Skip to main content
Afrikaans flag

AI Translation

Translate Your Products to Afrikaans

Reach 7.2M+ Afrikaans speakers in South Africa and beyond. AI translation that keeps technical terms, units and the market's tone right gets your product data ready for your shop, your dealers and marketplaces.

Start TranslatingBook a demo
Speakers
7.2M+
Market Size
$7.5B
Online Shoppers
28M
Annual Growth
12.5%
Avg. order value
$55
Mobile share
65%

Online shoppers and market size cover these countries: South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe.

How it works

How to Translate Products to Afrikaans

Get your product catalog translated and ready to sell in three simple steps

  1. 01

    Import your products

    Connect your e-commerce platform or upload your catalog as a file. WISEPIM takes over titles, descriptions, attributes and categories.

  2. 02

    AI translates to Afrikaans

    The AI translates your catalog with your glossary, your protected terms and your instructions per market. Numbers, units and model numbers stay as they are.

  3. 03

    Review and publish

    Review the translations and publish them to your sales channels. That way you reach Afrikaans-speaking customers without going through an agency.

Example

One article: what changes, what stays

An example from a sanitary catalog. Texts and option values are translated. Numbers, units and article numbers stay exactly as they are.

One article: what changes, what stays
Product nameThermostatic shower mixer, surface-mounted, DN 15, chromeTranslated, with the terms from your glossary
Material (option value)BrassTranslated once for every product with this value
Connection1/2"Stays 1/2"
Flow rate22 l/minStays 22 l/min
Article numberTB-4415-CRStays TB-4415-CR (protected term)

In a Catalog Jobs translation run, a text whose numbers, units or protected terms do not match the source waits in the Review queue instead of going live.

Checklist

Afrikaans Product Information Checklist

Make sure your product data is complete and optimized for Afrikaans-speaking customers

Product Content

  • Build titles in the order your channel expects: brand, product type, key spec, model
  • Keep article numbers, EANs and model codes untranslated as protected terms
  • Use one term per concept across the whole catalog, set in your glossary
  • Translate safety notes and claims exactly, and never add new ones
  • Check that bullet points name the same specs as the source

Attributes and Specifications

  • Translate option values once per attribute, not per product
  • Keep spec values identical: DN 15, 1/2" and 22 l/min stay as they are
  • Write decimals and thousands the way the target market does
  • Mark brand and series names as never translate
  • Check units the market writes differently, without changing the value

SEO and Discoverability

  • Keep meta titles under 60 and meta descriptions under 160 characters
  • Use the search terms buyers in the market use, not literal translations
  • Translate the alt text of your images
  • Map your categories to the category names of the market
  • Set hreflang tags for every language version

Check one of your files first

Send us one product file as it comes from your supplier or ERP. We show you on your own rows what to fix before you translate it.

Request the free check
Start Translating

Culture and language

Afrikaans Culture and Language Insights

Understanding the local culture is key to successful product translations

Recommended Tone and Style

Use a Mixed tone with a direct, practical, respectful, community-focused style when writing product descriptions.

Key Considerations

  • Direct communication is appreciated, but politeness and respect are key.
  • There is a strong sense of identity and heritage; avoid cultural appropriation and be sensitive to historical contexts.
  • Value for family and community is high, which can be leveraged in marketing messages.
  • Humor is often understated and can be quite specific, requiring careful localization.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Assuming Afrikaans is merely a dialect of Dutch; it is a distinct language with its own nuances.
  • Using overly formal or informal language without understanding the specific context and target audience.
  • Ignoring the diverse cultural backgrounds within the Afrikaans-speaking community.
  • Not localizing currency (ZAR), measurements, and local payment methods.

Translation tips

  • Employ professional native Afrikaans translators to ensure accurate and culturally appropriate localization, avoiding direct Dutch translations.
  • Prioritize clarity, directness, and conciseness in content, while maintaining a respectful and engaging tone.
  • Localize all cultural references, idioms, and humor carefully to resonate with the target audience without causing offense.
  • Ensure all measurements (metric), dates (DD/MM/YYYY), and currency (ZAR) are correctly formatted for South Africa.
  • Be mindful of the diverse ethnic groups that speak Afrikaans and strive for inclusive language.

