11 expert strategies for seamless elearning translation

11 tips to excel in elearning translation and localisation

How do you take one training program and make it meaningful for employees from Tokyo to Toronto? A well-executed elearning translation and localisation process holds the answer.

From decoding your learners' cultural nuances to harnessing AI-powered translation tools, we’ll walk you through several actionable strategies to make your training not just accessible, but truly impactful for every employee. Get ready to transform your training from generic to genuinely global. Let's dive in!

1. Decode the learner’s culture for deeper learning

Incorporating cultural context into your elearning materials starting from the LMS implementation phase is more than a translation exercise - it’s about fostering genuine understanding and connection. When you adapt content to align with your audience’s cultural norms, idioms, and sensitivities, you enhance learners' engagement and make the material feel like it’s tailored specifically for them. 

Without embedding cultural nuances into elearning localisation, even the most technically accurate translation of elearning courses can fall flat or confuse learners, ultimately impacting comprehension and retention. An analysis of 45 empirical studies revealed that cultural differences significantly affect users' elearning acceptance, emphasising the necessity of culturally sensitive instructional design.

How to excel at cultural adaptation of your courses

• Research local customs: Familiarise yourself with the societal norms, values, and customs of the target audience. For example, when developing a leadership course for Japanese learners, include respectful language for addressing superiors and emphasise group harmony over individual achievements, aligning with Japanese business culture.
• Identify key idioms and expressions: Replace or adapt language with culturally relevant idioms to make learning more relatable.
• Focus on language tone: Adapt tone to align with the region’s style - whether formal, casual, humorous, or neutral.
• Account for dialects: Adjust for regional dialects or language variations to enhance comprehension.
• Acknowledge local celebrations: Where appropriate, include nods to local holidays or events to add context and relatability.
• Adapt humour carefully: If humour is used, ensure it aligns with the audience's cultural norms to avoid misunderstandings.
• Mind gender norms: Be aware of local gender dynamics in language to create respectful, inclusive content.

2. Equip your team with the right translation and localisation tools for success

The tools you select, such as elearning authoring tools, determine whether your content feels accessible and engaging or distant and disconnected. With the right translation tools, you can seamlessly bridge language gaps, ensure cultural relevance, and simplify the translation process - all of which make training more impactful and relatable. 

Let’s look at how to choose tools that enable effective translation and localisation within your LMS for employee training.

Top considerations when picking an elearning tool for language and localisation

• Language accuracy: Ensure the chosen tool provides high-quality translations in multiple languages. For instance, when training Swedish-speaking hospitality staff, accurate language ensures that all instructions are clearly understood and easily actionable.
• Extensive language support: A platform with wide-ranging language options lets you accommodate employees from various linguistic backgrounds, creating an inclusive environment that values every employee's learning journey.
• Customisable features: Opt for platforms that let you adjust tone, visuals, and branding. Customising a course’s look and tone helps staff feel more connected.
• Accessibility compliance: Tools that adhere to WCAG standards provide inclusivity, catering to employees with disabilities.
• Industry-specific terminology: Platforms supporting sector-specific terms (like medical jargon or hospitality-specific phrases) help reduce misunderstandings.
• Testing and review options: Choose software with integrated testing features to ensure quality control in your elearning translation projects before final deployment. For instance, conducting a test run of a customer service training course for a multilingual audience can reveal any language inconsistencies, which can then be fine-tuned before rollout.
• Integration options: Look for compatibility with your existing systems or choose a comprehensive solution like Lingio LMS for a smoother experience. For UK-based organisations, partnering with LMS providers in the UK would be a good choice.

Tool spotlight: Lingio

Lingio is an AI-first training software designed to address the unique needs of frontline employees, offering tools to create and translate courses that are relevant, engaging, and accessible. Its AI Course Creation Tool enables organisations to build or transform courses quickly, catering to the mobile-first, deskless workforce that characterises industries like hospitality, cleaning, and elderly care.

