docs/html/distribute/stories/localization.jd - platform/frameworks/base - Git at Google

 page.title=Developer Stories: Localization in Google Play
 meta.tags="google play, developer story, localization, global"
 page.tags="stories", "video", "case study"
 page.image=/images/distribute/zombie-ragdoll-n5-land.jpg
 page.metaDescription=Hear from Android developers who have successfully used the Google Play App Translation Service.

 @jd:body

 <p>
   As you build your app and distribute it across the world through Google Play,
   localization becomes an increasingly important tool to reach more users.
   Localization involves a <a href=
   "{@docRoot}distribute/googleplay/publish/localizing.html">variety of tasks</a>, but
   most important is creating quality translations of your app's UI strings and
   marketing materials.
 </p>

 <p>
   Managing the translation process across multiple languages can be a
   challenge, especially if you need to locate translators on your own. That’s
   why Google Play offers the App Translation Service right from the Developer
   Console. It's a single place where you can go to source professional
   translators, get cost estimates, and then send your strings and other
   materials for translation.
 </p>

 <p>
   Here are some stories from developers who have used Google Play's App Translation
   Service to localize their apps and the results they've seen as they've
   expand their offerings beyond a single language.
 </p>

 <!-- START STORY -->

 <div style="margin-bottom:2em;padding-top:10px;" id="zombieragdoll">

 <h3 style="line-height:1.25em">Zombie Ragdoll: Improved user engagement<br /> with localized versions</h3>

   <img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
             -moz-border-radius: 5px;
             border-radius: 5px height:78px;
             width: 78px;
             float: left;
             margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
             "https://lh4.ggpht.com/m-Ew8c8C_nGctbP6PSPGOaVNnGFryReOE2yHXJ9Z6Prk1nsDyx5w5TmWfg-P5N3HypA=w124">

   <div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
   float: right;
   border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
   width: 220px;
   margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

     <h5>About the app</h5>

     <ul>
       <li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">Zombie Ragdoll</a></li>
       <li>A fun zombie-based physics game</li>
     </ul>

     <h5>Localization Results</h5>

     <ul>
       <li>Increased engagement because of appeal of the localized version</li>
       <li>80% of installs came from users of non-English languages</li>
       </ul>

     <div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
       <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">
         <img alt="Android app on Google Play"
          src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
       </a>

     </div>
   </div>

   <div style="line-height:1.4em;">

 <p>
   The 2013 Google I/O talks about <a href=
   "https://developers.google.com/events/io/sessions/326345917">Building Android
   Apps for a Global Audience</a> and <a href=
   "https://developers.google.com/events/io/sessions/326455375">What’s New for
   Developers in Google Play</a> inspired developers at RV AppStudios to go global
   from very beginning for their new game, Zombie Ragdoll. They launched Zombie
   Ragdoll in August 2013, localized into 20 languages.
 </p>

 <p>
   They quickly saw the impact of their decision to ship simultaneously in
   multiple languages through increased non-English installs and improved
   engagement with users worldwide. In addition, they started getting
   significant usage in countries where their apps had not been as popular
   before. They are seeing great traction in countries like Vietnam, Russia,
   Philippines and Thailand.
 </p>

 <p>
   Vivek Dave, founder of RV AppStudios, credits the success of Zombie Ragdoll
   to localization:
 </p>

 <p>
   "The value of localization is clear, it helps discoverability and helps
   connect with the users in other countries. So when the localization
   opportunity arose, we immediately jumped on it. Android is worldwide, and we
   would be severely limiting ourselves if we focused on English as the only
   language.
 </p>

 <p>
   "The App Translation Service offered in the Google Play Developer Console is
   extremely easy to use and the pricing is very attractive. Developers with
   limited localization experience can easily create, upload, and translate
   their app."
 </p>


 <p>
   RV AppStudios not only localizes the text within the game, but also localizes
   the game assets to a specific country/culture. Dave says, “Users want a
   personalized experience, and by offering a localized game with translation of
   text and graphic assets, we believe users will connect at a much deeper level
   with the game.”
 </p>


   <div style="margin-top:8px;float:left;margin-right:24px;">
     <img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/zombie-ragdoll-n5-land.jpg" style="width:470px;">
   </div>


