Oh, this hectic world! We swear we haven’t forgotten to update you, but time goes fast for our development team as they embark on the daily quest of making localization easier for you every day. During the last few months, we have churned out great features for you to enjoy.
Let’s go over them and catch up with our growing team behind the scenes.
+ TL;DR? 🔗
🏅 We are now ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II certified / 🤖 More automation possibilities & OpenAI translations / 🆕 New integrations, new pricing, new supported formats and languages / 🎉 Introducing our new Partners program / 🍻 We've attended tons of events to tell everyone about Localazy's mission / 🤪 Hackathon madness! / 💪 Our team keeps growing
🚂 Premiering new features 🔗
The Localazy machine room is steaming with novelties, and we don't intend to stop anytime soon! 🏃♀️ Intercom, Directus, and Poedit integrations are now available, and we have also introduced support for three e-learning formats: Adobe Captivate, Articulate Rise 360, and iSpring.
Localazy now also supports .xcstrings and TMX, simplifying configuration for these popular formats. We have developed a new configurator for your .json files, made many QA improvements and fixes (like the ability to copy one language to another easily or the optimization of MT placeholders), and premiered our embeddable leaderboards, which you can use to motivate contributors if you have a public project.
All new features are explained in detail in our latest release updates:
December ❄️ | January ⛷️ | April ☔️ | July ☀️
Duplicity Linking & CDN help 🔗
A huge milestone for the team was the release of the Duplicity Linking feature back in March 2023, which allows users to maintain consistency across their translation projects by spotting and reviewing duplicated values easily. We have now added a magic button that resolves all your duplicities at once 🪄, and prepared more content for you to understand it and take full advantage of it. Its value has been proven over and over again by our customers during the last year, and we can't wait to develop it further with your feedback.
- 📹 Here's a handy video by our lead developer, Dan, explaining how it saves you time and resources.
- 📑 Full documentation is available here.
Similarly, we have shiny new deep dives available to help you configure Localazy CDN and enjoy all its benefits:
- 👩🏫 You can start off with our ultimate guide...
- 📑 ...and then hop off to our complete documentation or test the new Localazy CDN Client's Node.js library.
- 📹 Václav, our CEO, explains why Localazy CDN is a good choice for scaling companies in this video interview.
- ☝️ And if you're still not convinced, skim the real numbers in the article below:
🏋️♂️ Better, faster, stronger translations 🔗
We want to make your experience with our translation interface and services as breezy as possible. These are some of the changes we've introduced to make you love your Localazy experience even more.
Dolling up our translation interface 🔗
Our UI is looking prettier every day. We've given our Review and Translate buttons a facelift, implemented an onboarding guide for new customers, revamped our Translation Memory, and applied several improvements to our interface. You can now create custom translation tasks and sessions, and our integration screen and source key counts are much simpler, too. Looking sharp! 🤵
Support for more languages 🔗
Last year, over 10,000 users completed a translation using Localazy, reaching a whopping total of 2.4M translations. We've been growing nonstop, and our languages are, too — we currently localize to hundreds of tongues and offer professional translations with English as a source in more than 50 languages.
One of our goals is to continuously add support for professional translations in as many languages as possible. Urdu and Swahili are our latest additions, with Russian for professional proofreading as a bonus.
We are also working on new locale guides to refresh or complement your expansion strategies in different languages (like this one for the Quebec market or this one for Sweden).
🤓 Curious to know which were the most popular Localazy languages in 2023? German, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Italian, in that order!
If you've somewhat stumbled into this piece without meeting us first (or need a handy reminder), check out our ultimate guide for translation services, where we explain the differences between professional translation, human translation validation, and proofreading services.
Revamped pricing & trial 🔗
2024 kicked off at Localazy HQ with a complete revamp of our pricing model to better suit your needs. You can get all the details in this guide and contact us for any questions or custom requests for your organization. Four months later, we also modified our standard trial period and extended it to 14 days so that you can experience all the Localazy benefits, including automation features before you commit to a plan.
Automated workflows & OpenAI 🔗
No one likes to wither away performing boring manual tasks over and over again. We know you have better things to do – that's why the addition of new automated workflows to the Localazy pipelines will save you precious time. We talk about the topic in full in this article and offer you several configuration solutions, including tips to automatically translate your file right after uploading, apply AI filters and delete deprecate keys, in our Workflow series.