When it comes to translation and localisation, Lingio offers an array of language translation features that make it ideal for diverse teams. With support for over 100 languages, Lingio ensures language accessibility for workers from various backgrounds. Its WCAG-compliant platform also includes industry-specific terminology, so employees receive training in the precise language used within their field.

The ISS success story: Empowering a multilingual workforce with Lingio

Lingio’s impact is evident in its collaboration with ISS, a global leader in facility management and workplace experience. ISS employs people from over 100 nationalities in Sweden alone and wanted a solution to help non-native employees improve their language skills, fostering stronger integration and improving service quality. 

By partnering with Lingio, ISS could provide language training tailored to different professional roles, which significantly enhanced communication within the company and with clients. Through Lingio’s advanced language courses, ISS has empowered employees to feel more confident in their language abilities.

One ISS employee, Zeynep Kale, shared

'The biggest challenge and frustration has been that while you often understand Swedish when you read or listen, when you have to respond, you struggle to find the right words. ISS and Lingio have helped me develop my Swedish and made it easier to find the right words to use. Now we speak a lot of Swedish, both with each other and in larger groups, which is great fun.'

This partnership exemplifies how the right translation tool can go beyond mere language learning to build bridges in a diverse, global workforce.

3. Simplify your words for effective elearning language translation

Complex sentences and industry-specific jargon can lead to misunderstandings and errors during translation, resulting in elearning translation mistakes that hinder learners' comprehension. A study by the Nielsen Norman Group found that even highly educated readers prefer plain language, as it enhances understanding and engagement.

Tips to simplify your language

• Use common words: Opt for everyday vocabulary over technical terms.
• Keep sentences short: Aim for sentences with 20 words or fewer to maintain clarity.
• Use active voice: Active constructions are generally clearer and more direct.
• Define necessary jargon: If technical terms are unavoidable, provide clear definitions.
• Use bullet points: They help break down complex information into digestible parts.

For example, when creating a course on data analysis for a global audience, replace a complex sentence like 'Utilise the data aggregation function to synthesise disparate datasets' with 'Use the data aggregation tool to combine different datasets.' This change simplifies the language, adhering to elearning translation best practices, making it more accessible to non-native English speakers and easier to translate accurately.

4. Enhance comprehension through culturally relevant visuals

Visuals are powerful tools that convey complex information quickly and memorably, making them especially valuable in elearning translation and localisation. However, a one-size-fits-all approach to visual design doesn’t work when addressing a culturally diverse audience. For instance, while bright, animated icons may enhance appeal in some cultures, they may be seen as overly casual or distracting in others.

Tips for integrating culturally appropriate visuals

• Align with local visual preferences: Research preferred visual styles in your target regions. For example, Japanese learners may respond positively to minimalist visuals, while Brazilian learners may prefer vibrant, colourful imagery.
• Be mindful of cultural symbols: Avoid visuals with symbols that may have unintended meanings in certain cultures, like specific hand gestures or religious icons.
• Localise text within visuals: If a visual includes text, ensure it’s translated and culturally adapted for each audience, rather than relying on English-only visuals.
• Select appropriate colour schemes: Colours carry different meanings globally. Red, for instance, can signify prosperity in China but caution in the US.
• Incorporate familiar settings: Use backgrounds or settings that are recognisable to learners, like a typical office environment or street scene they would know.

5. Design with mobile-first access in mind

For deskless and on-the-go employees, especially in fields like hospitality, healthcare, and transportation, mobile-optimised courses make training flexible, convenient, and engaging. 

When training is mobile-friendly, employees can access materials whenever and wherever suits them best, fitting learning into their busy routines. This approach keeps employees engaged and enhances knowledge retention by making learning both accessible and user-friendly.