     <div style="margin-top:128px;">
       <p class="img-caption"><strong>Hindi version of Zombie Ragdoll</strong>:
       Localized screenshots and videos in the app's Google Play listing go a
       long way toward increasing the number of installs.</p>
     </div>

   </div>

 </div> <!-- END STORY -->

 <!-- START STORY -->

 <div style="margin-bottom:2em;padding-top:18px;clear:both;" id="sayhichat">

 <h3>SayHi Chat: Install growth and user engagement<br />
   from professional translations</h3>

   <img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
             -moz-border-radius: 5px;
             border-radius: 5px height:78px;
             width: 78px;
             float: left;
             margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
             "https://lh5.ggpht.com/qiL6CF1Hktz618T3mbGrxvm_OoeheQ78FgG7zr90C2MCRiz4IDQsbKuHT4xQGiWEU8o=w124">

   <div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
   float: right;
   border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
   width: 220px;
   margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

     <h5>About the app</h5>

     <ul>
       <li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unearby.sayhi">SayHi Chat,
       Love, Meet, Dating</a></li>
       <li>A social app to help you find people nearby</li>
     </ul>

     <h5>Localization Results</h5>

     <ul>
       <li>120% growth in language installs for new languages added</li>
       <li>~20% increase in revenue and ~50% increase in User Reviews in the new
         languages</li>
       </ul>

     <div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
       <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unearby.sayhi">
         <img alt="Android app on Google Play"
          src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
       </a>

     </div>
   </div>

   <div style="line-height:1.4em;">

 <p>
   The SayHi Chat app started out only in Japanese, Chinese and English. It soon
   became one of the most popular apps in Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The
   SayHi team realized it was time to launch in more languages, as the language
   barrier was restricting how fast SayHi could grow globally. </p>

   <p>Yan Shi, senior
   developer at SayHi, says: "We checked Google Analytics for our DAU and user
   growth numbers in each country, we also looked at total Android and iOS users
   in those markets before finalizing our next set of languages.
 </p>

   <div style="margin-top:8px;float:left;width:270px;">
     <img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/hichat-n5-port.jpg" style="width:240px;margin-right:48px;">
   </div>

 <p>
   SayHi used the App Translation Service to launch in 13 additional languages
   in August 2013 and immediately saw 120% increase in install rates. In
   addition, they are seeing their app ranked in Top 10 apps in countries like
   Poland and Italy.
 </p>

 <p>Notably, they saw steady growth in Spain after replacing their previous
   non-professional Spanish translation with a professional one produced through
   the App Translation Service.</p>

 <p>
   Yan Shi adds, “The App Translation Service is really easy to use and
   the completion time for translation requests is very good.”
 </p>

     <div style="width:600px;margin-top:98px;padding:0;">
       <p class="img-caption"><strong>Arabic version of SayHi Chat</strong>:
         User engagement increased significantly with
         the localized version.</p>
     </div>

   </div>
 </div> <!-- END STORY -->


 <div style="margin-bottom:2em;clear:both;padding-top:18px;" id="g4a"><!-- START STORY -->

 <h3 style="line-spacing:1.25em;">G4A Indian Rummy: Benefitting from ease-of-use and<br /> fast turnaround time</h3>

   <img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
             -moz-border-radius: 5px;
             border-radius: 5px height:78px;
             width: 78px;
             float: left;
             margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
             "https://lh4.ggpht.com/IxSyQgO0LWzPRoLfCrER06-0kr6aMAa2azF7eNYB30EBZAGOLYJUZulknPockbTlDYU=w124">

   <div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
   float: right;
   border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
   width: 220px;
   margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

     <h5>About the app</h5>

     <ul>
       <li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.games4all.android.games.indianrummy.prod">G4A Indian Rummy</a></li>
       <li>A card game in which the players try to form sets and sequences of cards</li>
     </ul>

     <h5>Localization Results</h5>

     <ul>
       <li>Double the number of users in French and German languages</li>
       <li>300% increase in user engagement with localized version</li>
       </ul>

