Creating a Multi Lingual site might seem like a daunting task but it doesn’t have to be. There are a few options. Lets go over some of the options.
Direct Translation
Direct Translation means you write the content for your language and for all the languages you want to include you have a translator translate your original content. This is the most accurate option and the best option if your content must be right.
Web Translation
With Web Translation you write your content and then use a online translation service to translate that content into the other languages. This can be a little less accurate for the other languages but is still an option for displaying your content for these other languages.
Translation Buttons
You can also add translation buttons which the user decides the language they need and a web service translates all the text elements into their language which is just as accurate (or inaccurate) as the web translation and a little less convient for your user.
Local Domains
Local domains are useful for the first two translation options since you can post your information for those local languages to the local domain. This can be accomplished by allowing the user to pick a language or flag that links to that site. You can also have this automated based on the users location determined by IP information when the user lands on the site.
There is one important thing to consider when working with multilingual sites.
Culture Sensativity
Different cultures view different information and different colors differently. You may like the color red and in America that maybe a nice color for your site. But in another country you may be putting off a vibe that is far from cool or nice looking.
So put all these things into consideration when you decide to turn your site into a multi lingual one.