When conducting translation the opportunity for errors is very high. Here we show you why when getting translations carried out, you really do need a professional translation agency to make sure everything is correct.

1. PROFESSIONAL
TRANSLATION
The only way to ensure that your message does not get lost in
translation...

2. WHY YOU NEED TO GET TO RIGHT...RIGHT...
WHY YOU NEED IT GET IT
We've all seen those ridiculous literal translations...
Take the Paris hotel that asks guests to please leave their "values" at the front desk, or the harried
Greek tailor explaining that they will "execute customers in a strict rotation"; funny, but not particularly
reassuring for an English-speaking customer.
What if the mistake were to become less funny, or even offensive? Like this poor woman and her
offensive couch colour tone from China?
Is this really the image you want to portray of your company?
Didn’t think so.
[To see just how bad translation can really get, take a look the following clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q82gAFB2igY]

3. HOW TO GET YOU NEED TO GET IT RIGHT...
WHY IT RIGHT...
To make sure that this doesn't happen, and that your content is
rendered in a way that makes you proud, you need to employ the
services of a professional translation agency.
Any translation agency worth its salt will make sure all the following
steps are completed and return content that clearly conveys your
particular message in your individual voice.

4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW...KNOW...
WHAT YOU NEED TO
Steps in the lifecycle of a marketing translation:
Step 1: Pre-analysis
Step 2: Choose right translators
Step 3: Choose right tool
Step 4: Prepare translator handoff kit
Step 5: Translate
Step 6: Quality spot-check
Step 7: Ongoing query management
Step 8: Full proof
Step 9: Final eye
Step 10: Quality as a continuum

5. STEP 1: PREP/RESEARCH/ANALYSIS
PRE-ANALYSIS
This is your opportunity to get together all the information you need to
produce translated copy that really speaks to your target market.
Typically this involves the following steps:
 Conduct in-depth research into the customer, their business, and
their audience
 Research the customer’s competitors in the sector, see how they
sell themselves, and find reference points for translation
 Research sector and competition in terms of Search engine
optimisation and determine how best to adapt the customer’s
existing SEO strategy for the target market (keyword seed
list, etc.)
 Analyse the files for translation carefully , determine the main
themes and potential difficulties and decide how best to
approach and handle them
 Work together with the customer to create comprehensive
glossaries and style guides to ensure that the translated content
is consistent with their existing voice and brand identity

6. STEP 2: RESOURCE ALLOCATION
CHOOSE THE RIGHT TRANSLATORS
Now is the time to decide on the best team for the job at hand. This is
where the value of working with a professional translation agency really
comes into play as they will already have trusted teams of subject-matter
experts in place.
 Depending on the scope of the project, each team should consist
of :
 Translator(s)
 Senior editor/reviewer
 Select the translators most suited to the project based on
background and previous experience.
 Scheduling – Ensure that the selected team has sufficient
availability to complete the job, including all necessary
steps, comfortably within the deadline. This applies in particular
to the QA sample step.

7. STEP 3: TOOL ANALYSIS
CHOOSE THE RIGHT TOOL
Now you need to decide on the best translation technology for the
job.
• Depending on the type of text, this could include:
 Translation memory technology such as Trados, which
enables you to leverage previous translations and ensure
consistency
 Glossary adherence tools such as Xbench, which check that
all approved terminology has been applied consistently in the
translated text

8. STEP 4: PREPARING TRANSLATOR HANDOFF KIT
PREPARE TRANSLATOR HANDOFF KIT
This step involves gathering together all of the materials that the
translators will need in order to fully understand and reflect the
customer’s requirements. Typically this would include:
 Background info – Short description of customer and specific
requirements of project :
 Purpose of translation
 Target audience
 Sector-specific characteristics
 Glossaries/translation memories/style guides – Approved by
customer where possible
 Approved customer content currently in active circulation to
be used as reference
 High-quality original content from competitors of note in the
target sector and country

9. STEP 5: TRANSLATE
TRANSLATE
 The text won’t translate itself. Now’s the time to get to work!

10. STEP 6: QUERY MANAGEMENT
ONGOING QUERY MANAGEMENT
Asking questions is never a sign of weakness.
It’s often by asking the right questions that you get to the real heart
of what the author is trying to convey. It’s a two-way process
offering manifold benefits for the customer:
 Nailing down meaning behind key brand values
 Clarification of ambiguous source text
 Flagging of typos in source text
 Sign-off on stylistic preferences not included in initial style
guide

11. STEP 7: QUALITY SPOTCHECK
FIRST QA - QUALITY SPOTCHECK
This step involves a Senior editor/reviewer performing a QA spotcheck as
early as possible in the translation process.
Focus should be on:
 Checking the sample translation for meaning – Is the message
conveyed by the source text accurately conveyed in the target?
 Adherence to glossary/style guide – Has the translator consistently
used the approved terminology?
 Readability – Does the translated text flow well? Does it read as
though originally written in the target language?
 Queries – Have the answers to any queries raised during translation
been implemented consistently?
 All feedback should be documented and sent back to the translator
for implementation in their files prior to delivery

12. STEP 8: FULL PROOF - FULL PROOF
SECOND QA
In this step, the Senior editor/reviewer performs a full proof of the files
delivered by the translators.
Focus should be on:
 Checking for meaning – The main purpose of this QA stage is to check
that the translated text accurately reflects the meaning of the source
text without any omissions, additions, etc.
 Ensuring that same house style is applied to all content
 Adherence to glossary/style guide – Has the translator consistently
used the approved terminology?
 Queries – Have the answers to any queries raised during translation
been implemented consistently?
 Final files should be sent back to the translators for reference

13. STEP 9: FINAL EYE - FINAL EYE
THIRD QA
In the context of a marketing translation, the purpose of this final QA
step is to ensure the translated text reads as if written in the target
language (i.e. language that it has been translated into).
Again, this step is performed by the dedicated Senior editor/reviewer
and the focus is on:
 Taking a step back from the source language and focusing on the
target language only
 Ensuring that the quality of the target text speaks for itself and that
the final text stands in its own right, independent of the source

14. STEP 10 - QUALITY CONTINUUM
In a professional translation agency, quality should be seen as a
continuous thread running right throughout the project:
• Build up and mentor dedicated translation teams
• Research and prepare reliable reference material and have approved
by customer if feasible
• Consult with subject-matter experts wherever possible
• Use translation technology to ensure consistency (Trados and
Xbench)
• Invite feedback from the customer and identify areas for
improvement
• Update glossaries and style guides based on feedback and circulate to
team

15. WHAT GOOGLE TRANSLATE CAN DO FOR YOU...

16. WHAT A PROFESSIONAL TRANSLATION AGENCY CAN DO FOR YOU...

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