How to choose the right translation partner?

Language is a medium of exchange that is also one of the many tools that can make or break a business. Establishing connections with the speakers of the same language is no big task. Communicating your business ideas to speakers of another language is a big feat that is possible only with the right translation partner by your side.

A good translation partner can be your ladder to achieving global fame and success in the globalized world of today.

But choosing the right translation partner can be like looking for a needle in the haystack. You have too many options to choose from, you can even outsource business translation, but your decision should base on some of the filters that you should apply on all the translation agencies in your consideration set.

So how to choose the right translation agency? The question might be a tough one but is easy to answer with a set a simple questions that you should be asking yourself when opting to choose a translation partner.

Let’s have a look at them:

What are you trying to achieve?

Before considering your options for a translation partner, one thing that all companies should engage into firsthand is self-reflection. Knowing what you need can be a big step to getting what you want. Ask yourself what are you really trying to achieve through translation? Is international expansion on your mind? Or are you trying to strike a chord with your targeted audience by speaking their language? Is your strategy a focused one or a broad one targeting a whole country?

These are just some of the questions that signify your aims and objectives when you decide to go global. Needless to say, these questions of self-assessment must be reflected upon the right way for you to step ahead and embrace globalization.

Answering these questions will show what you are looking for in a translation agency. Is it just the documents that you are seeking to translate or websites and software, along with the whole set of operations and processes? If it is the former, medium level a translation agency will do. If it is the latter, you might need to hire an expert and renowned translation partner to do the job for you.

Does your translation partner fulfill your requirements?

After self-evaluation, it is time to evaluate the chosen translation agency, considering its strengths and weaknesses. For that, you need to inquire after the translation methods of the agency that you are evaluating. Is it a “mediocre” translation agency that relies solely on manual translation by human linguists? Or is it an agency that uses computer assisted tools (CAT) to execute its translations? Or does it have human translators to do the job?

While choosing human-powered translations will ensure a greater accuracy in translation, computer assisted tools are the advanced translation methods that can help in achieving globalization in your industry.

What are the quality standards followed?

When it comes to answering the question of how to choose the right translation agency, quality is the foremost criterion for evaluation. The quality standards followed by your chosen translation agency is a litmus test for its market position too.

Evaluate whether the translation agency has the quality standards, the compliance certificates and reassessment measures to assess the quality of translations. Does it have the quality certificates from authorized quality assessment companies? This quality check will ensure that the translations delivered by the agency are of the best quality as opposed to those translations that are not quality-backed.

How experienced are the translators?

One other thing that should be kept in consideration when choosing a translation agency is its primary stakeholders—the translators. The experience and the expertise of the translators makes a translation agency distinct from others. The longer the experience of the translators, the better it is for the customers as it shows the level of expertise they hold.

Investigate the level of experience that the translators of your chosen organization hold, their level of expertise, their tenure and most importantly, the nature of the translations they have delivered. If they are experts in the technical translation field, chances are that they can easily handle translations of projects that are complex in nature such as those belonging to engineering and technology. If these translators have not delivered numerous translations, chances are that they are novices in translations and your decision needs a re-evaluation.

Choose the right partner

Translation and localization are not difficult tasks for a well-established translation agency. The right choices in the field of translation can go a long way in making sure your translation projects are executed successfully without any errors or issues. Act wisely when it comes to fulfilling all your business needs, but most importantly, choose a skilled translation agency for your global needs. It is your best bet for success.