If you’re looking to expand your business into the global market, you’re going to need to use translation services to help you communicate your product or service to the global market.
English is a widely used language, but more than 70 percent of the world doesn’t actually speak it. Translations are important for providing accurate information that can get a new client base on board with the mission, products and services offered by your company. However, with every translation, there is always a risk. The risk is that your document or website is mistranslated or contains words that translate inappropriately to the language of your key market.
Luckily, there are a lot of ways to reduce the risk of incorrect translations:
DON’T BE IN A RUSH, PLAN YOUR TRANSLATION
We’ve all been there. You have a deadline, but you can’t seem to get to your project until the last minute. This is actually a pretty risky move. You may find yourself compromising for a faster translator who may not pay attention to the details and can incorrectly translate something.
To lower the risk of a bad or sloppy translation, make sure you plan your translation and the timeline for it appropriately. If you are unsure how long it will take for the translator to complete your document, you can always ask them how long it takes them to complete similar documents. Take their timelines into consideration when you’re planning for your translation. This will ensure that you don’t compromise accuracy for timeliness.
INCORPORATE A STYLE GUIDE TO GIVE YOUR TRANSLATOR
Style guides are useful. They are made by companies to indicate exactly how certain aspects of the company should be referred to in translations. Creating the style guide will take planning. Heads of your company should come together to discuss how the company name should appear, if there are any references that need to remain the same for copyright reasons, and so forth.
Having a style guide can help your translator and proof readers have a guide to refer to when writing or reviewing your document or website text. This can reduce risk by cutting down on consistency errors and can help keep your branding the same across all translated content. These guides can also include rules for grammar, locale-related information like how to refer to the date and time, and more.
A great tip is to include your translator or your translation project manager in on these planning meetings. They could tell you what most companies do when translating their documents, and they can also give you important things to think about when it comes to translating your document.
ESTABLISH PROOF READERS OUTSIDE OF THE TRANSLATING COMPANY
This risk reducer is best with someone who has a knowledge of what your company does. You could have a native speaker who also speaks English review both the original and translated version of the document to be sure that the information makes sense and is easy to understand.
This is important because you want to be sure that anyone and everyone in your target market can understand your information. Proof reading in and of itself is important so that you can be sure there aren’t any mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, even translators. Having a great source for a proof reader both with and outside of the translation company you are using is a great way to reduce incorrect translations and maintain consistency.
CONCLUSION
If you’re looking for a company that can help you with your translation, VEQTA is the company for you. Your project will be managed by a team of skilled, professional translators, a project manager, and a point of contact who can answer all of your questions and can assist you in reducing translation risks. For more information contact us today.