If your team is spread around the world (or just has customers who are), you already know language can trip up even the best chatbot. Building a bot that actually speaks your users’ language—literally—can save you a ton of headaches. This guide cuts through the fluff and shows you, step by step, how to create a multilingual chatbot in ChatBot.com, what works well, and where you’ll want to watch your step.
Whether you’re in IT, support, or just the poor soul who got “volunteered” to set this up, here’s how to get it done without losing your mind.
1. Know What “Multilingual” Actually Means in ChatBot.com
Before you dive in, let’s clear up a common misconception: ChatBot.com doesn’t magically translate your bot for you. You’re not getting auto-translation, and you’re not building some sort of AI polyglot. Instead, you’re creating separate conversational paths for each language you want to support.
What works: - You can build as many language branches as you want in your chatbot story. - You control every message, so tone and clarity don’t get mangled by bad translations. - It’s straightforward—no weird API wrangling or coding needed.
What doesn’t: - There’s no built-in translation engine. You’ll need real translations, not just Google Translate copy-paste (unless you like confusing your users). - Maintenance can get tricky as you add more languages—more on that later.
Pro tip: If you only need to support two or three languages, this approach is manageable. If you’re eyeing ten or more, consider how you’ll keep things in sync. Otherwise, you’ll spend your life updating copy.
2. Set Up Your Base Chatbot
Let’s start at the beginning:
- Create a new chatbot in ChatBot.com.
-
Log in, hit “Create new bot,” and pick a blank template (unless you want to deal with deleting sample content).
-
Map out your conversation flow in your main language first.
- Write every interaction in plain English (or your team’s main tongue).
-
Keep sentences short and simple—translation is easier that way, and bots don’t do nuance well.
-
Test it. Yes, really. Get it working in one language before you even think about translation. It’s a pain to redo things across languages.
3. Add Language Detection (the Simple Way)
ChatBot.com doesn’t detect language for you out of the box. But you have a couple of ways to route users to the right language branch:
Option A: Ask the User
Let’s not overthink it. Add a welcome message:
“Hi! Please select your language.”
Then, offer button choices for each language (e.g., English, Español, Français).
- Pros: Dead simple, and users know what’s happening.
- Cons: It’s one extra step for the user.
Option B: Use a Language Detection Tool (Advanced)
If you want to get fancy, you can use a third-party service (like a webhook to Google Cloud Translation API) to detect the user’s language from their first message. But:
- It’s more complicated—requires webhooks and some coding.
- Can backfire if the detection gets it wrong or someone wants to switch languages.
Honest take: Unless you have a strong reason, stick to Option A. Users like control, and it’s less likely to break.
4. Build Parallel Flows for Each Language
Now the real work begins.
- Duplicate your conversation paths for each language.
- In ChatBot.com’s visual builder, copy your existing flow.
- Change all messages to the target language.
-
Update any quick replies, buttons, and keywords too.
-
Keep structure identical across languages.
- If you tweak the English path, tweak the Spanish and French ones too.
-
This keeps things maintainable and avoids weird bugs where one language is missing a step.
-
Double-check user triggers and keywords.
- For keyword-based responses, translate the keywords.
- Don’t assume people type the same way in every language—ask native speakers how real users talk.
Pro tip: Use a naming convention for your flows and blocks (like “Welcome_EN,” “Welcome_ES”). It’ll save your sanity later.
5. Get Real Translations (and Avoid the Common Pitfalls)
Here’s where most teams cut corners and regret it.
Don’t: - Rely solely on Google Translate or DeepL. They’re better than nothing, but bots need clear, context-specific responses. - Use a non-native speaker unless you have no choice.
Do: - Get someone who actually speaks the language to review your copy. - Check for tone—some phrases sound fine in English but come across as rude or robotic in other languages.
Pro tip: If you have a support or sales team in that region, rope them in. They’ll know the right terminology and can spot weird phrasing.
6. Handle User Inputs in Multiple Languages
Not everything is a button click—sometimes users type free-form questions.
- Keywords: You’ll need to set up keywords and synonyms for each language. This is manual work, but it matters.
- Fallbacks: Always set a fallback message in each language (“Sorry, I didn’t get that. Can you rephrase?”).
- User variables: If you’re collecting info (like names or emails), label your variables clearly so you don’t mix up data between languages.
Watch out: If you use AI or NLP integrations, make sure they support your target languages. Some only work well in English.
7. Test Like a Real User (Not Just in English)
It’s easy to miss bugs if you only test in your main language.
- Go through every flow in every language.
- Try typing unexpected things, misspellings, and slang.
- Make sure the bot doesn’t accidentally reply in the wrong language (it happens).
Pro tip: Ask a native speaker on your team to try it. They’ll spot awkward translations faster than you will.
8. Maintain and Update Without Losing Your Mind
Here’s the part most teams overlook: updating your bot.
- Every time you change the main conversation, update all language branches.
- Keep a changelog or version control doc. If you forget what you changed, your translations will drift out of sync.
- If possible, schedule regular reviews—quarterly is a good start.
Honest take: The more languages you add, the harder this gets. Don’t bite off more than you can chew if you’re a small team.
9. What to Ignore (or Skip for Now)
- Auto-translation Plugins: They sound cool, but usually make things worse. You’ll get stilted, sometimes hilarious results.
- Over-customizing per language: Unless you have separate product offerings per region, keep flows mostly the same. It’s easier to manage.
- Too many languages: Three well-done languages beat seven half-baked ones every time.
10. Tips for Global Teams
- Centralize management: One person or team should own the bot. Otherwise, things get messy fast.
- Document everything: Keep a simple doc listing which flows exist in which languages, and who to bug for updates.
- Feedback loops: Set up a way for users to report if something doesn’t make sense. Native speakers catch mistakes you’ll never see.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
Multilingual chatbots in ChatBot.com aren’t rocket science, but they do take some planning and care. Start with the languages you need most, nail those, and add more as you go. Resist the urge to overcomplicate—your users just want clear, helpful answers, no matter the language. Get the basics right, test with real people, and fix things as you learn. That’s how you end up with a bot that actually helps your global team, instead of adding another layer of confusion.
Now, go build something that works. And hey, don’t forget to bookmark this guide—you’ll probably need it again.