Quick Quote
Archives
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- December 2020
- October 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
- December 2018
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- July 2018
- June 2018
- May 2018
- April 2018
- March 2018
- February 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
Tourism Depends on Translators for its Success
Tourism has become a global industry and this has only come about because of the presence of experienced translators in many different languages. No one will visit a country unless s/he can learn about its attractions in their own language. Marketing material has to present all the required information in the language or languages understood by those who are likely to want to visit a country. A country like Australia isn’t likely to attract those fascinated in history and old buildings as they do not exist. Its main attractions, apart from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House, are the attractions in the outback such as remote trips in a four-wheel drive which will take you far away from civilization. There is also the Dreamtime of Aboriginal Australians, which is represented in its unique dot artwork. Who would know about these attractions unless tourist operators’ websites are translated into the languages of potential customers? Whether a person is looking for a beach holiday, visits to ancient cities, viewing unique wildlife or rafting down the wild, raging rivers, tourist operators around the world have to translate their websites so that potential customers know which countries offer what they really enjoy. In 2013 a study was conducted which discovered Britons are unlikely to make a holiday booking through any websites which display too many spelling and grammar mistakes. This is because if the website is not perfect what is the holiday likely to be like? So if a tourist company in say Thailand is promoting holidays to the British it needs to ensure the translation from Thai to English is perfect otherwise there is a high likelihood of losing bookings to competitors. Many people these days opt for holidays far away from home. There is quite a lot of organization involved in arranging this, which includes booking flights, choosing suitable accommodation and planning excursions on arrival. Many sought after destinations require advanced bookings. This means the customer needs to be sure the right choice of holiday is made and this involves reading all the information in their own language first. If there is anything that has not been clearly translated the customer is likely to move onto another better-translated website. Language barriers often make people feel uncomfortable and can even spoil a holiday. A tourist operator can add to the comfort of their clients by providing important information in their own language and even have an interpreter available if required. It’s not just the customers who pay for holidays who need the reassurance that translations are made available, but a tourist operator, say in France, may use a middle person in England to help market holiday packages. Middlemen and women in England do not necessarily speak French so the vendor in France should ensure an accurate translation into English is provided of the holiday packages that can be passed onto customers. Any tourist operator has to feel that it has a definite customer base and the only way to make this happen is by making sure the customer has a memorable experience and wants to come back. Providing well-translated tourist information and an interpreter back up service goes a long way to encourage return visitors. Many translation errors in China occur because people do not take translations seriously and believe machine translations do a good job. This has happened with sign translations in China. To address the frequency of errors, the Chinese government has published a 10 part guide about translating from Chinese to English. It concentrates on ensuring signage is correctly translated, so it is easy to understand and is not comical. To make it easy for those who need to translate signs, the Chinese government has released standard translations of commonly seen road signs so that they can be correctly translated. These include such signs as ‘sunbathing allowed,’ ‘construction in progress’ and ‘speed limits. For companies who offer tourist activities, it is important to get good translations so that tourists are attracted to what is offered, enjoy it and want to return another time. If a tourist business gets it right the first time the tourist will be thrilled with what it has to offer. If the translation is poor tourists will not be queuing up to take up any offers. Australia has unique features for tourists to discover
Translations mean prospective customers can discover you more easily
Professional translations boost trust
Travelling does not come cheap
Tourists are put off by language barriers
Package holiday sellers are put off by language barriers
Tourism operators need both old and new customers
Chinese translators use machine translators that get bad translations
Expert translators need to do tourist translations
Leave a Reply