Which languages does your business website need in Belgium?

Use enquiries to choose the first languages

Example / Illustration

Look at a recent set of real calls and messages. Note the service requested, the area and the language used, without putting personal customer details into a public document. Include enquiries you struggled to answer as well as completed bookings. That is a better starting brief than guessing from your own language preferences.

An Antwerp nail studio may need Dutch alongside Ukrainian or Russian. A business working across Brussels may have different needs, while a tradesperson around Limburg and Liège may receive enquiries in Dutch and French. These are planning examples, not a rule that every business in a city needs the same combination.

• Which customers already contact you, and in what languages?
• Which neighbouring areas can you realistically serve?
• Who can follow up an enquiry in each proposed language?

Translate the whole customer journey

Start with the service description, location or service area, price explanation and contact action. Continue into the booking labels, confirmation and practical instructions. A translated headline is little help if the visitor reaches an unfamiliar booking screen or receives an answer they cannot understand.

Keep the underlying facts identical: the service offered, what the price covers, and how to book. Ask a fluent reviewer to check terminology and tone, especially treatment names and what a booking commits the customer to. A literal translation can sound unnatural even when each individual word is correct.

Give each language a usable page

Google recommends separate URLs for language versions and links that let visitors choose another language. For your supplier brief, ask for a shareable link to each version and a language switch that stays on the same service. You should be able to send a customer the relevant page directly.

Test that journey yourself with a reader of each language. Can they find the service, understand the price and send the right kind of request? Keep a list of unclear expressions and missing translations so the next edit has a defined scope.

Budget for keeping every version current

When a service changes, all its language versions need attention. Agree who supplies the update and who checks it before it goes live. Start with a smaller set of complete, maintainable pages if your team cannot keep a larger site accurate.

Navidu delivers websites in Dutch, French, English, Ukrainian and Russian. Start includes 2 languages, Presence 3 and Growth 4; an extra language costs €19 per month excluding VAT. Agree the combination in advance. Calls and ongoing support are in Russian, Dutch or English. Have Ukrainian copy checked by a native speaker before publishing it.

• Choose the languages before approving the page list.
• Name a reviewer for each language.
• Include translations in every future service or price change.