This post is written by Bernadine Racoma, from Day Translations.

There are several reasons why a business or an individual would buy translation services. You might need it because you are opening an international branch. You might be selling some products overseas, or you have to submit your documents to meet personal, educational or professional requirements. You might also be wanting to localize your website/s. Whatever your pressing needs are for professional translation services, it is best that you know what to look for when considering a translation service provider.

10 Tips for Buying Translation Services

1. Find the best translation company for the job. Look at the translation company association website to find the top ones. You can also ask for referrals. When you have a short list, send your text via email and request for a quote. You will get a more accurate quote this way.

2. Check the translation process beforehand. Do not hesitate to ask questions about their services, the inclusions in their services and if they provide a guarantee for their translation work.

3.  If you need official translation, make sure that you hire a professional linguist, and not just a bilingual person. A linguist is certified in the languages of their choice, and has studied them at an accredited institution, or has significant experience of writing and translating in the field.

4.  Check the company credentials and their translation process. There should be translation editions from two linguists as well as another linguist to proofread each edition.

5. Fix your schedule. Find a translator as early as possible. It you need the translation to be printed and you have a deadline, remember that translation work takes almost as long as the time consumed to write the original. Rush translation jobs incur higher surcharge rates.

6. Do not believe a translation provider that claims they can translate 10,000 words per day. The maximum that a top professional translation company can accurately translate is 2,000-3,000 words each day. Never sacrifice quality with quantity.

7.  A detailed brief is very important. Outline the target audiences, distribution outlets, constraints in terms of layout or space. Be sure that the translator understands the sociographics and demographics of your target audience.

8.  If there are illustrations and images with captions, send the image files. It will help the translator greatly in understanding the content as well as in providing answers to some questions. Your preferred terminology will also help facilitate the translation. Make sure that the original copy is very well written, proofread and free from errors.

9.  Designate a contact person that the translator can immediately contact in case of questions and clarifications.
Include a clause in your contract for final proofreading, particularly if you might be amending some parts of the text, including captions and headings.

10.  Keep in mind that a machine cannot replace the skills of professional linguists and that machine-generated translations will only provide a rough draft of something, and not a publication ready text. Proper language that people will really understand can only be done by human translators.

Translation is a difficult process that is why it is advisable to work only with professional translators. This assures you of industry expertise, accuracy consistency and high quality in the translation as well as efficient turnaround time.

References:

http://www.albascan.com/Translation_Tips.html

http://www.marketresearchworld.net/content/view/1504/74/

http://theatacompass.org/2013/05/22/how-to-choose-a-translation-vendor-9-tips-to-a-successful-experience/

http://www.sh3.com/top-10-ideas-for-purchasing-translation-services/

 Author Bio

Bernardine Racoma writes for Day Translations, a global interpreting and certified translation services provider with headquarters in Tampa, Florida, US, and offices worldwide. Its dedicated team of specialized and trained certified translators and interpreters are available 24/7 around the world to satisfy their customers’ translation and interpreting needs. Social Profiles: Facebook, Google+, Twitter.