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Website Translation
with Langify

Step-by-step internal process for translating Shopify stores using the Langify app — covering migration from old translation apps, VLOOKUP workflows, template usage, and content import/export best practices.

Langify Google Sheets Translation Internal Playbook
Developer PM Translator Client
Install Langify ➔ Migrate Old Translations ➔ Apply Template ➔ Handle Remaining Content ➔ Import to Langify ➔ QA & Import ➔ On-Site Review & RTL Fixes

Phase 1 — Setup & Preparation

Install Langify, verify theme, and set up the Google Sheets workspace.

1 Install & Configure Langify Developer
  • ▶Install Langify from the Shopify App Store on the client's store.
  • ▶Always verify the correct theme is selected in Langify — use the theme selector at the top of the Langify dashboard.
  • ▶Confirm the target language(s) are set up correctly in Langify settings.
⚠ Theme Selection If the wrong theme is selected, all exports and imports will apply to the wrong theme. Double-check this before every export/import.
2 Set Up Google Sheets Workspace Developer
  • 📁Create a new Google Sheets file inside the internal client folder on Google Drive (not the shared client folder).
  • 📁Folder path: [Client Name] > Translation > Langify
  • 📁This file will hold all translation sheets — old app data, new Langify exports, template, and VLOOKUP results.
🚫 Internal Drive Only All translation work must be done on the internal drive inside the internal client folder — never in the shared client folder.
ⓘ Langify Translation Sections Reference
Main Tab Sub-sections (examples) Notes
Products Titles, Descriptions, Variants, Metafields, SEO Often needs client input
Content Pages, Blogs, Metaobjects, Navigation Includes rich text — watch for HTML tags in exports
Online Store (Theme) Theme strings, Section text, Checkout labels Template covers most of this — see Phase 3
Apps App-specific content (varies by installed apps) Each app surfaces different translatable strings
General Store name, Email notifications, Policies Often overlooked — don't skip this

Phase 2 — Migrate from Old Translation App

If the client was using another translation app, transfer existing translations to Langify via VLOOKUP. Skip this phase if the client has no previous translation app.

3 Export Translations from Old App Developer
  • ❶Export all existing translations from the old translation app (e.g., Weglot, Transcy, T Lab, etc.).
  • ❷Import the exported data into a new sheet inside your Google Sheets file.
  • ❸Name this tab Old App - [Section Name] (e.g., Old App - Theme).
4 Export Untranslated Content from Langify Developer
  • ❶In Langify, go to the section you want to translate (e.g., Online Store / Theme).
  • ❷Export the untranslated content as a CSV from Langify.
  • ❸Do not open the CSV on your computer. Go to Google Sheets → File → Import → Upload → Browse → select the file → set import location to "Insert new sheet(s)".
  • ❹Name this tab New - [Section Name] (e.g., New - Theme).
🚫 Never Open CSV Locally Arabic CSV files get corrupted if opened directly on your computer. Always import via Google Sheets → File → Import → Upload.
5 VLOOKUP: Old App → New App Developer
  • 🔎In the New - [Section] sheet, create a VLOOKUP column that looks up the English source text in the Old App - [Section] sheet.
  • 🔎Formula pattern: =VLOOKUP(A2, 'Theme - Langify (Template)'!A:B, 2, FALSE)
  • 🔎Pull the matched Arabic translation into the translation column of the New sheet.
  • 🔎Not everything will match. Rows that return #N/A will need manual translation later.
  • 🔎Clean up #N/A values: Filter the Arabic column by #N/A and delete those values — or use Find & Replace to replace #N/A with empty. This ensures #N/A is never imported into Langify as actual text.
💡 Repeat for all sections Do this for every section that had translations in the old app — Theme, Products, Content, Apps, General, etc.
6 Import Matched Translations into Langify Developer
  • ❶After the VLOOKUP is done, copy the matched translations into the correct column format that Langify expects.
  • ❷Download the sheet as CSV from Google Sheets (File → Download → CSV).
  • ❸Do not open the downloaded CSV. Import it directly into Langify.
  • ❹After import, re-export the still-untranslated content from Langify to see what's remaining.

