Translation Guide for Business

Here at K International, we are regularly asked by our clients what is actually involved in translation. There is not really one overall answer to this as it is very much dependent on how you intend to use the results. Some clients appear to see translation as a low cost means of increasing sales or even treat it as a complete after thought, a simple last minute process. With the advent of tools such as Google translate, this notion of a straight forward push button solution seems to be becoming even more embedded into people’s way of thinking.

Of course it is most definitely in our interest to say how bad the free tools are and how good costly agency solutions are. The real truth is that these free tools can perform exceptionally well when you understand what you can and cant expect them to achieve. Equally, a high level professional quality translation may be completely unnecessary for your requirements and a complete waste of money with very little ROI.

What I’m trying to say is regardless of what people tell you, the most important consideration is that you make an informed decision about what your exact requirements are. We put together a bite size translation guide to help you understand more about the processes and terminology involved in the Language industry. This should help when looking for a language partner and allow you to decide what services you actually need.

Below is a brief extract from the translation guide, the complete version can be downloaded for free by clicking the appropriate link at the end of the article…

So you have decided you want to make your products or services available in another language. Great idea, if you can reach a wider audience you can reasonably expect to increase your sales markedly. So what should you do? Before you start trawling through all the “translation service” results on Google, you need to identify specifically what you want to achieve by getting your product translated.

Many companies go for the bottom line first and foremost, in the end costs matter, cheapest quote wins. This method will ensure a cheap translation, often in a rapid time frame. Pretty much every translation company in the world will handle this to a varying degree of success. You might get lucky and get an accurate translation or you might just get a rough idea across. As long as you’re willing to take a chance.

I would argue that it makes sense to take into account how long it took you to prepare your product ready for the English market. If you spent hundreds of pounds, months preparing the source copy, a few weeks adjusting the design and layout, why on earth would you trust your translation to be delivered in a week for the lowest cost? It happens, regularly…

You must first understand that translation encompasses a huge field, it’s not just a case of exchanging English words for their foreign counterparts. There are many factors at play, such as context, cultural understanding, language structure and in some cases, specific field terminology to name only a few. If you do not outline exactly what your requirements are from the outset then you are liable to be, at best, unhappy with the end product, at worst, permanently lose the potential customers you were trying to gain. Structure your ‘translation brief’ with clear precise instructions outlining your expectations.

Understand the Buzz

There are a few ‘Buzz’ terms bounding around our industry, most of which are probably quite alien to outsiders. You should familiarise yourself with some of these prior to approaching translation companies for a quote….

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To read the rest of the information in the translation guide, you can download it for free by clicking the link here:

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If you found this translation guide useful or would like more information about our business translation services click here to learn more. Please feel free to comment below and join the discussion regarding the guide. If you would like to talk to one of our representatives about how we can help you with your translation projects please visit our contact page