Localization is not translation — it's making a product feel native in a market, which touches formats, imagery, payment methods, legal norms, and cultural expectations far beyond the strings. This skill plans it: what to translate, what to adapt, what to rebuild for the locale, in priority order, with the cultural and regulatory pitfalls that sink naïve "just translate the UI" launches.
Required Inputs
Ask for these only if they aren't already provided:
- The product/content and the target locale(s) (language + region — fr-FR vs fr-CA matters).
- What it is — SaaS UI, marketing site, app, docs, campaign — sets what needs adapting.
- Goal & depth — testing a market (light) vs. full local presence (deep).
- Known constraints — budget, what's already internationalized (i18n-ready or not).
Output Format
Localization Brief: [product] → [locale(s)]
1. Scope per locale — language + region, and the depth (translate-only vs. full localization).
2. Translate / Adapt / Rebuild — the core matrix; what each element needs:
| Area | Action | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UI strings | translate | register, length expansion (DE ~+30%) |
| Dates/numbers/currency | adapt | formats, separators, currency + display |
| Imagery / examples | adapt | culturally appropriate people, scenarios, names |
| Payments | rebuild | local methods (e.g. Alipay/WeChat in CN, iDEAL in NL) |
| Legal / privacy | adapt | local consent, terms, data residency |
| Content / SEO | adapt | local keywords, not translated ones |
| Tone / formality | adapt | formality norms, humour that travels |
3. Priorities — what to do first for the goal (often: UI + payments + legal for a real launch; UI + a landing page for a market test). Sequence by impact.
4. Cultural & regulatory pitfalls — the specific traps for this market: colour/symbol connotations, name/address/phone formats, RTL if relevant, regulated claims, censorship/hosting requirements. The stuff that embarrasses or blocks a launch.
5. Process & QA — who translates (native + in-market review), how strings are managed (don't hard-code), and pseudo-localization / in-context QA before launch.
Quality Checks
- Distinguishes translate vs. adapt vs. rebuild per element — not "translate everything"
- Covers formats, imagery, payments, legal, and SEO — not just UI strings
- Region (not just language) is specified where it changes things
- Priorities are sequenced to the goal (market test vs. full launch)
- Names the specific cultural/regulatory pitfalls for this market
- Includes native + in-market review in the QA plan
Anti-Patterns
- Do not equate localization with translation — payments, legal, formats, and imagery decide whether it feels native
- Do not ignore region — fr-FR ≠ fr-CA, es-ES ≠ es-MX; the variant changes copy, formats, and norms
- Do not localize SEO by translating keywords — research how locals actually search
- Do not skip local payment methods — the best-localized UI converts nothing if they can't pay how they pay
- Do not launch without in-market native review — machine/relay translation misses the embarrassing stuff
Based On
Localization / internationalization practice — the translate/adapt/rebuild model, locale formats, market-specific payments & legal, in-country QA.