The use of mobile devices as grown rapidly year or year and the advances in the technology have also grown. One area of growth has been the development of apps. Although these advances are well received, they do present problems and issues to developers who wish to target as many users globally as possible. Localisation is the biggest challenge the developers as it involves adapting every part of the app to fit user’s preferences. These include, but not limited to currency, language, regulations, cultural expectations, and date formats.
All devices have different sized screens which need to be catered for if an app is going to be accessible to the masses. There are even differences within the same brands such as Apple. Think iPhone screens compared to iPads. Expect your text to change in size between screens and between languages. If the UI and UX are not adapted properly, the app will not useable. A top tip for addressing this is to create the text and formats for the smallest sized screen. Once you have achieved this, move up in size until you reach the largest available. Scaling up is far easier than scaling down. It is wise to know which devices are most used and aim to complete the UI and UX to fit these first. Less common devices can be added later. This approach means you can target a majority first whilst you then focus on formatting for lesser used screen sizes.
World languages have different average word lengths. German words average a little under 12 letters compared to English which averages just over 8 letters. There are also the grammatical structures to consider when creating the UI.
‘Also, there are the languages which read right to left such as Arabic and languages which are logo based such as Japanese,’ notes Adam Daniels, a tech writer at Let's Go And Learn and Write My Paper. Time and effort are needed to conquer this area. Where possible, native speakers are best to use when dealing with languages. Yes, there are online translation tools, but they do not always translate 100% accurately and can lead to confusion amongst your users.
Icons are your friend here. Use them to label buttons rather than words. A thumbs up to show you accept a change is a far better use of space compared to having the words on show. Icons and logos also add to the overall appearance of the screen and make it more user friendly. Recycling empty spaces called empty states is also a good use of space. A drop-down menu of favourite options could have an instruction of how to use the feature which disappears once the user adds some favourites into it. Do not underestimate the use of sounds to help in saving space. Clicking an icon to listen to an instruction rather than reading off the screen saves lots of space and allows for more detail to be included.
This is a key step in app localisation and allows for any glitches or errors to be corrected before officially going to market. You must first consider what you are going to be testing. Is it one area of the app, one specific function or one specific language? Knowing this makes your beta testing more focused and affective. Create a mock-up of the app with just the part you have chosen and distribute to a sample group. The biggest challenge of beta testing is collecting feedback from the candidates once they have used the app.
‘One way around this is to have a built-in feedback function within the app they are testing. This is then sent instantly to the team of developers to review,’ advises Louise Adams, a journalist at My Writing Way and Dissertation Writers.
App creating and then localising is the key to success. This is not a quick process and is one that must be completed carefully and methodically. Taking the time to get everything right will be of huge benefit in the future and will ensure that the app you have created has first rate UI and UX.
Emily Henry is a highly successful business development manager and editor at Resume Writing Service and Grade On Fire. She is committed to helping companies enter a new market and build long-term relationships with partners. She is also interested in writing witty articles on various topics on Best essay writing services.