And if you were wondering what we're doing about the name on everybody's lips (ChatGPT), here's a quick summary: we've added support for various OpenAI models as MT translation engines. You can now link your account to our platform and use it for automated translations, filtering, context building, and more. We'll report back with more news. 🫡
☑️ We are now ISO certified 🔗
Happy, happy news indeed: Localazy has obtained the ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II certifications. What might sound like a boring piece of accounting trivia is actually quite relevant for us and for our clients, who will now have proof that their sensitive data is in safe hands with us. Our team will also benefit from these certifications, as we'll now spend less time answering security questionnaires. It all begins with trust! 💙
🫶 Meet our new partner directory 🔗
We'll go straight to the point: we have launched a new partner directory, and we are stoked about it. From now on, our customers will be able to find trusted Localazy integration partners and localization specialists all in the same place. Our current B2B clients can opt-in for a listing entry by filling out this form.
🥁 Have you ever wondered how our customers use Localazy to expand and optimize their localization processes? Our new Case Study section has plenty of examples (more to come soon).
🏔️ Hackathon recap 🔗
Meeting rejuvenates us and helps us to recharge as a team. As a fully remote company, we were looking forward to working and chatting in person for a full week. The time finally came in June, when we all banded together in Jindřichov u Šumperka for some quality time together.
We chose a beautiful country house in the mountains where we discussed all things Localazy. Our last team-building week had taken place in November, so this time we were able to enjoy better weather, walks in the countryside, and lovely chats in the water and under the moonlight.
We shared a few beers, held a couple of barbecues, ate pizza and paella, and played Overcooked, poker, and table football. This time, we even held a cross-collaboration challenge where we voted the best solution. Lead Developer Dan, Product Manager Jan, and Head of Content Marta won (check how Jan celebrated it in the photo below 🤓). We can't wait for the next meet-up!
🍷 Networking all over Europe 🔗
Event overload 🔗
Our team has been quite social during the last few months all over Czechia and beyond. Product marketing extraordinaire Petr flew all the way to France last May to attend VIVATech Paris, where he connected with clients all over the continent (and tried French beer).
Localazy was also present at Prague's Czech Online Expo in February, and at Fintech Roadmap'24 in Czechia and Product Pro Summit in Sopot (Poland), both held in May. We also attended Brno's Velvet Innovation Conference in November, where our dev Dan pitched our product accompanied by our CMO, Product Marketing manager, and one of our investors.
"We were invited to present at the conference as one of the most successful startups of the South Moravian Innovation Center (JIC in Czech). It was a unique opportunity to present our product to more than 500 entrepreneurs, investors, and various field experts. With the great support of the team, we prepared an eye-catching presentation for which we were praised by many in the subsequent networking session. It was a great event to meet like-minded people, hear about their amazing stories, and wake up the next day more motivated than ever!" Dan says.
We've joined the Czech Fintech Association! 🔗
Localazy is now a member of the biggest fintech association in the Czech Republic – the Czech Fintech Association, a network of over 40 companies from the national tech scene focused on growth and international expansion.
Why us? The executive manager of CEFTAS, Ondřej Machač, said it best: "Localazy's innovative approach to translation and technology will be a valuable asset for our members’ internationalization processes, including those not present in other countries yet. We believe that their involvement will contribute to spreading awareness of Czech fintech abroad. Translating a website or an app shouldn’t delay expansion processes anymore." We can't wait to seize all the opportunities that come our way from this collaboration. 💪 🇨🇿
Localazy in the media 🔗
- Localization is your secret weapon to expand – and it doesn't have to be expensive (The Recursive)
- How to deal with challenges in the road to overseas expansion? (AIN Capital)
- Localazy brings localised translation to brands in Poland (Tech.eu)
- Climate solutions from Indigenous and local knowledge (Nonprofit Quarterly)
- Localazy and Poedit join forces for offline-friendly translation workflows (Multilingual)
More cool G2 badges 🔗
At this point, we have quite a collection! In the software localization category, Localazy was awarded 16 G2 titles total during the fall and winter seasons, eight during spring, and 11 this summer. We are grateful for your support—it's what keeps us going.
👀 In our backlog 🔗
Trust us: cool things are coming your way. 😎 We are working on a couple of new integrations – one with Webflow and another with Zendesk. You can actually get early access for the latter here. It will allow you to translate your knowledge base and help center articles, so if you use this customer support system, fill out the form to join the beta!
The Localazy website is also going to undergo pretty big changes, one of them being a new community section where you'll be able to earn points and unlock rewards. 🏆 We're still testing it internally and calibrating the point system, but keep your eyes peeled for the announcement.
We have big plans for developers, too. We're in the early stages of building our developer portal, where all dev-related stuff will be in a handy working center for your convenience.
Our sales and marketing team is going to be quite busy as well. Petr will set off again for new adventures on DMEXCO in Cologne, and our Product Manager Jan will join him for SaaSSTock in Dublin. Meanwhile, our content team is working hard on covering all the basics you need to expand to new markets with new locale guides. And there is a really special project in the works that you'll want to see... and hear. 🎙️👀
🗣️ Word of the month 🔗
Transparent (adj.)
a. free from pretense or deceit
b. easily detected or seen through
c. readily understood
d. characterized by visibility or accessibility of information, especially concerning business practices
If there is one term that defines Localazy as a product, it is transparent. This word came up frequently during our last Hackathon. We proudly adhere to it as one of our foundational principles.
