{
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    "title" : "Top 10 Best Practices for Multilingual Websites |Digital.gov",
    "description": "Top 10 Best Practices for Multilingual Websites",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/resources/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites/index.json","item" : [
    {"title" :"Top 10 Best Practices for Multilingual Websites","summary" : "Ten tips for creating and managing multilingual government websites.","date" : "2016-09-07T10:00:45-04:00","date_modified" : "2025-01-27T19:42:55-05:00","authors" : {"lgodfrey" : "Laura Godfrey","lmartinez" : "Leilani Martinez","fedora-braverman" : "Fedora Braverman","lina-younes" : "Lina Younes"},"topics" : {
        
            "multilingual" : "Multilingual"
            },"branch" : "bc-archive-content-3",
      "filename" :"top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites.md",
      
      "filepath" :"resources/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/bc-archive-content-3/content/resources/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/bc-archive-content-3/content/resources/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites.md","slug" : "top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/resources/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites/","aliases" : {"0" : "/2012/08/12/top-10-best-practices-for-multilingual-websites/"},"content" :"\u003ch2 id=\"1-language\"\u003e1. Language\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDigital communications must address the users’ language preference. The use of machine or automatic translations as a sole solution is strongly discouraged even if a disclaimer is added. If government agencies decide to use translation software, they should have the translation reviewed by a qualified language professional before posting it to the website to ensure that the translation correctly \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/resources/introduction-to-translation-technology/\"\u003ecommunicates the message\u003c/a\u003e in a culturally relevant manner. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/espanol/\"\u003eUSAGov en Español\u003c/a\u003e (\u003cem\u003eformerly known as GobiernoUSA.gov\u003c/em\u003e), the trusted source for government information in Spanish, offers users a complete experience including content, navigation, and all functionalities and features in that language.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"2-culture\"\u003e2. Culture\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAgencies should conduct usability tests to understand the cultural considerations of their target audience. Regardless of language used, the online experience must be culturally relevant to achieve an emotional connection with the audience. Although \u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/espanol/\"\u003eUSAGov en Español\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"http://www.usa.gov/\"\u003eUSA.gov\u003c/a\u003e, its English-language counterpart, have the same structure, and look and feel, the Spanish site offers content and images that resonate with the Hispanic community.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"3-access-to-multilingual-information\"\u003e3. Access to Multilingual Information\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnable users to find your multilingual website via prominent access on the English site. Access to multilingual websites should be made available on the global navigation on the top right of every English page. The \u003ca href=\"http://www.ftc.gov/\"\u003eFederal Trade Commission\u003c/a\u003e provides the “En español” link as part of their global navigation on their English site.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"4-url-strategy\"\u003e4. URL Strategy\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUse a stand-alone, dedicated URL for marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) purposes. That URL can then re-direct to another one more in line with your agency URL convention. The Social Security Administration uses \u003ca href=\"https://www.segurosocial.gov\"\u003ehttps://www.segurosocial.gov\u003c/a\u003e to market and drive traffic to their Spanish language site.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"5-comparability-and-maintenance\"\u003e5. Comparability and Maintenance\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnsure that your multilingual website provides a comparable user experience to your English site. MedlinePlus provides the same experience on the \u003ca href=\"https://medlineplus.gov/\"\u003eEnglish\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https://medlineplus.gov/spanish/\"\u003eSpanish\u003c/a\u003e sites through consistent maintenance of content and look and feel.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"6-users-expectations\"\u003e6. Users’ Expectations\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eManage users\u0026rsquo; expectations by indicating when a user is going to navigate to an English-only area, external website, or will require a special program or software to view an application. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/espanol/\"\u003eUSAGov en Español\u003c/a\u003e website indicates that a link is pointing to English-only text by adding \u0026ldquo;en inglés\u0026rdquo; in parentheses at the end of the link. “En inglés” should also be part of the link to comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. 794d). For example, \u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/developer\"\u003eDesarrolladores (en inglés)\u003c/a\u003e is a correctly formatted link from the USAGov en Español website footer.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"7-toggle\"\u003e7. Toggle\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnable users to toggle between comparable content or features on the English and multilingual websites if available. Users on the National Cancer Institute can go back and forth between their \u003ca href=\"http://www.cancer.gov/\"\u003eEnglish\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"http://www.cancer.gov/espanol\"\u003eSpanish\u003c/a\u003e pages without having to go through the home page.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"8-digital-features-and-functionality\"\u003e8. Digital Features and Functionality\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProvide similar digital features and functionality on multilingual websites as available on the English site. The \u003ca href=\"https://espanol.epa.gov/\"\u003eEPA site in Spanish\u003c/a\u003e offers basic features such as email, RSS feeds, podcasts and more, as well as access to their social media accounts.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"9-integrated-operations\"\u003e9. Integrated Operations\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIntegrate your multilingual website initiatives with your internal infrastructure, overall operations and online-offline strategy. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/espanol/\"\u003eUSAGov en Español\u003c/a\u003e provides phone, chat and email support in Spanish through 1-(844)-USA-GOV1, as well as marketing campaigns and outreach materials in Spanish. In addition, USAGov en Español is an integral part of the overall online and offline strategy of the Office of Products and Programs part of the \u003ca href=\"http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/105227\"\u003eTechnology Transformation Service\u003c/a\u003e in GSA. This was especially evident when a name change and redesign were implemented for both USA.gov and USAGov en Español.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"10-marketing-and-outreach\"\u003e10. Marketing and Outreach\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDevelop and execute a targeted multilingual marketing and outreach program that includes branding, social media and email marketing strategies, and KPIs (key performance indicators) to measure success. Many agencies conduct dedicated outreach both online and offline for their multilingual sites including:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://www.usa.gov/es/\"\u003eUSAGov en Español\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://medlineplus.gov/spanish/\"\u003eMedlinePlus en español\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/EnEspanol/default.htm\"\u003eFDA\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/\"\u003eCDC.gov\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://espanol.epa.gov/\"\u003eEPA.gov\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eand others\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePrepared by \u003ca href=\"mailto:laura.godfrey@gsa.gov\"\u003eLaura Godfrey\u003c/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"mailto:braverf@mail.nlm.nih.gov\"\u003eFedora Braverman\u003c/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"mailto:Younes.Lina@epamail.epa.gov\"\u003eLina Younes\u003c/a\u003e, and \u003ca href=\"mailto:leilani.martinez@gsa.gov\"\u003eLeilani Martinez\u003c/a\u003e, based on the Hispanic Online Best Practices developed by \u003ca href=\"http://www.capturagroup.com/about-us/lee-vann/\"\u003eLee Vann\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n"}
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}