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Multi-Language Support & Internationalization

For international brands and cross-border Shopify stores, delivering a localized shopping experience is essential for conversion. A customer browsing a German or French storefront should not be greeted by English placeholder text or mismatched suggestion buttons.

ShopGuide provides a comprehensive, multi-tiered localization architecture designed to work seamlessly with Shopify Markets and multilingual themes.

1. Per-Locale UI Customization​

Inside ShopGuide → Appearance, merchants running multi-language stores can author storefront widget text for each published language in their store:

  • Chat Heading: Author distinct titles per language (e.g., "Ask our Specialist" in English, "Frag unseren Berater" in German, or "Vraag onze specialist" in Dutch).
  • Input Field Placeholder: Customize the prompt box placeholder text per locale (e.g., "Ask me anything..." vs. "Stelle mir eine Frage...").
  • Single-Language Fallback: For languages without a specific translation, ShopGuide cleanly inherits the primary store language defaults.

2. Localized Launch Messages & Suggestion Chips​

Your opening greetings and suggested prompt buttons adapt dynamically to the shopper's active language:

  • Proactive Greetings: Configurable under Settings → Bubble, you can set unique opening lines for each language.
  • Quick-Reply Suggestion Chips: The interactive buttons shown at the beginning of a chat (e.g., "Find my size", "Check shipping times", "Recommend a gift") automatically render in the customer's language.
  • Smart Intent Alignment: When the AI suggests follow-up prompt chips, it automatically matches the customer's active locale so shoppers never encounter awkward language switches mid-conversation.

3. Conversational AI Language Coverage​

While the widget's primary interface elements are localized, the AI's conversational engine supports a vast array of global languages:

  • Automatic Language Detection: Replies, suggestion chips and guided-discovery questions follow the language of the customer's latest message. Your store language is used for launch messages and when the message language is unclear.
  • Built-in widget text: Fixed labels (buttons, status messages, comparison table) are available in English, German and Dutch. Other store languages show English for those labels, while the AI's replies still follow the shopper's language.
  • Product Catalog Translation: If your product descriptions are written in English but a customer asks questions in Spanish or Japanese, the AI accurately translates product details, specifications, and instructions in real-time.
  • Shopify Markets: Product results are limited to products your shopper's market sells, with links in that market's URL structure. If the market sells none of the results, ShopGuide shows them unchanged.

Best Practices for Multilingual Stores​

  1. Match Your Theme's Active Locale: Ensure your store's locale switcher sets the storefront language correctly. ShopGuide reads your storefront's active language.
  2. Review Knowledge Base in Primary Languages: If your customer base is heavily bilingual, upload FAQ pairs in both languages or ensure your primary knowledge documents clearly state international policies.
  3. Audit Unanswered Questions: Use Chats to filter transcripts by customer language to spot regional questions (such as country-specific import duties or European voltage compatibility).