Does Intercom Support Translation? Understanding Multilingual Options

If you're building a multilingual customer support strategy, you might wonder: does Intercom support translation? The answer is nuanced. Intercom supports multiple languages in your knowledge base, but it doesn't provide built-in translation tools. Understanding what Intercom offers natively and what you need to add will help you build an effective multilingual support strategy.

This article explains Intercom's native multilingual capabilities, their limitations, and how to extend functionality to create a fully translated knowledge base that serves customers worldwide.

What Intercom Supports Natively

Intercom provides foundational multilingual support through language management features. Here's what's available out of the box.

Multiple Language Support

Intercom allows you to create and manage articles in multiple languages:

Language selection: You can add multiple languages to your Intercom workspace and create articles in each language. Intercom supports a wide range of languages, including major languages like Spanish, French, German, Japanese, and many others.

Language-specific articles: Each language can have its own set of articles. You can create separate articles for each language rather than translating existing ones.

Language switching: Intercom's help center automatically detects customer language preferences and displays content in the appropriate language when available.

Collection organization: You can organize articles by language within collections, making it easier to manage multilingual content structure.

Content Management Features

Intercom provides tools for managing multilingual content:

Draft and publish workflow: You can create drafts in any language, review them, and publish when ready. This supports quality control for translated content.

Article versioning: Intercom tracks article versions, which helps when updating translated content.

Search functionality: Intercom's search works across languages, helping customers find content in their preferred language.

Analytics by language: You can view analytics for articles in different languages to understand which languages your customers use most.

Limitations of Native Intercom Translation

While Intercom supports multiple languages, it doesn't provide translation tools. This creates several limitations for teams building multilingual knowledge bases.

No Built-In Translation Tools

Intercom doesn't include translation functionality:

Manual translation required: You must translate articles manually or use external translation services. There's no automated translation workflow within Intercom.

No translation memory: Intercom doesn't store translation memory or glossaries to ensure consistency across articles.

No translation status tracking: There's no built-in way to track which articles are translated, which are in progress, or which need updates.

No automatic updates: When you update a source article, Intercom doesn't automatically update translations. You must manually update each language version.

Workflow Challenges

Managing translations manually creates workflow inefficiencies:

Time-consuming process: Translating articles manually requires significant time, especially for large knowledge bases. Copy-pasting content between tools is slow and error-prone.

Consistency issues: Without translation memory or glossaries, terminology can vary across articles and languages. Product names, features, and technical terms may translate inconsistently.

Quality control complexity: Reviewing translations requires switching between languages and tools, making quality control more difficult.

Update management: Keeping translations current when source articles change requires manual tracking and updates for each language.

Limited Automation

Intercom's native features don't automate translation workflows:

No bulk translation: You can't translate multiple articles at once using Intercom's interface. Each article must be translated individually.

No integration with translation services: Intercom doesn't integrate with translation engines or services, so you must handle translations externally.

No change detection: Intercom doesn't automatically detect when articles change and need translation updates.

No workflow automation: There's no way to automate translation workflows, review processes, or publishing schedules within Intercom.

Extending Intercom with Translation Tools

To overcome Intercom's translation limitations, you can integrate translation tools that extend Intercom's functionality. Here's how translation tools enhance your multilingual knowledge base.

Automated Translation Workflows

Translation tools automate the translation process:

Bulk translation: Translate multiple articles simultaneously instead of one at a time. This saves significant time for teams managing large knowledge bases.

Automatic sync: Translation tools can automatically detect when articles change in Intercom and update translations accordingly.

Translation memory: Store previously translated content to ensure consistency across articles and reduce redundant translation work.

Glossary management: Maintain custom glossaries to ensure product names, features, and terminology translate consistently.

Quality Control Features

Translation tools provide quality control capabilities:

Review workflows: Built-in review processes help ensure translation quality before publishing to Intercom.

Status tracking: See which articles are translated, in progress, or need updates across all languages.

Version management: Track translation versions and maintain alignment with source article versions.

Quality checks: Automated quality checks can catch common errors before review.

