Luxembourg is a country where a single street can speak four languages. Your customers may read English, French, German or Luxembourgish, and some read more than one. A website in only one language quietly sends some of them away. This article explains how to build one website for several languages without making it a burden to maintain.
Which languages do you need?
There is no universal list. It depends on who your customers are. Start from your real customers, not from a wish.
- French is the language of administration and daily life for many residents and cross-border visitors.
- English is widely used by international residents, expats and visitors.
- German matters if you serve customers from Germany or German-speaking residents.
- Luxembourgish speaks to local customers in their own language and can set a friendly tone.
Look at your messages, your reviews and who walks in. If half of your enquiries come in English and half in French, those are your first two languages. Add others when you see the demand.
It is better to offer two languages done well than four done badly. A half-translated site is worse than a site in one language.
Separate address for each language
Give each language its own address (URL). For example:
yourbusiness.lu/en/yourbusiness.lu/fr/yourbusiness.lu/de/yourbusiness.lu/lb/
This is cleaner than changing the text on one address. Search engines can index each language, people can share the link in the right language, and each page can have its own title and description.
Tell Google with hreflang
Hreflang is a small piece of code in each page that says "this page also exists in these other languages". It helps search engines show the right version to the right person. Rules to follow:
- Every language version lists all the versions, including itself.
- Each version links back to the others. The links must be mutual.
- Use correct language codes: en, fr, de, lb.
- Add an "x-default" version for visitors whose language you do not offer.
If your website builder has a multilingual option, check that it writes hreflang for you. If not, add it.
Open in the visitor's language
When someone arrives, it is friendly to open the site in their own language. A common way is to read the language setting of their browser and choose the matching version.
Keep three rules:
- Always let the visitor change language with a visible switch on every page.
- Remember the choice, so they are not sent back to the first language on the next page.
- Do not hide pages from search engines. Each language address must stay reachable on its own.
If you do not offer the visitor's language, show a default, such as English or French, and do not guess.
Do not translate carelessly
Automatic translation is a good first draft and a poor final version. A few places need a human eye.
- Menus and dish names. A machine may translate a name that should stay as it is, or get an ingredient wrong. Mistakes in allergens are not only embarrassing, they can be harmful.
- Prices and conditions. Check numbers, currency signs, VAT notes and terms. Different languages place the euro sign differently: €1,300 in English, 1 300 € in French.
- Service names. Keep a short list of terms you use, so a haircut is called the same thing on every page.
- Tone. French in Luxembourg is often formal. A friendly English sentence may need a different shape in French.
- Legal pages. Opening hours, terms and privacy text should be checked by someone who reads the language well.
Ask a native speaker, such as a team member or a regular customer, to read the pages once. It takes an hour and saves many mistakes.
Keep hours and prices in one place
The biggest risk with several languages is that one of them is out of date. A menu changed in French but not in English means two prices for the same dish.
The fix is to store each fact once and display it in every language.
| Information | Stored | Shown |
|---|---|---|
| Opening hours | Once | On every language page and on the Google profile |
| Prices | Once, per item | In every language |
| Menu or service list | One list with a name per language | In the matching language |
| Contact details | Once | Everywhere |
With this setup, you change a price once and every language updates together. On our websites, the owner changes menus, hours and products themselves, and each language follows.
Google Business Profile in several languages
Your Google Business Profile is often the first thing customers see. Some points to keep in mind:
- It is one profile, with one set of fields. Write the description clearly in your main language and mention the others you speak.
- Check the name, address, hours and phone number for consistency with the website.
- Reply to each review in the language of the reviewer. This shows that you read it.
- Photos need no translation, so use good ones that show your place.
- Add the website link that opens the right language version when you can.
A short checklist
- Choose languages from your real customers.
- Use a separate address per language, with hreflang.
- Open in the visitor's language, and always allow a switch.
- Have a native speaker check menus, prices and legal text.
- Keep hours, prices and contact details in one place.
- Keep the Google profile in line with the website.
Our website service builds sites in your customers' languages, where you change menus, hours and products yourself. If many enquiries arrive in different languages, see how messages and bookings can bring them into one place. Or start by checking your current site with the free website check.