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Simple Multilingual Sites Perform Better: Proven Tips to Increase Your Global Traffic

Before you start translating with WPML, learn how to avoid the setup problems that slow down new multilingual sites—and follow the proven steps others use to reach global visitors faster.

Based on our research, 70% of WPML users who call their setup “low effort” said they launched faster, translated more easily, and saw a jump in international traffic, all within just a few weeks.

Use a Trusted Theme and Only Essential Plugins

The theme and plugins you choose affect your site’s performance, stability, and translation process.

Even on single-language sites, outdated or unnecessary plugins are the top cause of technical problems.

On multilingual sites, these problems can slow down your translation workflow or cause your site to work incorrectly across languages.

To avoid technical issues from the start:

  1. Stick to themes and plugins that are actively maintained and compatible with WPML.
  2. Only install the plugins you really need.
  3. Before adding a new plugin, make sure it supports a quick and easy translation workflow.
  4. Avoid using custom code unless you’re ready to make it multilingual-ready and maintain it
See WPML’s recommended themes and plugins

Write Content That’s Easy to Understand and Translate

If your content is hard to read in your original language, it will be even harder to translate. The more complex your language, the more editing you’ll need to do—and the longer it will take to go live with your multilingual site.

To get great translations, keep your writing simple enough for a 16-year-old to understand:

  1. Keep sentences short and direct
  2. Use simple words instead of complicated ones
  3. Avoid idioms, slang, and cultural references
  4. Break up text with headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs

Use Automatic Translation

If you’re not using automatic translation, you’re spending too much time on manual work. Translating everything yourself or reviewing each translation line by line takes time. You could use this valuable time for marketing, SEO, or running your business.

WPML’s automatic translation delivers excellent quality at a tiny cost. With the credits included with your WPML purchase, you can translate most or even all of your site right away.

To save time and grow your multilingual traffic faster:

  1. Start with automatically translating your homepage, top landing pages, and content that drives conversions.
  2.  If WPML AI supports your languages, take advantage of its context-aware, Better Than Human Translations that read like they were written by a native speaker.
  3. Don’t leave content in draft waiting for a perfect translation—published translations bring in visitors.
  4. After publishing, let real-world feedback show you what to improve and what’s already working.

Get More Traffic with a Simple Multilingual Site

Everything you’ve seen here is based on real data from hundreds of WPML users. The results are clear: the most successful multilingual sites keep it simple. They focus on the essentials: reliable themes and plugins, content that’s easy to understand, and fast translation. That’s what leads to better performance.

You have the same strategies in hand. Now it’s time to put them into action.

Let’s Get Your Site Translated

You’ve got the tools, tips, and confidence to start reaching new audiences.

Translate Your First Page
Kathy Banach
Updated
May 22, 2025