What does it mean to have high-quality translation service? It might sound simple, like basically it’s all about the changing words. However, for people working in the industry, this simple answer only scratches the surface; things go way deeper than converting languages.
When a client has a translation project, he/she expects an error-free translation; he/she expects linguistic and cultural accuracy. Perhaps, this is the closest meaning of what a high-quality translation means.
But, how can high-quality translation be achieved?
Given the growing need for translation services, the industry has witnessed a vigorous competition among vendors to employ some quality factors to come up with high-quality translations. These quality factors, if well selected, can make the whole project stand out. And because translation is a sophisticated and complicated process, these quality factors are the outcome of the focused efforts of many people and the meticulous execution of many procedures.
Here are 5 quality factors needed for a smooth production of high-quality translations.
High-Quality Translation Service Starts with Dedicated Project Managers
We know you expected translators to come first! But, surprising as it may sound, gone are the days when translation is a one-man kind of job; its not solely dependent on the translators work anymore. Other people are involved, and the word involved would be putting it lightly. By other people we mean project managers. Project managers are the navigators and the project planners here; they control the whole translation process, and they are the ones capable of producing either high-quality translations, or unqualified ones.
A project manager is the first one to receive the project; he studies the projects nature and requirements, studies, assesses, and makes some defining decisions. One of these decisions is selecting people from his team fit for the description of the project, bearing in mind so many elements governing this selection, such as experience, subject-matter expertise, availability etc. A decision like this determines the future of the project and theres no room for poor selection.
Then, other duties follow; between time managing, budgeting the project, following-up with the workflow, updating the client of the status of the project, predicting and dealing with any potholes, managing the quality procedures until the very end of the project delivery.
Bottom line is project managers are the compass of any translation project. A dedicated project managers responsibility entitles him/her to optimize the workflow for outstanding results which only leads to reaching high levels of client satisfaction. Thats one of the perks of assigning your translation project to a language service provider.
Professional Linguists/ Translators
Here comes another quality factor, commonly known as the heart of the translation process: the translator. Native translators are mostly requested; but, whether its a native or a non-native translator, if you are looking for a piece of perfection, only an efficient translator would give you that. Efficiency comes from impeccable linguistic skills, including profound grasp of the language, its grammar, punctuations, idiomatic and tricky expressions and phrases etc. Additionally, the assigned translator should possess some more qualities to be able to produce a high-quality translation. We will try to briefly list them down as follows:
- Experience: We all know that practice makes perfect. So, it only makes sense that the quality of a translation is hugely determined by how much a translator is experienced. This experience encourages the translator to develop a great sense of responsibility, and consequently encourages project managers to trust in the translators limitless capabilities and skills.
- Subject-Matter Expertise: A qualified translator with little subject matter expertise wouldn’t give the desirable outcome. A thorough subject-matter expertise is an asset to the experienced translator. That means he/she is immensely familiar with the terminology and jargons of the subject matter, be it legal, science, military etc. This profound knowledge makes the translator more relaxed as he/she works on even the most arduous texts. Surely, this not only guarantees quality, but also saves the project a lot of time.
- Cultural Awareness: Translation is never just about words; as a matter of fact translation surpasses to include cultural factors. A translator delivers a message in another language while bridging two different cultures; this is one reason for the complexity of translation. If the translator doesn’t have this kind of awareness, the whole project may be jeopardized. In an article discussing Quality Factors in Documentary Translation, the author said: One important problem facing the translator as the intermediary between two languages and two cultures is knowing just what part of these contexts should be reconstructed, avoiding the superfluous, and/or elaborating the implicit information that is necessary for a correct interpretation of the Target Text (TT).
Advanced Technology and Tools for High Quality Translation
Translation has long operated without technology, and things were fine, in terms of quality. It is not enough, though. What if things can be more than fine? What if things can be great? Technology can make that happen, can make things great, and that’s why it’s one crucial quality factor.
Technology has offered a lot of tools to facilitate and enhance the translation process. Look at how Translation Memory can save a lot of time and efforts, and better yet provide all the more reason to push for and achieve consistency and high-quality translation. Moreover, Terminology Management Software (glossaries, style guides, CAT tools) is developed chiefly to work on the quality of translations.
Adequate Quality Procedures
With any language service provider, multiple stages of quality assurance procedures are a vital cornerstone in your translation project to ensure a flawless high-quality translation. A professional translation service provides reviewing after the translation of a text is completed. The project is assigned to another linguist to edit and proofread to finalize the last stage in the quality assurance procedures.
For a high-quality translation, translation services, proficient ones at least, assign in-country native-speaker linguists to review and put the final touches to the translated text, to make sure it complies with the grammatical rules and structures, culture, and the nature feel of the targeted language.
Finally, but Most Importantly, Client Satisfaction
Working hard on the client’s satisfaction is a valuable quality factor for any translation project. In other words, it’s the motivation for quality. It helps in observing and measuring quality offered. It starts in the very beginning of any project, when the vendors priority goes to fully comprehend the requirements and needs of the client, and strictly adhering to them during the whole project, and lasts to the final stage when feedback is provided.
Meeting the client’s needs calls for maintaining the expected levels of quality. This way, client satisfaction breeds more trust and reliability, leading to better work conditions and eventually constant quality improvements. At the end of the day, this creates a respectable friendly atmosphere between two people doing business, ending up in establishing a long-term partnership. And if a long-term partnership doesn’t motivate high-quality translation, then nothing else would
Conclusion of High Quality Translation Services
Translation is made to facilitate communication and deliver messages, and one can’t afford poor messages. It takes a lot to have an accomplished high-quality translation. However, with the quality factors we mentioned, you can rest assured that your translation projects run smoothly, with one target in focus, namely quality.
If that’s what you are looking for, then BayanTech is the right choice. We believe that quality means everything to your projects and that’s why we carry out all of the 5 quality factors to for first-class end results.
In BayanTech, our dedicated project managers seek proficiency throughout the different stages of your project. Highly experienced translators team up with native in-country linguists, utilizing cutting-edge tools to bring the highest-quality that your project deserves.
To learn more about our services contact us