Best practices to optimise content for mobile access

• Prioritise responsive design: Ensure content layout automatically adjusts across various screen sizes to guarantee an optimal viewing experience on any device.
• Adopt micro-learning modules: Break down content into small, focused segments that are easier to consume on mobile, enhancing knowledge retention.
• Limit text, maximise visuals: Use infographics, images, and video over large text blocks to maintain user engagement and improve comprehension on smaller screens.
• Enable offline access: Incorporate downloadable content or offline functionality so learners can access elearning courses without always needing an internet connection.
• Ensure multilingual support: Offer translations directly within the app to accommodate non-native speakers, broadening accessibility.
• Incorporate push notifications: Use reminders and alerts to encourage learners to return to the platform and complete modules.

Lingio’s Mobile Learning App is designed with the needs of today’s deskless workforce in mind, ensuring that training remains accessible anytime, anywhere. The platform’s micro-learning exercises present training in short, focused bursts, enabling employees to engage with content even during brief downtimes. 

Additionally, the app’s use of gamified elements - such as interactive stories, quizzes, and rewards - keeps employees motivated and invested in their learning journey. This fosters a sense of accomplishment and encouraging continuous engagement with the platform.

6. Adapt layouts to handle language length differences

When translating elearning content, it's crucial to anticipate text expansion and contraction, as different languages require varying amounts of space to convey the same message, affecting your course’s layout and design. For instance, translating from English to German can result in text expansion of approximately 10% to 35%, due to German's compound words and grammatical structures.

Tips for managing text expansion and contraction

• Design flexible layouts: Use responsive grids and adjustable text boxes for natural text adjustment.
• Leave extra space: Plan for 20-30% extra space to handle text expansion.
• Choose scalable fonts: Pick fonts that look good and remain readable in all languages.
• Test in target languages: Review the layout in different languages to catch issues early.
• Use dynamic buttons: Ensure CTAs and buttons resize to fit translated text.
• Replace text with icons: Use icons where possible to reduce translation needs.

7. Boost speed and precision with AI-powered translations

Leveraging artificial intelligence for translation allows organisations to achieve higher precision and faster turnaround times, creating a smoother path to localisation. AI-powered translation tools not only improve the speed of translation but also enable consistent quality across languages, ensuring that learners receive content that is both linguistically accurate and culturally relevant.

Lingio as an enabler for AI-driven translations and localisation

• Context-aware translations: Lingio’s NLP algorithms are designed to understand the context of training materials, allowing for translations that are not only linguistically accurate but also culturally resonant. By incorporating industry-specific terminology and language, Lingio’s AI enhances translation quality and relevance.
• Adaptive learning and improvement: Lingio’s machine learning models continuously learn from user inputs, refining translation accuracy with every interaction. This adaptability means that as more courses are developed, the AI becomes even more precise in its translations, effectively 'learning' the nuances of specific organisational language.
• In-app translations for seamless user experience: Unlike traditional translation approaches, Lingio’s in-app translation feature enables immediate localisation of content within the platform, allowing users to switch languages effortlessly. This real-time adaptability ensures that employees can access training in their preferred language without delay.

8. Use localised quizzes to make learning resonate

When you translate an elearning course, creating assessments and quizzes that are fully localised can significantly improve engagement, understanding, and retention. Tailored assessments not only make learners feel more connected to the material but also provide more accurate insights into their comprehension and performance.

Steps to excel in creating localised assessments

• Address local learning styles: Adapt the assessment format to fit regional educational practices, whether that means focusing on group-based, individual, or oral assessments.
• Use localised language: Adopt common idioms, terminology, and context-specific jargon that resonate with learners.
• Align with regional regulations: Ensure any assessment for compliance training is adapted to local laws and industry requirements.
• Integrate region-specific examples: Use real-life scenarios or local case studies to make the content relatable and meaningful.

9. Have native speakers test and refine your training material

When it comes to localising content within your learning management systems, testing with native speakers is invaluable for refining your elearning course translation output. This process, which involves engaging native speakers to review translated material, can reveal subtle errors and prevent cultural missteps that might otherwise slip through. Native speakers intuitively understand nuances in language and cultural context, adding a layer of assurance that the final content will resonate authentically with the target audience.

