new goods and novel experiences.

Take a look at our post: German Localization – 6 Essential Things To Focus On to know more about German customers.

2. German Cultural Sensitivity 

Consider cultural differences if you’re thinking of German website localization. German clients place a high value on these traditional characteristics.

• Familiarity and Security: 77% of German Internet customers worry about the security of merchants that they have never done business with. Meanwhile, just 43% of infrequent buyers use price comparison websites, regular shoppers use them 57% of the time. To gain their trust, you should think about translating your optimum pricing plans and straightforward refund policies on your website.
• Trust: Germans like trustworthy merchants, thus foreign vendors should make an effort to customize their online shops for regional markets (i.e. e-commerce website domains should have a national .de extension). Aside from that, the footer of every website should have information about the owner. Moreover, do not forget the ratings and reviews of customers, the quality seals, badges, and certifications because they all appeal to German consumers.

L10n managers must have a clear German cultural awareness to plan successful marketing plans for their German website localization.

3. Suitable Color Schemes and Images for German Website Localization

Another aspect of German culture is represented by particular shades of color throughout Germany, and it is crucially important to your German website localization.

• Black: A formal color that conjures up images of mourning, death, and hopelessness.
• Blue: This color is traditionally associated with devotion and formality. For instance, blue envelopes are typically used for official correspondence from Germany.
• Green: The color of conservation and optimism. Die Grünen, the name of the German political party, is a good illustration of the use of green (The Greens). It was founded by peace and environmental activists in the late 1970s.

Moreover, with German website localization, it’s important to make sure that the actions depicted in the images correspond to the intended audience. Cross-culturalism is vital and significant, but it may occasionally be challenging for consumers from other countries to fully get the meaning behind a culturally particular ad picture.

4. Careful Word Choice for German Translation

In the process of German website localization, it’s critical to use expressions that native speakers of the German language can relate to and get a complete understanding of. You should remember 4 notes below:

• Remove components that are not relevant to the target audience and keep phrases that are universal or common.
• Be sure to delete words like “state” from the website’s German version when converting web forms and other input forms.
• Maintaining terms like “CEO” or “President” that are recognized and used in everyday German.
• Addresses of your branch offices often do not need to be translated. In this case, a translation service with native speakers can greatly help.

5. German SEM (Search Engine Marketing) and SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Creating localized content and keywords, registering local domains, and then advertising a website using local search engines, affiliate marketing, with online and offline branding, are the keys to promoting a website in Germany.

All domains with the top-level .de domain are registered at the DENIC central registry. The 10 millionth application for .de domain was processed in June 2006, making it the second top-level domain after .com to have ten million users, which is a significant obstacle.

Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), which are domains that may contain characters other than ASCII, are another service provided by the DENIC. In addition to allowing the German umlaut (the mark put over a vowel to show its pronunciation change), this IDN standard also supports 92 more characters, from the French é to the Danish Ø, which are currently supported by .de domains. Unfortunately, this IDN standard does not contain the German ß.

Besides getting used to the German alphabet, it is better to support the website visitor right away with more details written in the German language. In certain circumstances, it could be best to have a German website localization that is entirely separate from your original website in English (or any other language) and has its own text, design, color scheme, and images.

Final Thoughts

Website localization that is contextually and culturally appropriate is essential for success in any target market, and Germany is no different. These are only five things to consider if you’re aiming at entering the German market or strengthening your current presence there.

You may adapt your German website localization to be specially optimized for German business etiquette by working with a seasoned language services provider that employs qualified linguists.

GTE Localize can offer cost-saving German website localization and translation services for every industry. Our 5-year-experienced native linguists and a dedicated team of PMs can localize your website into the target market efficiently and effectively.

Drop us a line immediately to get a free test and a supportive consultation!