Market

Selling Products in South Africa: E-commerce Landscape

Understand the platforms, payment methods, and shopping habits of Afrikaans-speaking customers

Popular Platforms

  • Takealot
  • Superbalist
  • Makro
  • Clicks
  • Woolworths Online

Payment Methods

  • EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer)
  • Credit/Debit Cards (Visa, Mastercard)
  • Instant EFT (Ozow, PayFast)
  • Mobile Payments (SnapScan, Zapper)
  • Payflex (BNPL)

Peak Shopping Seasons

  • Black Friday/Cyber Monday (November)
  • Christmas (December)
  • Easter (March/April)
  • Back-to-School (January)
  • Mother's Day (May)

Shipping Expectations

Customers in South Africa generally expect delivery within 3-7 business days for standard shipping. Reliable tracking and clear communication regarding delivery times are highly valued.

Localization

Localizing for Afrikaans-Speaking Customers

Translation is just the start. Adapt your content to local expectations for maximum impact.

  • The metric system is standard for all measurements: length (centimeters, meters, kilometers), weight (grams, kilograms, metric tons), and volume (milliliters, liters).
  • Clothing sizes predominantly follow the EU sizing system (e.g., women's 34-44, men's 46-56). It is common to also provide UK or US equivalents as a secondary reference for international brands.
  • Shoe sizes primarily use the UK sizing system (e.g., UK 5, 6, 7). EU sizing (e.g., EU 38, 39, 40) is also widely understood and often displayed, especially for imported footwear. Offering both is recommended.
  • Weight units for products are typically expressed in kilograms (kg) for larger items and grams (g) for smaller goods (e.g., food products).
  • Product dimensions are usually given in centimeters (cm) in the order of Length x Width x Height (LxBxH in Afrikaans, or L x W x H in English), e.g., '10 cm x 5 cm x 2 cm'.

  • Date format is commonly DD/MM/YYYY (e.g., '31/12/2025') or sometimes YYYY/MM/DD (e.g., '2025/12/31'). Dots can also be used, e.g., '31.12.2025'.
  • The decimal separator is a comma (,). Example: '1 234,56'.
  • The thousand separator is a non-breaking space ( ). Example: '1 234 567,89'.
  • Currency (South African Rand, ZAR) is displayed with the symbol 'R' preceding the amount, followed by a space. Example: 'R 99,95'.
  • Time is generally presented in 24-hour format in official and business contexts (e.g., '14:30'). 12-hour format with AM/PM is understood and used informally (e.g., '2:30 PM'). Monday is considered the first day of the week.

  • Opt for authentic, natural light photography that showcases products in real-life settings. Lifestyle imagery featuring relatable models interacting with products is highly effective, avoiding overly staged or artificial looks.
  • Model representation should reflect South Africa's diverse population across ethnicity, age, and body types. Authenticity and relatability are key; models should look like everyday South Africans.
  • Design aesthetics favor clean, functional layouts with ample whitespace. While modern, designs should balance minimalism with warmth and approachability to resonate with the local audience.
  • Direct eye contact in imagery is generally acceptable and can convey sincerity. Group photos depicting positive interactions, community, and family life are often well-received. Expressions should be professional yet approachable.
  • Avoid any imagery that could be perceived as politically charged or reminiscent of past social divisions. Instead, focus on positive, inclusive visuals that celebrate South Africa's natural beauty, diverse cultures, and vibrant communities.

  • Red is widely recognized for sales and discounts, effectively signaling urgency and good deals. Orange can also be used to convey value and excitement.
  • Blue is strongly associated with trust, professionalism, and stability, making it ideal for financial services, technology, and corporate branding. Green also conveys reliability and naturalness.
  • Gold, silver, black, and deep shades of blue or purple effectively signify premium quality, sophistication, and luxury, often used for high-end products.
  • While not universally negative, specific shades of red or black should be used cautiously to avoid unintended political or historical connotations. Brown can sometimes be perceived as plain or unsophisticated depending on context.
  • Green is positively associated with nature, growth, and the land, resonating well in environmental or health-related contexts. Yellow/Gold can symbolize wealth and prosperity. The colors of the South African flag (black, yellow, green, white, red, blue) can evoke national pride and unity when used subtly.

