How to Translate a Product Catalog

If you are translating a product catalog, you are not just swapping words from one language to another. You are trying to keep product names clear, preserve specs and part numbers, protect layout, and make sure shoppers can still find and trust what you sell.

That is why catalog translation often goes wrong in predictable ways. Product titles get too long, technical attributes become inconsistent, image text stays in the source language, or the translated version no longer matches the product page people land on.

This guide shows a practical workflow for translating a product catalog without creating those problems. It is written for ordinary users, small sellers, and in-house teams. If you need to translate a catalog in PDF, Word, Excel, CSV, or InDesign, this workflow will help you end up with something usable.

Visual Workflow

Source File Assessment
        ↓
Glossary Creation
        ↓
Batch Translation
        ↓
Layout Review
        ↓
Channel Adaptation
        ↓
Product-Level QA

If you remember only one thing from this guide, remember the order above. Most catalog problems happen when people skip straight from extraction to final export.

What Makes Product Catalog Translation Different

A product catalog sits somewhere between a brochure, a spreadsheet, and a storefront. It usually includes:

• product titles
• short descriptions
• specifications and dimensions
• model numbers or SKUs
• prices, currencies, and units
• category labels
• callouts embedded in images

That mix matters because catalogs are often reused across channels. The same product text might appear in a PDF, on a product page, inside a marketplace feed, or in a sales deck.

Google Merchant Center’s current guidance is a good example of why accuracy matters. Google says product data and landing pages should use the same language, and warns that when key elements such as title, description, and variant information do not match the feed language, products can see limited performance or even disapproval. It also says the checkout process should be in the same language as the feed. [1][2][3]

In other words, a translated catalog is not just for readability. It can affect discovery, trust, and whether your product data is accepted by the platforms you sell on.

What to Translate and What to Leave Alone

Translate these carefully:

• product titles
• selling points and short descriptions
• category names
• feature labels
• image text and callouts
• size, color, material, and compatibility descriptions

Usually keep these unchanged unless the target market requires a specific local version:

• brand names
• model numbers
• SKUs
• serial numbers
• certification codes
• exact part references

This is the first place many catalogs break. Someone translates everything, including model identifiers, or leaves too much untouched and ends up with a catalog that reads like a half-finished draft.

As a rule, translate shopper-facing language, but protect reference data.

Warning Checklist: Mistakes to Avoid Before You Start

Use this checklist while you work, not just at the end:

• do not translate SKUs, model numbers, or certified part names unless the target market uses a different official version
• do not let one product appear in two languages on the same page, row, or table
• do not rebuild the layout too early if the wording is still changing
• do not ignore local units, decimal separators, and date or paper-size formats
• do not assume a print catalog, B2B PDF, and shopping feed need identical wording

These five mistakes cause most of the cleanup work later. Catch them early and the whole project moves faster.

Start with the Source File, Not the Translation Tool

Before you translate a single line, decide what kind of file you are working with. The best workflow depends on the source.

If your catalog is a PDF

Check whether it is a real editable PDF or just a scanned export. If it is mostly text in boxes, you can usually extract it cleanly. If it is image-based, you will need OCR and a careful visual review.

If your source is PDF-heavy, it helps to read our guides on how to translate PDF files and keep formatting and how to translate a scanned PDF.

If your catalog is in Excel or CSV

This is often the easiest format for bulk translation because each row can stay tied to one SKU. Keep one product per row and keep columns stable while you translate titles, bullets, and attributes.

If you work from structured product data, these guides are useful too:

• How to Translate a CSV File
• How to Translate Excel Online

If your catalog is in InDesign

For layout-heavy catalogs, ask for the original InDesign package instead of translating a flattened PDF. Adobe’s official documentation says you can save an InDesign document as IDML, which is useful for interchange and version compatibility, and Adobe also notes that the Package command can generate a Document Fonts folder when you need to share a document. [8][9]

That matters because layout expansion is real. A line that fits in English may wrap badly in German, French, or Spanish. If you only have a PDF, fixing those layout problems takes much longer.

Build a Small Translation Kit Before You Start

Even for a simple catalog, make a short prep sheet with:

• approved brand names
• do-not-translate terms
• product families and category names
• units of measurement to keep or convert
• recurring phrases such as “waterproof,” “for indoor use,” or “sold separately”

This sounds basic, but it prevents inconsistent product data later. If one page says “stainless steel” and another says “inox,” the catalog feels unreliable. The same thing happens when one item uses inches and another uses centimeters.

If you sell online, consistency also affects search. Google Merchant Center says titles should help match a product to a customer’s search, and its current title rules allow up to 150 characters. Google also says users usually see only the first 70 or fewer characters depending on screen size, so the most important information should come first. [4][5]

That is a useful rule for catalogs too: front-load the product identity, and do not waste the first words on filler.

Translate Product Titles for Clarity First, Search Second

When people translate a catalog, they often treat titles like mini ads. That can backfire. Titles need to be clear enough to scan quickly and structured enough to reuse across your website, feeds, and sales materials.

Here is a simple pattern that works well:

Brand + Product Type + Key Attribute + Size/Variant

For example:

• Weak: Ultra New Premium Fashion Backpack Stylish Casual School Travel Bag
• Better: Canvas Travel Backpack, 20L, Water-Resistant, Black

The second version is easier to read and easier to adapt for feeds and product pages.

