Translation Of Websites With One Click: The Top 5 Browsers

Translation is one of the fields that have benefitted most from the advances in technology. Digital translators are an extremely useful tool, especially when dealing with large texts in foreign languages. Unlike human translators, they are able to produce accurate results within seconds. As the need for full access to online content in all kinds of languages grows, online translators are in high demand.

Translation of websites is now easier than ever - with the click of a button, without leaving your browser. Learn how one-click translation works and how it differs by browser. We'll also show you the effects of in-browser translation on businesses and its benefits.

Globalization is a term that has become synonymous with the 21st century. Everything nowadays is fast-paced: people, goods and information travel at a rapid speed across the globe. As the world moves rapidly towards more and more digitalization, companies are increasingly making the shift to online platforms. In this day and age, having a website is essential for a successful business. Recent statistics have shown that more than half of the content across the internet is in English. In contrast, Russian is in second place with around six percent. That means that in order to reach a wider audience, translation is absolutely necessary.

Translation Of Websites: The Best Way To Reach More People

Over 6500 languages are spoken by 7 billion people across the globe, meaning English-only websites reach less than 25% of Internet users worldwide. The principle is simple: if you want your website to reach more people, it should be translated into different languages. Manual translation of a website is expensive and could take days. Moreover, if you want to acquire a wider audience, you will need more than one translator who will handle different languages. However, there is good news. Popular web browsers like Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Edge already have language/translation tools built into their settings (or available as extensions). This allows users to set their language preference and surf away. If a person accesses a site not in their native language, the browser’s translator kicks in and offers translation assistance.

How One-Click Translation Of Websites Works

There are too many websites on the internet and most of them bring you content in their native language. When you visit those sites, it becomes simply impossible to get the content you need or to understand where you need to go. In that case, you need some help with a quick translation. That is exactly where one-click translation of websites comes in handy.

Powered by Artificial Intelligence, one-click translation of websites allows you to translate a webpage in the matter of seconds. All you have to do is select some text from a website, right click and select which language you want to translate to. Another option is when a box pops up suggesting the language you can translate the webpage into. Your device usually recognizes your language preferences and suggests a language to translate to based on your user patterns. AI-enabled automated translation platforms like Google Translate, Microsoft Translator, and the recently released Amazon Translate have in the last 24 months taken a great leap forward in accuracy. This is for two reasons: one, they build on recent breakthrough improvements in Neural Machine Translation (NMT) algorithms, and, two, they have access to a much larger amount of language data from search engines, social networks, and e-commerce sites.

This leads to the next point that proves the advantages of one-click translation in websites: the competitive edge it gives businesses.

Businesses Giving Users The Option For One-Click Translation Of Websites 

Today, with even the smallest enterprise potentially serving a global client base, the need to communicate across languages and cultures is growing rapidly. However, cross-context communication is hard and costly. The costs of translation failures are often more than just financial. Miscommunication can lead to loss of reputation, legal exposure, physical harm, or even industrial disasters. For this reason, clear, accurate and effective communication – between cultures, languages, disciplines, and industries – is an increasing priority.

While it is undisputable that human translators can offer the most accurate translation, they are costly and need more time. That is why many companies have turned to Artificial Intelligence to do the hard work for them. With the content of their websites available in a variety of languages, it is guaranteed that their business will reach an optimal amount of people. Machine Translation works faster than any human can and has the capability to process and translate large texts without getting tired. Naturally, there are many advantages of AI-powered translation.

• Extended reach

By selling your products or services to foreign buyers, and having your content translated/localized in their native language, you will increase your global audience and subsequently grow your business. In this case, make sure you include appropriate currencies and unit measures. Localizing content is just as important as translating it, because different languages come hand in hand with different cultures. So, if you are referring to something typical for American culture, Spanish customers may not understand it despite it being in their native language. Localization also shows respect for different nations.

• Increased revenue

Consequently, with increased reach, increased revenue usually follows. Website localization helps boost the revenue. According to the Common Sense Advisory in 2014, 72% of internet users are more likely to buy products if the information is in their native language. Creating a multilingual website will give your business a wide exposure.

• Competitive edge

Since a big number of users prefer content in their native language, having your content easily translated gives you a big advantage over your competitors. It goes without saying that customers will prefer your website over one that does not cater specifically to their culture and language. According to a survey in 2011 conducted by the European Commission, 90% of Europeans visit a website in their native language. 42% of them do not buy the products if the language is different from their mother tongue.

• Better search engine ranking

Website translating services can create a Search Engine Optimization-friendly website having a particular keyword strategy. This brings visitors to your website. Translating your contents and keywords will multiply your chances of getting better search result rank and will give you more exposure. If you approach your website translation and localization the right way, multilingual SEO can have a great impact on your website’s online visibility.

It is clear that the ability to translate websites with one click is vital for the success of any business with online presence. Doing so lays the foundation for a strong relationship with the customers. That being said, there is more than one way to benefit from one-click translation. Usually it depends on the browser.

Generally, there are two main options for one-click translation of websites: by inbuilt software within the browser, and by a browser extension. Keeping that in mind, perhaps the most developed and frequently used is Google Translate.

How Does Chrome Translate Websites?

With more than 90 supported languages, 200 million daily users, and versions for multiple browsers and operating systems, Google Translate remains the undisputed king of translation. Predictably, Google Chrome provides the best translation experience powered by Google Translate. The default translation settings in the browser offer to translate pages that are recognized as written in a language that the user does not understand. Generally, the Chrome browser will identify any language different to the one in its settings as foreign. That means, for example, if your browser is set in English and you open a page written in German, Google Chrome will automatically offer to translate it for you regardless of your location, and even if you are in Germany.