Integration Benefits

Translation tools integrate with Intercom to streamline workflows:

Direct integration: Connect translation tools directly to your Intercom workspace via API, eliminating manual copy-paste workflows.

Automatic publishing: Push translated articles directly to Intercom as drafts or published content, depending on your workflow preferences.

Bidirectional sync: Keep translations synchronized with source articles automatically, reducing manual update work.

Unified interface: Manage translations from a single interface without switching between multiple tools.

Choosing the Right Translation Approach

The best translation approach depends on your needs, resources, and goals. Here's how to choose.

Manual Translation

Manual translation works well for:

Small knowledge bases: If you have few articles or only need translations in one or two languages, manual translation may be sufficient.

High-quality requirements: When you need human translators for every article and have budget for professional translation services.

Infrequent updates: If your articles rarely change, manual translation updates are manageable.

Simple workflows: When translation workflows are straightforward and don't require automation.

Automated Translation Tools

Automated translation tools are better for:

Large knowledge bases: When you have many articles or need translations in multiple languages, automation saves significant time.

Frequent updates: If articles change regularly, automated translation tools keep translations current without manual work.

Consistency requirements: When you need consistent terminology across many articles and languages, translation tools with glossaries help maintain consistency.

Scalability needs: As your knowledge base grows, automated translation scales more efficiently than manual processes.

Team efficiency: When you want to reduce translation time and allow your team to focus on other priorities.

Hybrid Approach

Many teams combine manual and automated translation:

Automated first pass: Use automated translation for initial drafts, then have human reviewers refine translations for quality.

Selective automation: Automate translation for routine content, use manual translation for critical or sensitive content.

Quality review: Use automated translation with human review to balance speed and quality.

Glossary-assisted: Use automated translation with custom glossaries, then have native speakers review for natural language and cultural appropriateness.

Best Practices for Multilingual Intercom Knowledge Bases

Whether you use manual translation or automated tools, follow these best practices for effective multilingual knowledge bases.

Start with High-Priority Content

Prioritize translation based on impact:

High-traffic articles: Translate articles with the most views first, as they help the most customers.

Critical information: Prioritize articles covering essential features, setup processes, or common troubleshooting topics.

Getting started content: Translate onboarding and setup guides early to improve the experience for new international customers.

Frequently asked questions: FAQ articles address common questions and should be translated early to reduce support volume.

Maintain Consistency

Ensure consistent terminology and style:

Use glossaries: Create and maintain glossaries for product names, features, and technical terms to ensure consistent translation.

Style guidelines: Establish style guidelines for each language to maintain consistent tone and formality.

Review processes: Implement review processes to catch inconsistencies before publishing.

Translation memory: Use translation memory when available to maintain consistency across articles.

Keep Translations Current

Maintain translations as source content changes:

Change detection: Use tools that automatically detect when source articles change and need translation updates.

Update workflows: Establish clear workflows for updating translations when source articles are modified.

Version tracking: Track which translation versions correspond to which source article versions.

Regular audits: Periodically review translated articles to ensure they're current and accurate.

Monitor and Optimize

Track performance and improve over time:

Analytics review: Monitor analytics for translated articles to understand which languages customers use most.

Customer feedback: Gather feedback from customers about translation quality and which articles they need.

Usage patterns: Analyze which translated articles get the most views to inform future translation priorities.

Quality metrics: Track translation quality metrics and address issues proactively.

Conclusion

Intercom supports multiple languages in your knowledge base, but it doesn't provide built-in translation tools. This means you can create articles in multiple languages, but you must handle translation outside of Intercom.

For small knowledge bases with infrequent updates, manual translation may be sufficient. For larger knowledge bases or teams that need to scale multilingual content efficiently, automated translation tools that integrate with Intercom can significantly streamline workflows and maintain quality.

The key is choosing the right approach for your needs and implementing best practices for consistency, quality, and ongoing maintenance. With the right strategy and tools, you can build a multilingual Intercom knowledge base that serves customers worldwide effectively.

Ready to extend Intercom's multilingual capabilities? Learn how to integrate Translate Desk with Intercom or explore best practices for managing multiple languages on Intercom.