     <div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
       <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">
         <img alt="Android app on Google Play"
          src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
       </a>
     </div>
   </div>

   <div style="line-height:1.4em;">

 <p>
   Games4All (G4A) is the developer of Indian Rummy and a variety of games that
   they distribute broadly to users around the world. After noticing that
   certain apps had become especially popular in specific countries, they
   decided to localize those apps. Initially they used a local agency to do
   the translation and got great results &mdash; the number of users in
   that language increased tremendously when they released the localized
   version.
 </p>

 <p>
   Building on that success, G4A expanded their localization goals but
   found that translation quality varied across their vendors and costs limited the
   language/game combinations they could try. That's when G4A decided to try the
   App Translation Service.
 </p>

 <p>
   Founder Pieter Olivier says, "When we heard that the App Translation
   Service was available in the Developer Console, we jumped at the opportunity.
   We've now been using the App Translation Service for several months and found
   that the cost per translation is much lower than with local companies and the
   process is much easier."
 </p>

 <p>So far, G4A has translated the game Indian Rummy into five languages through
    the App Translation Service.</p>

 <p>
   Olivier continues, "The first thing we did was convert all of our texts into
   the strings.xml format. After that using the service was extremely easy and
   straightforward. In contrast, our previous experiences with translation
   agencies were much more difficult: files often required extensive conversion
   operations to make them usable, and turnaround times varied wildly.
 </p>

 <p>
   "With the App Translation Service, the turnaround time is usually measured in
   days instead of weeks that we were used to with traditional translation
   agencies."
 </p>

   <div style="margin-top:14px;float:left;margin-right:24px;">
     <img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/indian-rummy-n4-land.jpg" style="width:470px;">
   </div>

     <div style="margin-top:158px;">
       <p class="img-caption"><strong>Dutch
       version of Indian Rummy</strong>: Making slight changes to games rules based on
       local nuances was key to success of the game.</p>
     </div>

   </div>


 </div> <!-- END STORY -->
	page.title=Developer Stories: Localization in Google Play
	meta.tags="google play, developer story, localization, global"
	page.tags="stories", "video", "case study"
	page.image=/images/distribute/zombie-ragdoll-n5-land.jpg
	page.metaDescription=Hear from Android developers who have successfully used the Google Play App Translation Service.

	@jd:body

	<p>
	As you build your app and distribute it across the world through Google Play,
	localization becomes an increasingly important tool to reach more users.
	Localization involves a <a href=
	"{@docRoot}distribute/googleplay/publish/localizing.html">variety of tasks</a>, but
	most important is creating quality translations of your app's UI strings and
	marketing materials.
	</p>

	<p>
	Managing the translation process across multiple languages can be a
	challenge, especially if you need to locate translators on your own. That’s
	why Google Play offers the App Translation Service right from the Developer
	Console. It's a single place where you can go to source professional
	translators, get cost estimates, and then send your strings and other
	materials for translation.
	</p>

	<p>
	Here are some stories from developers who have used Google Play's App Translation
	Service to localize their apps and the results they've seen as they've
	expand their offerings beyond a single language.
	</p>

	<!-- START STORY -->

	<div style="margin-bottom:2em;padding-top:10px;" id="zombieragdoll">

	<h3 style="line-height:1.25em">Zombie Ragdoll: Improved user engagement<br /> with localized versions</h3>

	<img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
	-moz-border-radius: 5px;
	border-radius: 5px height:78px;
	width: 78px;
	float: left;
	margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
	"https://lh4.ggpht.com/m-Ew8c8C_nGctbP6PSPGOaVNnGFryReOE2yHXJ9Z6Prk1nsDyx5w5TmWfg-P5N3HypA=w124">

	<div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
	float: right;
	border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
	width: 220px;
	margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

	<h5>About the app</h5>

	<ul>
	<li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">Zombie Ragdoll</a></li>
	<li>A fun zombie-based physics game</li>
	</ul>

	<h5>Localization Results</h5>

	<ul>
	<li>Increased engagement because of appeal of the localized version</li>
	<li>80% of installs came from users of non-English languages</li>
	</ul>

	<div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
	<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">
	<img alt="Android app on Google Play"
	src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
	</a>