That being said, you have the ability to set your individual language preferences. For example, if you are fluent in German as well as English, you can click that you do not wish to translate websites written in German, and the browser will stop offering it to you. What is more, the language of the browser can also be changed to a different one from the software on your computer.

The same principles apply to smart phones and tablets, as well as personal computers. The Google Chrome browser application works in the same way: by offering translation into your default language from the settings.

There is also a Google Translate extension which can be added to the Chrome browser. It places a button on your browser’s toolbar, but also adds a lot more functionality to the browser itself. The extension provides some additional features, such as instant translation of any selected text within a webpage, translation of any typed phrase in the same way as the main Google Translate web page, and the ability to translate any webpage with a single click.

Translation Of Websites In Firefox

There is no in-built translation tool for Firefox like there is for Chrome. Although Google does not provide a translation extension for Firefox as it does for Google Chrome, there are still some tools that can be added to the browser offering a similar experience. The Google Translator for Firefox add-on offers the same service at its core, but works in a slightly different way compared to Chrome.

With Google Translator for Firefox you can essentially use a “translate” option from the right-click context menu, benefit from a clickable icon, and a translation hotkey. By default, the add-on will try to set your detected language for the default target language. If it is not possible, then English will be the target language of the translation.

With the Google Translator add-on for Firefox, in order to translate a full page, you can choose what language you want the webpage translated into from the full list of languages found on Google Translate. In turn, the language in the original text is automatically detected. Since the add-on is powered by Google Translate, it completely relies on its platform.

There are also other extensions for Firefox, but Google Translator is the most popular option among users.

Translation Of Websites With Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge does not have built-in translation software either. Rather, you have to install an extension to benefit from the option for one-click translation of websites.

Translator for Microsoft Edge is an add-on developed by Microsoft Corporation. When you install it, you can translate foreign-language web pages and text selections for over 60 languages. All you have to do is look for the Microsoft Translator icon in the address bar when visiting a foreign-language webpage. Then you can click on the icon to instantly translate the webpage to your preferred language. You can also select a text you want to translate and right-click to get in-line translations.

Quickly Translate Websites In Opera

The Opera browser also does not have official inbuilt Google Translate software. Similarly to Firefox and Microsoft Edge, there are extensions which can be added that give the browser the option to translate pages with one click. The most widely used unofficial version is Google Translator by Sarahavilov – the same add-on and developer as the Firefox add-on.

Similarly to the Firefox browser extension, Google Translator gives Opera users the chance to translate web pages with a single click. The translator pops up as a bubble on the screen and with a menu that lets you decide the language you want the content translated to. You can also right-click the page you want to translate and choose the Translate Page option.

Safari – Translation Of Websites Desktop & Mobile

Safari is the default iPhone and Mac OS web browser. There is a way for you to get translations of foreign-language websites on your iPhone using the built-in Safari app. Apple does not have their own translation service, so they have to rely on a third party, and in this case, it is Microsoft (Google Translate does not support Safari translation). That means that you need to install an application. You can download the Microsoft Translator app for free from the App Store. Microsoft Translator focuses purely on translating, so you can also use this app to translate speech, text, and photos, and it also includes device-to-device translated conversations. In order to install it in the Safari browser, tap on the share sheet icon in the bottom menu bar, then swipe left on the activities row at the bottom until you see the "More" option. Tap on that, then toggle on your Microsoft Translator and finally hit “Done”. This will activate the Microsoft Translator option. Within the settings you can also choose whether to translate pages automatically or manually and choose to set up a preferred service region.

Whenever you need to translate a webpage in Safari, you can just tap on the share sheet icon at the bottom and select Microsoft Translator. The application will automatically detect the source language and translate it into the one you have set up as your preferred language.

There are many options on the market that give you the ability for one-click translation of websites. Whether you are browsing on your laptop or mobile device, it has never been easier to translate content without speaking the language it is in. However, the biggest question is whether the quality of the translations is up to par.

How Accurate Is One-click Translation Of Websites?

As with any translation powered by Artificial Intelligence, users are quick to doubt its accuracy. As most browser translation tools and extensions are reliant on Google and Microsoft, it can be concluded that the results they produce are as accurate as that software is.

The truth is that you cannot expect top-notch quality translations from machines, simply because there are some things they are not trained to translate. Local dialects, region-specific names and metaphors present a particular challenge for Machine Translation, because they differ from the standard form of languages. When a machine translator is not programmed to understand those aspects of a specific language, it will translate them, but literally, which often results in inaccuracies.

AI translation does the groundwork of taking information from a source language and translating it to another. However, it cannot adapt the information so that the reader can understand it properly. That is why localization is another important part of translating a website.

That being said, one-click translation of websites is free, fast and efficient. You cannot hire a translator for personal use who will translate what you are reading on the internet night and day. The future of translation lies in the hands of Artificial Intelligence, because it is cheap and fast. That is its main advantage over humans.

The number of non-English speaking internet users is increasing. All over the world, ever greater numbers of groups of people are going online, which requires translations into new languages. This means that companies that want to stay competitive in international markets – especially in new and growing markets – are going to have to translate their texts into many more languages.

With the rapid development of Machine Translation and Artificial Intelligence, we will witness more and more companies benefitting from one-click translation of websites. The diversity and number of internet users around the world is exploding – so it is now more important than ever that your website has a language version that is relevant to your customers.

Businesses around the world are more than likely to start translating and localizing their content even more. Chances are that in the coming years, information on the internet will become that much more accessible in all languages.