Multilingual website: how to do it right for international clients

Which languages you need

You don’t need to translate the website into every possible language. Look at who your real clients are and who you want them to be:

• The languages you already work in. If English or German is spoken in your business, the website should reflect it.
• Your data. Google Analytics shows the browser language of your visitors, and your Google Business Profile shows where reviews come from.
• Your ability to reply. A German website generates enquiries in German. If you can’t handle them, don’t promise it.

Two languages done well beat five done halfway.

Translating isn’t enough: you need to adapt

International clients don’t just speak another language: they don’t know how things work in your country either. A good version in another language explains what is obvious to a local client:

• Local concepts: in Spain, for example, what an NIE is, the role of the notary, which taxes apply or how a community of owners works.
• Examples and references that make sense to that client.
• Tone: in German, a professional business usually addresses clients formally with “Sie”; in English, the tone can be warmer.
• Practical details: the international dialling code, opening hours and whether you speak their language.

How to structure it for Google

For Google to understand the website and show each person their language, structure matters more than design:

• One address per language. The simplest option for a small business is subfolders: /en/, /de/. Avoid switching language with a button that doesn’t change the address.
• Hreflang tags linking each page to its versions in other languages, plus a default version.
• Translated titles and descriptions on every page, not just the visible content.
• A visible language switcher that leads to the same page in the other language, not to the homepage.
• No automatic redirects by country or browser language: the country someone browses from doesn’t always match the language they prefer, and Google needs to be able to see every version.

AI translation: yes, but reviewed

Artificial intelligence tools now translate very well and make a multilingual website much more affordable. They are a good starting point.

But the texts that carry most weight should be reviewed, ideally by a native speaker: the first screen, service names, buttons and legal pages. A slogan translated literally or a poorly chosen technical term undermines trust exactly where it matters most.

What to translate (and what usually gets forgotten)

• Every page clients need to decide: home, services, about and contact.
• Forms: labels, error and confirmation messages.
• The automatic emails people receive after getting in touch.
• The legal notice, privacy policy and cookie notice.
• Image alt text and downloadable documents.
• Your Google Business Profile description, if you serve international clients.

Keeping languages up to date

The most common mistake shows up months later: a price, opening hours or a service changes in Spanish and the other versions fall behind. To avoid it, every change should be made in all languages at once, or at least noted so it isn’t forgotten.

This website is in Spanish, English and German, and every new guide is published in all three at the same time.

Quick review of your multilingual website

• Does each language have its own address?
• Does the switcher lead to the same page in the other language?
• Are titles and descriptions translated?
• Do you explain local concepts that foreigners don’t know?
• Are forms and automatic emails in the language of each version?
• Are the versions in sync with each other?

Frequently asked questions about multilingual websites