Phase 3 — Apply the Common Words Template

Use our internal template of pre-translated common words and theme strings to cover a large percentage of remaining theme content.

7 Copy the Template Sheet Developer
  • 📄Open our common translations template: Common Words Template (Google Drive)
  • 📄Copy the template data and paste it as a new tab inside the main Google Sheets file.
  • 📄Name this tab Theme - Langify (Template)
💡 Theme Only This template covers common theme strings like "Add to cart", "Sold out", "1 item available", "Suggestions", etc. It is only for the Online Store / Theme section — not for Products, Content, or other sections.
8 VLOOKUP: Template → Remaining Theme Content Developer
  • 🔎Take the re-exported untranslated theme content (from Step 6) and run a VLOOKUP against the Theme - Langify (Template) tab.
  • 🔎Use the English source text as the lookup key, same as before.
  • 🔎This will cover a large percentage of remaining theme strings.
  • 🔎Download as CSV and import into Langify (without opening the file).
✓ At This Point: Theme Translation Coverage
  • ✅VLOOKUP from old app — migrated all previously translated theme strings (if client had an old app).
  • ✅VLOOKUP from template — matched common words and theme UI strings from our template.
  • ☐Remaining untranslated content — whatever didn't match needs manual translation (see Phase 4).

Phase 4 — Handle Remaining Untranslated Content

For Products, Content (Blogs, Pages, Collections), Apps, and any remaining Theme strings — choose the right approach based on whether the client had an old app or not.

A If Client Had an Old Translation App Developer
  • 🔁Repeat the Phase 2 VLOOKUP process (Steps 3–6) for every remaining section: Products, Content, Apps, General, etc.
  • 🔁For each section: export from old app → export from Langify → VLOOKUP old to new → import matched translations into Langify.
  • 🔁After importing, re-export to identify what's still untranslated and proceed to the 3 Options below for that remaining content.
⚠ No Template for Non-Theme Sections The Theme - Langify (Template) is only for theme strings. For Products, Content, Apps, and General — you can only VLOOKUP from the old app. Remaining content must go through one of the 3 options below.
B If Client Did NOT Have an Old App (or for Remaining Untranslated Content) PM Decides

For Products, Blogs, Collections, and other non-theme content that has no prior translation — present the client with these three options:

1 Auto-Translate + Review
Fastest
  • ▶Use Langify's auto-translation feature (paid per word count).
  • ▶Our translator then reviews and refines the machine translation for accuracy and tone.
  • ▶Best for large volumes of content where speed matters.
💰 Cost Note Auto-translation is charged by Langify based on word count. PM should inform the client of the cost before proceeding.
2 Client Provides Translation
Moderate
  • ▶Developer exports the English content (titles, descriptions, variants, metafields, etc.) from Langify.
  • ▶Send the sheet to the client with the English column filled in — client fills in the Arabic column.
  • ▶Once returned, developer re-imports into Langify.
💡 PM coordinates PM sends the sheet to the client and follows up. Developer handles export/import.
3 Full Manual Translation
Slowest
  • ▶Our translator translates all content from scratch — titles, descriptions, variants, metafields, etc.
  • ▶Start with 2 products first — send to the client for approval on style and tone.
  • ▶Once approved, continue translating the rest.
⚠ Approval Required Do NOT proceed with full translation until the client approves the style from the 2 sample products. This avoids rework.
★ Use Global Translations for Repeated Words Developer
  • 🔄If a word or phrase appears many times across products — for example, a color like "Blue" used in many product variants — translate it once in Langify's Global Translations section instead of translating it for every individual product variant.
  • 🔄This applies to any repeated content: color names, size labels, material types, common variant options, etc.
  • 🔄Global translations in Langify apply automatically across the entire store, saving significant time and ensuring consistency.
💡 Check Globals First Before translating product variants one by one, scan for repeated terms and add them to Global Translations. This can save hours of work.