	</div>
	</div>

	<div style="line-height:1.4em;">

	<p>
	The 2013 Google I/O talks about <a href=
	"https://developers.google.com/events/io/sessions/326345917">Building Android
	Apps for a Global Audience</a> and <a href=
	"https://developers.google.com/events/io/sessions/326455375">What’s New for
	Developers in Google Play</a> inspired developers at RV AppStudios to go global
	from very beginning for their new game, Zombie Ragdoll. They launched Zombie
	Ragdoll in August 2013, localized into 20 languages.
	</p>

	<p>
	They quickly saw the impact of their decision to ship simultaneously in
	multiple languages through increased non-English installs and improved
	engagement with users worldwide. In addition, they started getting
	significant usage in countries where their apps had not been as popular
	before. They are seeing great traction in countries like Vietnam, Russia,
	Philippines and Thailand.
	</p>

	<p>
	Vivek Dave, founder of RV AppStudios, credits the success of Zombie Ragdoll
	to localization:
	</p>

	<p>
	"The value of localization is clear, it helps discoverability and helps
	connect with the users in other countries. So when the localization
	opportunity arose, we immediately jumped on it. Android is worldwide, and we
	would be severely limiting ourselves if we focused on English as the only
	language.
	</p>

	<p>
	"The App Translation Service offered in the Google Play Developer Console is
	extremely easy to use and the pricing is very attractive. Developers with
	limited localization experience can easily create, upload, and translate
	their app."
	</p>


	<p>
	RV AppStudios not only localizes the text within the game, but also localizes
	the game assets to a specific country/culture. Dave says, “Users want a
	personalized experience, and by offering a localized game with translation of
	text and graphic assets, we believe users will connect at a much deeper level
	with the game.”
	</p>


	<div style="margin-top:8px;float:left;margin-right:24px;">
	<img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/zombie-ragdoll-n5-land.jpg" style="width:470px;">
	</div>


	<div style="margin-top:128px;">
	<p class="img-caption"><strong>Hindi version of Zombie Ragdoll</strong>:
	Localized screenshots and videos in the app's Google Play listing go a
	long way toward increasing the number of installs.</p>
	</div>

	</div>

	</div> <!-- END STORY -->

	<!-- START STORY -->

	<div style="margin-bottom:2em;padding-top:18px;clear:both;" id="sayhichat">

	<h3>SayHi Chat: Install growth and user engagement<br />
	from professional translations</h3>

	<img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
	-moz-border-radius: 5px;
	border-radius: 5px height:78px;
	width: 78px;
	float: left;
	margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
	"https://lh5.ggpht.com/qiL6CF1Hktz618T3mbGrxvm_OoeheQ78FgG7zr90C2MCRiz4IDQsbKuHT4xQGiWEU8o=w124">

	<div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
	float: right;
	border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
	width: 220px;
	margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

	<h5>About the app</h5>

	<ul>
	<li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unearby.sayhi">SayHi Chat,
	Love, Meet, Dating</a></li>
	<li>A social app to help you find people nearby</li>
	</ul>

	<h5>Localization Results</h5>

	<ul>
	<li>120% growth in language installs for new languages added</li>
	<li>~20% increase in revenue and ~50% increase in User Reviews in the new
	languages</li>
	</ul>

	<div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
	<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unearby.sayhi">
	<img alt="Android app on Google Play"
	src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
	</a>

	</div>
	</div>

	<div style="line-height:1.4em;">

	<p>
	The SayHi Chat app started out only in Japanese, Chinese and English. It soon
	became one of the most popular apps in Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The
	SayHi team realized it was time to launch in more languages, as the language
	barrier was restricting how fast SayHi could grow globally. </p>

	<p>Yan Shi, senior
	developer at SayHi, says: "We checked Google Analytics for our DAU and user
	growth numbers in each country, we also looked at total Android and iOS users
	in those markets before finalizing our next set of languages.
	</p>

	<div style="margin-top:8px;float:left;width:270px;">
	<img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/hichat-n5-port.jpg" style="width:240px;margin-right:48px;">
	</div>

