Adjust Your Product for Users Around the World
It is necessary to run localization testing when a company launches the products in different countries. A QA team is to verify that all the linguistic and cultural aspects of a target country and a corresponding locale have been addressed.
Localization is more than translating the texts correctly. Countries are situated in different time zones, use varying time and date formats, metric systems, currencies, payment providers, etc. Some cultures have right-to-left writing, the others – fully or partially logographic writing.
The same goes for imagery – it should fit in the realities of a target audience. People featured on promo photos and banners, general style, and color schemes usually vary from country to country. All these details should be factored in to provide a decent user experience.
Companies choosing localization recognize the value of customizing their products. Software localization testing is a way to verify that such customization has been successful.
Localization
- The purpose of localization testing is to check how well a product has been adjusted for an audience in a specific region. It implies the check of content and cultural details.
Internationalization
- Internationalization testing aims to verify the standardization of software – in other words, to assure that a product is universal and suitable for all audiences.
Localization and Internationalization Testing
As you can see, these are the opposite processes. Companies choosing localization recognize the value of customizing their products. Software localization testing is a way to verify that such customization has been successful.