👋 Two new Localazy team members 🔗
Our weekly syncs keep getting bigger with the addition of new colleagues! 🧑💻 Our latest recruit is Avishag, who has recently stepped in as our new Partnerships Lead. She will take care of all of the clients and prospects who want to strengthen their relationship with Localazy and build synergies, so expect to hear from her if you're a regular around here!
Avishag grew up in Belgium, studied in Israel and Argentina, and finally settled in Prague with her husband and three kids. A Communications and Management expert with extensive sales experience, she speaks five languages and loves to bake, read, travel, and sleep. Fun fact: she used to dance flamenco for many years and dreams of opening her own cake café! 💃 🍰
"My time at Localazy these past few weeks has been great. The team is so welcoming and supportive. Even though we're working remotely, there's a real sense of camaraderie and teamwork which is really nice to see. I'm having the opportunity to work on some interesting projects and learn a lot along the way, which is exciting and challenging. I'm grateful to have the chance to contribute in meaningful ways, and I'm excited to see what the future holds," she says. Welcome to the Localazy family, Avi!
Our next recruit is a long-time collaborator from our content department. Gledjan has recently boarded the Localazy train full-time as our social media manager. Originally from southeastern Albania and currently living in Tirana, Gled is a skilled copywriter and content expert with a teaching and coaching background. He recently finished his Masters in English and enjoys coding, designing, and pretty much anything that involves creativity. Most importantly, he's an avid language learner who aspires to become a polyglot. If you have any doubts, his +200-day Duolingo streak is proof! 😃
"I've been a freelancer with Localazy for over two years, and now it’s a pleasure to join the team full-time. Everyone is supportive, welcoming, and fun, and we all look forward to the Friday weekly sync. One thing I really like about the team is the fact that they don’t care about your working hours as long as the work gets done. They give you so much freedom and flexibility that you enjoy taking on more and more tasks… Wait, I think I’ve been tricked here! Anyways, I love it so far, and I plan to stick with the team for the long term. If you come across a cheesy comment from Localazy's socials, you’ll now know who to blame," he says. Welcome, Gled!
🧀 What our team is up to 🔗
Now that we're at it - let's recap what life has been like for our team lately! First and foremost, our baby boom continues: congratulations are in order to our designer Filip and his partner, who welcomed their first child Dorotea, a.k.a Dea, back in September, and to our developer Dan, who got married in July. 👶💍
We're a notorious travel bunch, so it's no surprise that the whole team has continued exploring the world in the last few months. While Jakub took a break in Madeira, Jan explored the snowy peaks of Tatras, and Petr went on a few adventures in Germany and Czechia. Meanwhile, David embarked on a long-awaited trip to Iran, Ondra enjoyed a World Cup match in Leipzig, Marta spent the New Year in Berlin and Warsaw, and the biggest one of them all — Tibor relocated to Vietnam for a few months and took the opportunity to visit Japan!
These were months of firsts for many of us as well, as Jakub started building his new home, Jan started baking baguettes, and Marta relaunched her disco band and recorded her first EP, comprised of Elton John covers, in-studio. Our team members are moving around quite a lot, as Václav has just settled into a new apartment, and Ondra is preparing for his big jump to Portugal.
When life and work get intense, there's no place like our #random channel in Slack, though. Over the past few months, we've learned that:
- 😵 Localization fails are everywhere: including video games, social media platforms, and (especially) product labels.
- 🍦 Ice cream branding is now powered by AI (?).
- 🥙 The café where our CEO and CMO dreamed of, Localazy, is now a durum shop. Durums come true!
- 🐎 Horse races and crazy television game shows where people dress up are still a thing.
- 😋 Everyone is obsessed with food, especially if it's heavy and smelly, like olomoucké tvarůžky.
These are not the only things we share, though – we also talk about the language and software industries a lot. For example, we really liked this Tom Scott video shared by Petr...
...and this fascinating talk by Professor John MacHorter about language learning recommended by Václav:
🗞️ More from the blog 🔗
If you are still energized to go through more information, here are a few highlights from our blog that we think you'll enjoy. Otherwise, bookmark and keep them for later to amplify your localization knowledge.
- How to use ChatGPT to your advantage in translation (with examples)
- Localization 101: Basic concepts for newcomers
- 6 challenges of localizing your app to Arabic and how to solve them
For the latest content updates, you can follow us on socials (💼 LinkedIn | 🦜 X), where we post blog pieces and localization-related content regularly. Sound off in the comments for any suggestions, feedback, or encouragement (we are human, after all 🥺). See you in the next BTG!
