Software localization is crucial to entering new international markets and exponentially growing your monthly recurring revenue (MRR). However, localizing software is a collaborative effort that comes with its own set of challenges. 

Thankfully, there are ways you and your colleagues can work better as a team to develop a localized version of your company’s software product. Here are 5 actionable tips for enhancing collaboration on software localization projects to improve efficiency and your end-product.

5 Tips for Successful Software Localization Collaboration

1. Acknowledge Just How Collaborative Software Localization Really is

Localizing software as a team is an inherently collaborative effort. Not only are you working across the product team, you’re also working in tandem with other functional teams. 

Just one project could include input from not only colleagues on the product team, but those in roles pertaining to graphic design, marketing, branding, UX design, legal, human resources, testing, QA, business development and translation.

Getting clear on which cross-functional teams need to be involved before the localization process beings will help streamline the collaborative effort. Talk to each team before kicking off the project.

2. Establish Clear Communication Channels

Transparent and efficient communication are vital to successful collaboration on software localization. Carve out dedicated communication channels.

There are tools and platforms that facilitate communication for collaborating on software localization. Use a translation management system that includes file sharing, instant messaging, translation history, segment bookmarking and user permission controls. 

Keep your communication inside of the software whenever possible.

3. Define Roles & Responsibilities

When you define clear roles and responsibilities for team members across your team and others, it makes software localization more effective. 

Having well-defined roles helps prevent redundancy and confusion. Assign roles and responsibilities and make sure everyone is clear on what theirs are. For example, deciding on content reviewers and an approval process is important.

4. Centralize Your Localization Resources

There are many benefits to centralizing localization resources. The single most effective way to do this is to adopt a good translation management system. Ideally, this system will have strong machine translation, AI, translation memory, terminology management and file processing and storage components.

Make sure everyone is on board with adhering to best practices when using the software. This will maximize team productivity.

5. Automate Repetitive Tasks

There are ways to automate the software localization process, and this helps to enhance your team’s overall productivity. 

To start, integrate your translation management system with the software you’re localizing. Build a term base and maintain a translation memory with that system. Reuse your content and use it to power your LLMs and produce custom translations. This will simplify language translation and collaboration. 

Additional Resources

Equipped with these five tips for collaborating on software localization, we recommend reading the following articles to deepen your knowledge.

How to Translate XLIFF Files

How to Translate XML Files

How to Translate PO Files

How to Translate Strings Files

Improve Your Collaborative Software Localization Process with Pairaphrase

Pairaphrase is the AI-powered translation management system for teams who value safer, smarter and faster translation in a web-based environment.

It has the time-saving and collaborative features mentioned above. Plus, it’s optimized for your favorite localization file formats.

Schedule a Demo or share this article with a colleague.