Rakuten Case Study: How Human Translation Boosted Rakuten’s Conversion Rates

Rakuten’s experiment with human and machine translation showed the financial benefits of Lionbridge’s translation services

Which converts customers better, human or machine translation? As an experiment, leading Japanese online retailer Rakuten translated the same 250 product listings using both methods. The result? Lionbridge (formerly Gengo) created higher-quality listings that significantly boosted Rakuten’s conversion rates (CVR).

Rakuten blog graphic 1

Low Cost, High Return

Translating 250 listings cost Rakuten less than $10 per listing. This small investment, however, resulted in an incredible $83,000+ in increased sales—a small price for a massive payoff.

GTable showing the revenue boost from using human translation

Simple and Swift

All 250 product listings were translated and up on Rakuten’s site in less than 48 hours with minimal effort. Translating high-volume content via API makes updating multilingual listings seamless.

Illustration showing how many product pages were translated in 48 hours

When it comes to high-volume content like ecommerce product listings and user-generated content, machine translation isn’t your only cost-friendly option. Contact us today to find out why crowdsourced human translation platforms are both affordable and better for business.

  • #case_studies
  • #retail
  • #translation_localization
linkedin sharing button

Lionbridge
AUTHOR
Lionbridge