Here is a quick visual comparison:

Weak
[Ultra New Premium Fashion Backpack Stylish Casual School Travel Bag]
 Too many repeated ideas
 Main product type is buried
 Hard to reuse in feeds

Better
[Canvas Travel Backpack, 20L, Water-Resistant, Black]
 Product type appears early
 Key attributes are easy to scan
 Cleaner for catalogs and shopping feeds

If your translated catalog will feed Google Shopping or another marketplace, avoid stuffing titles with repeated synonyms. Google explicitly recommends accurate, specific titles and warns that long text can be truncated in display.

Translate Descriptions and Specs Like a Buyer, Not a Dictionary

A product catalog is full of small trust signals. Shoppers look for things like material, dimensions, compatibility, package contents, and care instructions. If those details sound awkward or inconsistent, confidence drops fast.

When you translate descriptions:

• keep sentences short
• prefer plain product language over marketing hype
• preserve exact technical facts
• standardize repeated attribute labels

When you translate specifications:

• keep decimals, units, and ranges consistent
• double-check whether units should be converted or only relabeled
• never guess when an abbreviation is unclear

This is especially important if the same catalog feeds paid listings or merchant feeds. Google’s product data documentation says free-form attributes such as title and description should use the same language within a feed. [6]

So if your catalog is becoming product data later, consistency is not optional.

Do Not Forget Images, Tables, and Callouts

Many product catalogs look translated at first glance but still fail in the details because the source language remains inside product images, dimension diagrams, comparison tables, or badges.

This matters on storefronts too. Shopify’s official Help Center says its Translate & Adapt app can add translations for products, collections, blog posts, policies, and pages. It also says automatic translations are powered by the Google Cloud Translation API, can be used for a maximum of 2 languages, and that product images are not translatable resource types inside the app, even though localized replacement files can be assigned separately. Shopify also notes that CSV export is useful when you need to search content that is easier to inspect outside the app UI. [7]

That is a practical reminder: even if your product text is translated, image text often needs a separate design pass.

Check these items one by one:

• labels inside product photos
• size charts
• diagrams with arrows
• comparison tables
• icons with text
• banners such as “new” or “best seller”

If your catalog relies heavily on screenshots or pictures, how to translate image text can help with that part of the workflow.

A Simple 6-Step Workflow for Translating a Product Catalog

If you want a practical process, use this one:

1. Collect the best source file

Use Excel, CSV, DOCX, or InDesign before PDF whenever possible. Editable files save hours of cleanup.

2. Create a glossary

List product names, materials, measurements, and words that must stay consistent.

3. Translate the text in batches

Do product titles first, then descriptions, then specifications, then image text. This keeps the review process cleaner.

4. Review layout and overflow

Open the translated version and check line breaks, table widths, wrapped headings, and truncated labels.

This is the stage where text expansion shows up. A simple mockup can help teams spot the problem quickly:

Before
+---------------------------+
| Stainless Steel Bottle    |
| 500 ml                    |
+---------------------------+

After bad overflow
+---------------------------+
| Bouteille en acier        |
| inoxydable isotherme      |
| 500 ml                    |
+---------------------------+

After layout fix
+----------------------------------+
| Bouteille isotherme en acier     |
| inoxydable, 500 ml               |
+----------------------------------+

5. Verify search-facing text

If the catalog will be reused online, make sure titles, descriptions, and landing page language still match your store or feed requirements.

6. Run a final product-by-product QA pass

Check every SKU for:

• correct product name
• correct variant
• correct units
• correct price format
• correct image text
• no mixed-language leftovers

This final pass is where most embarrassing mistakes get caught.

The Easiest Setup for Ordinary Users

If you are a small seller or a general user, the easiest workflow is usually:

1. get the most editable source you can
2. translate in a structure-preserving format
3. review titles, specs, and image text separately
4. export the final catalog only after the wording is stable

If your files are spread across PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or image-heavy documents, OpenL Doc Translator is a practical way to create a first draft without tearing apart the original structure. It works especially well when you need to translate a catalog quickly, keep tables and layout reasonably intact, and then do a human review on top.

Final Checklist Before You Publish or Send the Catalog

Use this checklist before you export the final version:

• all product titles are clear and consistent
• descriptions use natural target-language phrasing
• specs, units, and numbers are accurate
• image text and diagrams are localized
• no SKU or model number was changed by mistake
• layout still works after text expansion
• online product pages use the same language as the translated catalog where required

A good product catalog translation should feel invisible. The reader should not notice the translation process at all. They should just understand the product, trust the details, and move one step closer to buying.

If you are ready to do this on a real catalog, start with a small pilot instead of the full file. Translate 10 to 20 products, review the layout, fix your glossary, and then scale. That is the fastest way to catch title issues, unit mistakes, and image-text problems before they spread across the whole catalog.

Sources

1. Google Merchant Center, Landing page requirements
2. Google Merchant Center, Supported languages and currencies
3. Google Merchant Center, Inconsistent language
4. Google Merchant Center, Title attribute [title]
5. Google Merchant Center, Text too long
6. Google Merchant Center, Product data specification
7. Shopify Help Center, Translate & Adapt app
8. Adobe Help Center, Save documents
9. Adobe Help Center, Using fonts