	<p>
	SayHi used the App Translation Service to launch in 13 additional languages
	in August 2013 and immediately saw 120% increase in install rates. In
	addition, they are seeing their app ranked in Top 10 apps in countries like
	Poland and Italy.
	</p>

	<p>Notably, they saw steady growth in Spain after replacing their previous
	non-professional Spanish translation with a professional one produced through
	the App Translation Service.</p>

	<p>
	Yan Shi adds, “The App Translation Service is really easy to use and
	the completion time for translation requests is very good.”
	</p>

	<div style="width:600px;margin-top:98px;padding:0;">
	<p class="img-caption"><strong>Arabic version of SayHi Chat</strong>:
	User engagement increased significantly with
	the localized version.</p>
	</div>

	</div>
	</div> <!-- END STORY -->


	<div style="margin-bottom:2em;clear:both;padding-top:18px;" id="g4a"><!-- START STORY -->

	<h3 style="line-spacing:1.25em;">G4A Indian Rummy: Benefitting from ease-of-use and<br /> fast turnaround time</h3>

	<img alt="" class="screenshot thumbnail" style="-webkit-border-radius: 5px;
	-moz-border-radius: 5px;
	border-radius: 5px height:78px;
	width: 78px;
	float: left;
	margin: 12px 20px 9px 20px;" src=
	"https://lh4.ggpht.com/IxSyQgO0LWzPRoLfCrER06-0kr6aMAa2azF7eNYB30EBZAGOLYJUZulknPockbTlDYU=w124">

	<div style="list-style: none;height:100%;
	float: right;
	border-top: 1px solid #9C0;
	width: 220px;
	margin: 4px 20px;padding: .5em;">

	<h5>About the app</h5>

	<ul>
	<li><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.games4all.android.games.indianrummy.prod">G4A Indian Rummy</a></li>
	<li>A card game in which the players try to form sets and sequences of cards</li>
	</ul>

	<h5>Localization Results</h5>

	<ul>
	<li>Double the number of users in French and German languages</li>
	<li>300% increase in user engagement with localized version</li>
	</ul>

	<div style="padding:.5em 0 0 1em;">
	<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rvappstudios.zombieragdoll">
	<img alt="Android app on Google Play"
	src="{@docRoot}images/brand/en_generic_rgb_wo_45.png" />
	</a>
	</div>
	</div>

	<div style="line-height:1.4em;">

	<p>
	Games4All (G4A) is the developer of Indian Rummy and a variety of games that
	they distribute broadly to users around the world. After noticing that
	certain apps had become especially popular in specific countries, they
	decided to localize those apps. Initially they used a local agency to do
	the translation and got great results — the number of users in
	that language increased tremendously when they released the localized
	version.
	</p>

	<p>
	Building on that success, G4A expanded their localization goals but
	found that translation quality varied across their vendors and costs limited the
	language/game combinations they could try. That's when G4A decided to try the
	App Translation Service.
	</p>

	<p>
	Founder Pieter Olivier says, "When we heard that the App Translation
	Service was available in the Developer Console, we jumped at the opportunity.
	We've now been using the App Translation Service for several months and found
	that the cost per translation is much lower than with local companies and the
	process is much easier."
	</p>

	<p>So far, G4A has translated the game Indian Rummy into five languages through
	the App Translation Service.</p>

	<p>
	Olivier continues, "The first thing we did was convert all of our texts into
	the strings.xml format. After that using the service was extremely easy and
	straightforward. In contrast, our previous experiences with translation
	agencies were much more difficult: files often required extensive conversion
	operations to make them usable, and turnaround times varied wildly.
	</p>

	<p>
	"With the App Translation Service, the turnaround time is usually measured in
	days instead of weeks that we were used to with traditional translation
	agencies."
	</p>

	<div style="margin-top:14px;float:left;margin-right:24px;">
	<img src="{@docRoot}images/distribute/indian-rummy-n4-land.jpg" style="width:470px;">
	</div>

	<div style="margin-top:158px;">
	<p class="img-caption"><strong>Dutch
	version of Indian Rummy</strong>: Making slight changes to games rules based on
	local nuances was key to success of the game.</p>
	</div>

	</div>



	</div> <!-- END STORY -->