Best practices for testing with native speakers

• Select industry experts: Choose native speakers familiar with both the language and the industry you’re covering. This ensures accurate terminology and cultural alignment.
• Establish clear objectives: Set specific review goals, like assessing clarity, relevance, and cultural alignment, to guide native speakers on what to look for.
• Use diverse demographics: If possible, involve speakers from different age groups, regions, or social backgrounds to capture a broader perspective.
• Utilise tech tools for support: Use AI feedback tools in tandem with human input for deeper insights into phrasing and tone.
• Set up a scoring system: Develop a checklist or rating system for reviewers to simplify feedback and identify priority areas for improvement.

10. Measure, adapt, and improve the translated content

Monitoring and continuously refining translations allow your content to stay relevant, maintain quality, and connect with your audience in meaningful ways. By regularly evaluating feedback and tracking learner engagement, you can catch shifts in language use or cultural relevance early on.

How to excel at continuous translation improvement

• Gather learner feedback: Regularly collect feedback from your learners to identify unclear or irrelevant translations and make adjustments.
• Use analytics for insights: Track key performance indicators (KPIs) like completion rates and assessment scores by region to gauge translation effectiveness.
• Set periodic review cycles: Schedule regular evaluations to ensure translations are up to date with any linguistic or cultural changes.
• Use translation memory (TM) tools: Translation memory tools can highlight past choices, making it easier to maintain consistency and quality over time.
• Automate quality checks: Invest in automated translation quality tools to catch grammar, spelling, and syntax errors quickly.
• Leverage A/B testing: Run tests with different phrasing or terms to see what resonates most with your audience.

Example of continuous improvement in action 

For instance, if you’re localising a safety training course for both Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese speakers, you might notice, through feedback, that certain terms are interpreted differently due to cultural context. By collaborating with local experts and monitoring user feedback, you can adjust the language and examples used in these translations. This ensures the training resonates accurately with each audience, enhancing comprehension and engagement.

11. Partner with translation experts when needed

Partnering with professional translation experts can become important when dealing with specialised or complex material where accuracy is paramount. While automated tools provide speed and consistency, human translators bring the deep cultural understanding and industry knowledge that prevent misinterpretation and ensure every detail resonates with the target audience. Working with a professional elearning translation services provider allows for consistent quality, reducing potential confusion, errors, or cultural missteps.

Strategies to make the most of professional translation services

• Identify specialised content: Flag content that involves technical terms, industry-specific language, or sensitive cultural topics where human expertise is especially valuable.
• Use hybrid AI-human workflows: For efficiency, consider a hybrid approach where AI handles straightforward content, and humans manage complex sections, balancing speed and quality.
• Prioritise quality assurance: Choose services with a strong quality control process, as this ensures that translations maintain high standards across all materials.
• Leverage glossaries and style guides: Provide translators with resources like glossaries and tone guidelines to keep terminology consistent and reflect brand voice accurately.
• Plan for scalability: Opt for a partner capable of handling your scaling needs, ensuring consistent quality as you expand to new regions and languages.

Make your training content work for every employee

Today, even a single location can be home to employees who speak a variety of languages. This linguistic diversity presents both a challenge and an opportunity for organisations aiming to deliver effective training. Bridging these language gaps isn't just about translating words - it's about connecting with each employee on a cultural level to make learning truly resonate.

Now is the time to take action. By implementing these strategies and utilising advanced tools, you can ensure that language differences don't hinder your team's growth. Instead, you turn diversity into a strength, fostering an inclusive environment where every employee has the opportunity to learn and succeed.

Tools like Lingio make this journey smoother. With AI-powered translation and localisation capabilities, Lingio enables rapid creation of customised elearning content that’s accurate, culturally relevant, and easy to access for all employees.

Request a demo today to see how Lingio’s AI-first training platform can simplify your elearning content translation process.