WPML and translation
Connecting the platforms

WPML and
translation

Multilingual publishing that does not let markets drift apart.

A WPML and translation setup for pharmaceutical WordPress sites: multilingual publishing configured so shared technical facts stay consistent across languages, with WPML handling the structure rather than becoming another source of divergence.

The technology
What is included

What WPML and translation
work involves

What it involves

WPML handles the technical side of multilingual WordPress well, but configuring it correctly for a pharmaceutical site requires deliberate decisions: what content is genuinely shared versus translated, how market-specific variation is handled, and how targeting is declared for search engines.

See machine vs human translation for where each genuinely belongs in a pharma workflow.

What we deliver

A WPML configuration separating shared technical fields from translatable content, correct language and region targeting, a translation workflow connecting to your supplier or local teams, and market-specific content handling where genuinely needed.

Built to work alongside your translators

We configure the technical structure translated content publishes into and work alongside your existing translation supplier or local teams, so the linguistic work stays with the people who already do it while the platform makes it easy to publish.

case studies

Clients we've worked with

Real projects for industrial and pharmaceutical companies.
WPML track record
Track record

What our WPML and translation
work has covered

The scope our WPML and translation work has operated within.

+10
years building for regulated industries
+200
organisations have trusted Code
+1.500
documents migrated with their access permissions intact
+160
scientific papers in a single managed repository
WPML by content need
Who needs it

What WPML has to handle
differently by content type

Different content needs different multilingual handling. WPML and translation work starts from that content.

WPML process
Four stages

How we set up WPML
and translation workflow

Four stages. WPML and translation work decides what is shared before configuring anything.

CONTENT MODEL
01
01

Shared fields versus translated copy

We define which fields are shared technical facts and which are genuinely translatable copy, since this decision drives the entire WPML field configuration.

What we define

Field-by-field translation settings, since a product specification and a marketing headline behave completely differently under translation. We define what content is genuinely shared across every market versus what varies per language, and any rules for content that needs to differ by market beyond simple translation.

Result

A configuration where a technical specification is entered once and rendered correctly in every language, instead of being retyped per market and inevitably drifting out of sync somewhere down the line.

TARGETING CONFIGURATION
02
02

Declared correctly for search engines

We configure WPML's language and region targeting correctly, so search engines understand the relationship between language versions instead of treating them as competing content.

What we configure

Hreflang and region signals configured correctly across every language version, canonical handling that tells search engines these are alternate versions of the same content rather than duplicates, and a URL structure that stays consistent as new languages are added.

Result

Language versions that reinforce each other in search rather than quietly competing for the same rankings, which is what happens by default when the targeting signals are left at WPML's out-of-the-box settings.

TRANSLATION WORKFLOW
03
03

Connected to your actual translation process

We set up the translation workflow connecting to your translation supplier or local team's process, whether that is manual, via translation memory, or through WPML's translation management.

What we set up

A translation workflow with clear status tracking, so it is visible at a glance which pages are translated, in progress or still pending. Where you work with an external translation supplier, integration into that process directly, rather than a workflow that assumes translation happens entirely in-house.

Result

A publishing process your translation supplier can actually work within using their existing tools and habits, instead of asking them to adapt to WordPress on top of everything else they manage.

VERIFICATION
04
04

Confirming languages render correctly and stay in sync

We verify that shared fields render identically across languages and that the targeting configuration behaves correctly before considering the setup complete.

What we check

Shared fields checked to confirm they render identically across every language version, targeting configuration tested directly rather than assumed correct from the settings screen, and indexation monitored per language to confirm search engines are picking up each version distinctly.

Result

A verified multilingual setup, confirmed language by language, not one assumed to work correctly simply because WPML was installed and configured according to the plugin's own defaults.

WPML and translation questions

What comes up when setting up multilingual WordPress.

Do you provide the translations?

No, the translation itself sits with a specialist supplier or your local market teams, not with us. We configure the technical structure – WPML’s language setup, field mapping, and translation workflow – that the translated content publishes into, and manage how it moves from draft to review to live across languages. Sourcing the actual translated text stays outside our scope.

How do you stop languages from drifting apart?

We configure WPML’s field-level translation settings so shared technical data – product codes, contact details, structured fields – is stored once and rendered identically in every language, rather than re-entered per language and prone to drift. Only fields meant to differ by language, like body copy, are set to vary. See multilingual content architecture for the broader content model this depends on.

Can this fix our country sites competing with each other?

Often, yes – incorrect language and region targeting inside WPML is a common cause of country sites competing for the same search rankings. Correcting hreflang tags and regional URL structure in WPML’s configuration is usually more impactful than any content rewrite. We audit that targeting first, since a content fix will not help if the underlying signals point search engines to the wrong version.

Does WPML work with the ACF component system?

Yes, WPML’s field-level translation settings work directly alongside ACF flexible content, which is how most of the site’s structured content is built. Each ACF field can be set to translate independently, sync across languages, or stay copied from the default language, giving fine control over what varies by market. This is how we typically configure shared versus translated fields on multilingual builds.

Related technology we work with

Other technology we work with

WPML and translation connects closely with these related technology pages.

WPML and translation

Set up your WPML
and translation workflow

A multilingual site where languages have drifted apart, or a new build going multilingual from the start. Tell us your languages and we will tell you how we would approach WPML and translation.

contact us
Contact Form

Tell us
about your project

Tell us about your organization’s context and the planned scope of the project.
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