Most businesses, when they begin to enter overseas markets, will need to get their website, promotional material and business documents translated into the targeted languages. The first thing a business may do is look around for an online translation tool some of which are free to do all their translations. No one would recommend this as a translation solution because it will deny the business a head start in the overseas marketing process for its product. To really have an impact in the overseas market a professional human translator should be the first step. There are several good reasons for this, which are outlined below.
Expertise from a range of experienced translators
A translation company will be able to provide the full range of translators whether it is in the business’s home country or overseas. These are translators who have a high degree of experience translating for the business community. They typically complete regular training courses to update their knowledge of any changing language which ensures they can deliver the highest quality translation to their customers.
It is not just the language that is important, but the culture too. Those countries who speak one main language may have groups who follow different linguistic rules because of their cultural associations. Human translators ensure they are completely up to date with any terminology or vocabulary that is unique to a particular group so that the translations for businesses can target these groups. This means any new business going international will gain from this sort of expertise. The translations will sound like the natural language and not like a translation. This is a far more effective translation tool than a business turning to a cheap online tool which has no idea of language variation that occurs in different cultures which speak the same
Specialist translators for different industries
The best translator is always the one who has gained specialist knowledge in a specific area e.g. medical translation, legal translation, and business translation. These translators will know what type of language should be used in each translation presented to them. This means a business entering the overseas market for the first time will not have to worry about poor, inaccurate or inappropriate translations. This is great for a brand’s image that is entering the overseas market for the first time.
Accuracy is the key to success for business translations
When expanding into new overseas markets has become a reality the worst thing that could ever happen is a poor, inaccurate translation. Many famous companies have fallen into this trap by getting unprofessional translators or online translators who have made serious mistakes when translating a business’s key slogan. This could be so bad that anyone reading the translated slogan would make a mockery of it. Worse still, many inaccuracies have failed to bring the results that the business had hoped to achieve. It’s vital for any new business to make the right impression and communicate correctly the business’s messages. The aim is to engage your new market with your product so you increase your sales and revenue.
Consistency is as important as accuracy
An accurate translation is essential but consistency should be maintained throughout the translation process. So if a business’s brand logo is translated for the website the same translation should be used on any other advertising material. This is so the audience will recognize the brand. This is something a professional translator can do but an online translator could not.
A professional translator is transparent
From the start, you will be far more certain that you are going to get a good translation if it comes from a professional translator as the translation process will be explained to you so you will know what to expect. Machine translations have no way of explaining the translation process to you. If the language doesn’t sound quite good enough you cannot ask for any clarification. If you need to change your translation requirements once the professional human translation has begun, you can discuss this with your translator.
In summary, a professional translator helps you to gain access to a bigger market, improve your communication in that market and helps you to keep your hard-earned positive brand reputation. You will never look back if you use a professional translator to help market your brand abroad. If you choose to go for online translations you could lose your brand’s reputation which may take years to regain. Going abroad with your product is a challenge and you have to make sure you can benefit the most from it by using good translations to attract the right market at a time when your product is ready to be sold abroad. You make the choice and you know how you can benefit if you choose correctly.