Local SEO

Local SEO Tips for Afrikaans

Optimize your product content for search engines in Afrikaans-speaking markets

  • Google is the dominant search engine in South Africa. Optimize primarily for Google's algorithms, as other search engines have negligible market share.
  • Target a mix of Afrikaans and English keywords, as code-switching is common. For example, use both 'skootrekenaar' and 'laptop', or 'motorherstelwerk Kaapstad' and 'car repair Cape Town'. Also include terms like 'goedkoop' (cheap) or 'te koop' (for sale).
  • Content should be direct, concise, and structured with clear headings and bullet points. While professional, online content can adopt a slightly conversational tone without sacrificing authority.
  • Build local links by engaging with South African business directories (e.g., Yellow Pages South Africa), local news sites (like Netwerk24 or Maroela Media), and collaborating with Afrikaans community organizations or micro-influencers.
  • Utilize a .co.za ccTLD for strong local relevance and trust. Ensure local hosting within South Africa (e.g., with providers like Hetzner South Africa) for optimal page load speed. Implement hreflang tags to correctly differentiate Afrikaans (af-za) and English (en-za) content for South Africa.
  • Optimize for mobile-first indexing due to high mobile internet usage. While voice search in Afrikaans is growing, ensure content is optimized for natural language queries in both Afrikaans and English.

Free tool

Generate hreflang tags for your translated pages

Add the URL of each language version and copy valid hreflang link tags, x-default included.

Open the full tool
Loading the tool

More languages

More Languages to Translate Products To

Expand to similar markets

English (United Kingdom) flag

English (United Kingdom)

1500M speakers

$280B market

Dutch flag

Dutch

24.5M speakers

$48B market

View all languages

Platform Integrations

Afrikaans Translation for Every Platform

Translate once, publish to every channel you sell on. Push your Afrikaans product content to Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, Lightspeed and other connected platforms, or export it as a feed or file. Opt-in auto-sync sends saved changes to supported shops.

FAQ

Afrikaans Product Translation FAQ

Common questions about translating products to Afrikaans

WISEPIM translates with the glossary and do-not-translate terms from your Knowledge Library, so product names and fixed terms come out the way you set them. It handles product descriptions, technical specifications, and sales copy. It typically delivers 95%+ accuracy. You can review and edit every translation before publishing, and reviewer feedback can become new glossary terms and settings for the next run.

It depends on the size of your catalog and the number of languages. Bulk translations run in the background as a job, so you can keep working, and you get a notification when the results are ready to review. Before you start, a free preview shows how many texts per language need translating and what the run costs in credits.

Yes, within the rules you set. The AI adapts tone, wording and formatting to the target market, and you steer it per project with a glossary of fixed translations, words that are never translated (brand names, model codes) and your own instructions. In a Catalog Jobs translate run, every new translation is checked for kept numbers and units, protected terms, intact HTML and length limits, and a text that fails waits in the Review queue instead of going live.

Yes, if you turn on SEO optimization in your translation settings. Meta titles, meta descriptions and meta keywords are then written for search in the target language, with natural keyword placement and the original meaning kept. With it off, they are translated faithfully at a similar length. In a Catalog Jobs translate run, meta titles over 60 characters and meta descriptions over 160 go to the Review queue.

Yes, you have full control. You can edit any translated content directly in WISEPIM and push the changes to your connected sales channels. If you update the original product description, you choose whether to translate it again or keep your manual edits. On paid plans, the operation history lets you undo changes at any time.

Translation runs on credits. A standard translation of one product into one language costs one credit, and a higher-quality tier costs more per product. Before every run, a free preview shows how many texts per language will be translated and how many credits the run takes, so you can start with one category.

Yes. WISEPIM translates from your project's main language, so your source data does not have to be in English. You pick the target languages for each run.

Push it to a connected shop, export it as a file or feed from Feed Hub, or share a read-only Brand Portal in the languages you choose. Dealers browse it, download the data or import it into their own WISEPIM.

Related Afrikaans E-commerce Search Terms

  • aanlyn inkopies
  • koop aanlyn
  • beste aanbiedings
  • afslag
  • vinnige aflewering

Ready to Sell in Afrikaans?

Start translating your product catalog today and reach new customers in new markets

Start Translating
Learn More About AI Translation
4.7