Buying a new product or service can prove challenging at times, especially when faced with language barriers. You must figure out what dialect is needed as you work out the finer details of the business transaction. That is why a translation service is worth considering. Below are the steps to follow when finding a reputable, professional agency that provides high-quality translation services and also for employee tracking. Abide by them, and you will discover that the process will not be as cumbersome as you might assume.
#1. It is a service with quality products that only qualified professionals can provide
If you are thinking of hiring translation services, go for someone bilingual to handle your documents. However, it will not be enough. For instance, you might think of calling in your workmate’s cousin, who is fluent in French and Spanish, to translate the marketing brochure. But have you assessed his or her qualifications? Find out their foreign language education level and their knowledge of some terminologies specific to your industry. Visit Languex Translation if you require a fast, accurate, and affordable french translator.
#2. Determine your company’s needs
Is it a brochure that needs to be translated, or the business website also need some translation? Consider your target audience for the site or brochure. What is their language and dialect? All these are essential questions to answer before searching for the best translation provider to hire.
It would be best if you also considered the translation vendor’s flexibility in the services rendered. Do you expect the translated document back by tomorrow or a couple of days? Perhaps it could be next week or the coming month. Such matters are vital to your business and must be passed to the vendor before the project starts. You will not have to wait a fortnight for a translation that should have taken three days to complete if you set the terms of what you expect and hand them over beforehand.
#3. Determine the best translation vendor that fits your needs
A local translation service provider is a wise choice; also, pick the one you feel is the ideal fit for your company’s needs. Do you prefer a large corporation, a small agency, or working with an individual? Contact a Freelance French translator. Regardless of your preferences, keep in mind that each option has unique qualities that determine what you can expect at the end of the project.
Most clients prefer working with local agencies to handle their translation jobs, because it gives them a sense of comfort and confidence to converse with the project manager, owner, and in-house translator. Whether you settle for an individual freelancer or a large translation agency, you must research to know their processes and the quality of the results to expect. Hmong Translation would be an excellent choice!
#4. Research the various vendors before making your pick
Whether you are thinking of using a language services agency or freelance linguist, you should consider visiting the American Translators Association website. The site has an online directory with two entry points – one for translation companies and the other for individual translators and interpreters. Run a quick search to find at least 3 – 5 potential translation vendors, visit their website, and review their written content. Is it engaging? Does it align with your needs?
Clients often need various services, ranging from voiceovers, subtitling, foreign language transcription, or software localization. The objective is to ensure the potential vendors meet your needs and expectations.
#5. Discuss your needs
Once you have made your choice of vendors you feel will fit your company needs, schedule a meeting to discuss your translation project’s specifics. You must have all the relevant information, such as the languages you need, the final translation type (marketing, technical, etc.), and the project’s immediacy (proposed deadline). It can also be an opportunity to inquire about other products or services the translation vendor might provide to complement your project’s needs.
#6. Inquire about the processes used that guarantee quality
When meeting with the prospective translation services provider (of a few if you are comparing prices), you should ask about niche areas or the individual or agency’s specializations. Each vendor might focus more on a specific field, although handling others within the same profession. For instance, some do not like handling legal documents or medical texts. Therefore, your project might not go as expected if you hand it over to such professionals.
Some of the upcoming agencies and translation vendors have ways of handling different tasks, meaning their areas of specialization are broad. They often are the perfect fit for your translation needs. However, your mind will be at peace if you ask and get the answers to these questions from the appropriate linguists.
#7. Expect and allow the potential vendor to ask you questions
Lastly, it would help if you let the translation services providers ask you pertinent questions regarding your project. Be skeptical about freelance vendors and companies that are quick to take on a project before sitting down with the client and asking about the text and whether it will be used on a website or a publication or content meant for readers with different dialects.
Another imperative step in selecting a translation professional is to let the vendor ask pertinent questions regarding your project to determine if the translation texts will be for a website, publication, or content for readers of various dialects. Therefore, this is one of the crucial elements in the translation process; thus, never assume answers to these questions are obvious. It would be best to give the translator more than enough information to increase the chances of getting the best outcome for your documents. You will be confident that you are hiring the best vendor for the job if they seem to be asking a lot of questions.