Phase 5 — Final Import & QA

Import all completed translations into Langify and verify on the live theme.

9 Import All Translations into Langify Developer
  • ❶For each completed section, download the final sheet from Google Sheets as CSV.
  • ❷Do not open the CSV on your computer. Import directly into Langify.
  • ❸After import, check the translation percentage on the Langify dashboard — it updates automatically.

Phase 6 — On-Site Review & RTL Fixes

After all translations are imported, the translator reviews the live website and the developer fixes RTL layout issues.

10 Translator: On-Site Review & QA via Markup Translator
  • 🌐Switch the website to the translated language and go through every page and section on the live theme.
  • 🔍Review for accuracy, tone, formatting, broken HTML, truncated text, and RTL layout issues across all key pages: Homepage, Product pages, Cart, Checkout, Navigation.
  • 🔍If any translation is missing or incorrect, the translator adds the correct translation directly as a markup comment on the page/section.
  • ✍One translation per comment. If a section has a title and a subtitle, post each translation in a separate markup comment — do not combine them.
  • ✍Write the exact word/phrase that should appear — developers may not understand Arabic, so each comment must be self-contained and clear.
⚠ Separate Comments Each translatable field (title, subtitle, button text, etc.) must be its own comment — this ensures developers can copy-paste the correct text into the correct field without confusion.
11 Developer: Fix RTL Layout Issues Developer
  • 🛠Switch the website to the translated language and review the RTL (right-to-left) layout across all pages.
  • 🛠Identify sections where RTL did not render correctly — common problem areas include:
Section Common RTL Issues
Filters Filter dropdowns, range sliders, and checkboxes misaligned
Hero Banners Text alignment, button positioning, overlay direction
Navigation Dropdown menus, mega menus, mobile drawer direction
Sliders / Carousels Arrow direction, slide order, swipe direction
Forms Input field alignment, label positioning, validation messages
12 Developer: Apply Translator Markup Comments Developer
  • ❶Go through every markup comment left by the translator.
  • ❷Copy-paste the Arabic text from each comment into the correct field — either in Langify or directly in the theme where applicable.
  • ❸Mark each comment as resolved once the translation has been applied.
  • ❹After all comments are resolved, do a final walkthrough to confirm everything is in place.

Critical Rules & Reminders

! CSV Handling — Arabic Corruption
  • 🚫Never open a CSV file directly on your computer if it contains Arabic text — it will get corrupted.
  • ✅Downloading from Langify: Download as CSV → go to Google Sheets → File → Import → Upload → Browse → select file → "Insert new sheet(s)".
  • ✅Uploading to Langify: Download from Google Sheets as CSV → import directly into Langify without opening.
! Key Reminders
  • 🔒Always check the theme selected at the top of Langify before any export or import.
  • 📁Internal drive only — all work goes in [Client Name] > Translation > Langify on our internal drive, not the shared client folder.
  • 📄Template is theme-only — the common words template cannot be used for Products, Content, Apps, or General sections.
  • 👤2-product approval — for Option 3 (manual translation), always get client approval on 2 sample products before continuing.
ⓘ Google Sheets Tab Naming Convention
Tab Name Purpose
Old App - Theme Exported translations from old translation app (theme section)
Old App - Products Exported translations from old translation app (products section)
New - Theme Langify untranslated export (theme section)
New - Products Langify untranslated export (products section)
Theme - Langify (Template) Our common words template — theme strings only
💡 Follow the same pattern for all sections: Old App - [Section] and New - [Section]. Sections include: Theme, Products, Content, Apps, General, etc.

The i.o agency — Internal Playbook — Website Translation with Langify