The French language is the only language besides English to be present on five continents. No other language except English is as truly global as French. French is one of the languages more widely used in the world. To expand your business in France, or in French speaking countries, you will have to translate your website content in French.
Why translate your website into French ?
– French is one of the four official languages of Switzerland (along with German, Italian and Roman). In Belgium, French is the official language of Wallonia and one of the two official languages—along with Dutch—of the Brussels-Capital Region. French is the second most common language in Canada, after English, and both are official languages at the federal level.
– Over 220 million people speak French as either a first or second language (OIF)
– French is an official language in 29 countries
– French is the official working language in large international organizations such as, the European Community, The Red Cross, The Olympic Games, The United Nations and all its agencies, NATO, the World Trade Organization, the Universal Postal Union, etc. as well as many other international organizations.
Here are some facts about French speaking countries
[tab_container initial_open=’1′]Full name: French Republic
Population: 65 M (UN, 2012)
Capital: Paris
Area: 543,965 sq km (210,026 sq miles)
Life expectancy: 79 years (men), 85 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 euro = 100 cents
Main exports: Machinery, transport equipment, services, agricultural products, agro business
GNP per capita: US $42,680 (World Bank, 2009)
Internet domain: .fr
Full name: Kingdom of Belgium
Population: 10.7 million (UN, 2010)
Capital: Brussels
Area: 30,528 sq km (11,787 sq miles)
Major languages: Dutch, French, German
Major religion: Christianity
Life expectancy: 77 years (men), 83 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 euro = 100 cents
Main exports: Machinery and electrical equipment, chemicals, vehicles, metals, diamonds
GNI per capita: US $38,100 (World Bank, 2010)
Internet domain: .be
International dialling code: +32
Full name: Swiss Confederation
Population: 7.7 million (UN, 2011)
Capital: Bern
Largest city: Zurich
Area: 41,284 sq km (15,940 sq miles)
Major languages: German, French, Italian, Romansch
Major religion: Christianity
Life expectancy: 80 years (men), 85 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 Swiss Franc = 100 Rappen
Main exports: Machinery and electronics, chemicals, precision instruments, watches
GNI per capita: US $71,530 (World Bank, 2010)
Internet domain: .ch
International dialling code: +41
Source: bbc.co.uk
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English into French text expansion
Generally speaking, documents translated from English into French require about 15-20% more words. This is due to the linguistic features of the French language. Often, more words are necessary to say the same thing in French than in English.
French translation of your website: make sure your website is SEO friendly !
Having a website translated or localized into French will not ensure high visibility: if your website is not meeting the internet standards, it will not necessarily rank well in French search engines, and your prospective customers will not be able to find you.
Translation has to be adapted to the requirements of SEO, so as to make your website “searchable”. When translating a website into French, keywords have to be included in text copy. A previous research should be carried out to understand which keywords are generally used in France. Other elements of the website have also to be translated, such as metadata, anchor texts…
Which digital services to enter the French market?
1SEO for French speaking countries
Improve your organic search rankings and digital presence in France. SEO is a complex activity that involves various technical aspects (site structure, geolocation,…), multilingual keyword research, website content optimization, link bait…
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2Social media in France
Social media should be used to connect with your prospective customers in France, which will drive more business. Openvalley assists you in defining the right social media strategy, so as to increase your presence on social networks.
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3Content marketing for a French audience
As cliché as it may sound, content is one of the most important factors in any search marketing strategy. It is highly important to ensure that you have content worth viewing in French to connect with a French-speaking audience.
4Website translation and localization
The issue of localization and translation of content in French is key to connect your customers abroad. Openvalley works with a team of native speakers to ensure web translation and localization is SEO optimized which, will positively affects your website rankings.
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5Website design in French
Openvalley design websites that are fully functional, either e-commerce or corporate websites. You can add an unlimited number of pages, update content anywhere, at any time, in a simple way. Our websites are multilingual, which means you can add several additional languages, and smartphone optimized.
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6Paid search
Launching a pay-per-click campaign in France is a good way to quickly reach new customers. With pay-per-click, advertisers can efficiently and effectively target customers in a foreign country. We can efectively create paid search campaigns on Google targeting the French market.
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