Choosing A Translation Services Provider
It is extremely important for organizations to effectively communicate to their multilingual audiences at home and internationally. It’s the difference between being tremendously successful or a colossal failure in the lucrative multilingual markets. Choosing a translation services provider that is the right fit for your language needs will have a major impact on effectively engaging with your multilingual audiences.
Key Facts
One in five US residents speaks a language other than English, according to US census data;
More than 300 languages are spoken in U.S. Homes;
Most of the world Web Sites are in English, and over 85% of the world’s Web users are non-English speakers;
Web users are five times more likely to make purchases on Web Sites that communicate in their own native language;
Industry surveys suggest, 72.4% of consumers said they would be more likely to buy a product with the information in their own language.
The above list can go on and on with reasons why it’s critical for organizations to speak the language of their multilingual audiences. When you can produce effective multilingual content and communications the opportunities are endless, but first, you’ll need a professional language partner, who has a wide range of capabilities, deep industry experience, and technological resources to deliver high-quality language solutions and flawless multilingual content that engages your target markets. This is not an easy task, but selecting the right language partner will go a long way in meeting your multilingual requirements.
Five Factors to Consider when Choosing a Translation Services Provider
1. Industry-Specific Expertise
A translation services provider’s lack of industry expertise is perhaps the number one reason, why a language project fails to meet the expectations of clients and stakeholders. When you choose a provider that has little to no experience in your industry, they will not have the capabilities to provide the right pricing model, project management, linguistic expertise, and technical resources to provide high-quality deliverables within your domain.
Pricing Model
The right pricing model is an important factor during the quote phase of a language project. This is where the project’s preliminary planning occurs and a translation services provider that does not have the expertise in the client’s industry will not be able to meet the scope of your language project. For example, a translation services provider that primarily works in providing translation services to the legal sector may not have the capabilities to provide a multilingual voice-over production for marketing purposes. They may misquote the project by either underpricing or overpricing a project and may not include all the components that go into a successful voice-over production.
Project Management and Linguistic Resources
The Project Manager (PM) and Linguists must have expertise and experience within your industry. The Project Manager is your advisor and point of contact on a language project. He/she is the team captain of the language team. The PM must have a strong understanding of your industry and your content to produce high-quality deliverables. After all, the PM is responsible in selecting the linguists, technical resources and ensure all quality control methodologies are followed on the language project.
The Linguist’s expertise will directly impact the quality of the translated content. The lack of the subject matter expertise of the Linguists will have a negative effect on the industry-specific word choices, understanding, and overall language quality. A Translator that does not have an understanding of the subject matter will prove to be detrimental to the overall quality of the final translation. For example, a Translator may be a star at providing legal translation services, but may not have the technical expertise to translate a Manufacturing Technical Operational Manual.
2. Comprehensive Quality Management
A professional, reputable translation services provider should have a quality control process that ensures accuracy and error-free translations. A client can confirm a translation services provider’s quality process by asking them to provide their quality control methodology in writing. Also, you can ensure that a translation services provider has followed their quality control process in the following ways:
A notarized certification that attests to the quality control methodologies. This is a company’s promise that it followed all steps of the quality control process and attestation to the final translations.
Confirmation that each of the quality control steps were followed. For example, provide edits in track changes, translator’s testing results, voice-over raw recordings, etc.
3. Excellent References
Most language service providers will share references from their favorite companies, and they’ll provide these same references time and time again. To ensure, you receive a clear picture of a company’s capabilities, you should ask for the following reference types:
Industry-specific references;
The references must be from projects that are similar in size, complexity, languages and scope to your language project;
Recent references within the past 2 years.
Professional translation services provider will not have any issues in providing all the above reference types. If a translation services provider cannot provide you with adequate, verifiable references, it should raise red flags and it’s time to move on to another firm.
4. Fair and Competitive Pricing—The Cheapest is Not the Best Solution
Fair and competitive pricing are the keywords that will guide you through the process of choosing a language service provider. A lowball quote is typically a red flag and you should rigorously implement the strategies above to review the provider. A low ball quote is evidence that either an important component is missing in the quote or the reputation of the provider is questionable. Some questionable business practices for low ball offers:
They may be using machine translation;
They are using non-native, inexperienced translators.
They are outsourced to other countries not native to target languages for pennies;
They will find ways to raise the pricing once you sign a contract (read the fine print).
Fair pricing is when all the relevant translation workflow components are noted in the quote and a high-caliber team of Project Managers, Linguists, and Editors are selected for your project with all the quality control protocols in place. Also, your quote should include the following:
Each component of the translation workflow process, such as translation, editing, formatting, and reviews should be listed separately;
What will you receive for the full cost of the quote;
How much will revisions cost;
Terms and a confidentiality clause that protects you and the translation services provider;
The translation services provider’s corporate information (years in business, Directors, Corporate status).
5. The Experience Level of Your Language Team
Your multilingual content and communications will be as good as the translation team. This will typically include Translators, Editors, Proofreaders, Project Managers, etc. A language team with deep experience and expertise will produce high-quality multilingual content and communications. This is where transparency really matters.
You should be asking the following questions about the LSP’s Experience Level:
What is the experience level of the translation team? This can typically be answered in the following ways:
Linguists’ Resumes and Background Information;
Certifications, i.e (American Translators Association);
Work Samples;
A conference call to discuss the project scope with the language team.
Your Project Manager is key to bringing together your language team and they should be able to provide all the necessary information for you and your team to make an informed decision leading to a successful language project.
About Global Link
We are a team of elite linguists, project managers, subject matter experts, and localization specialists who work closely with clients to ensure their communications and multilingual content are engaging, accurate, consistent, and customized to the multilingual audience they need to reach. With deep industry expertise, When selecting a translation service provider, Global Link will be happy to provide you with a professional translation services proposal to meet your language needs
