Important things before ordering the translation
Today, with there being many translations companies, Google translate and other free online translations, finding the right professional translation agency is very important. A company with good online reputation, testimonial, client lists, provides excellent work and Customer Service Support whether it’s over the phone or by email.
As a new buyer you do not need to know everything about translations in-depth. Knowing some basics in translation services will definitely be helpful prior to purchasing the service. Being a new customer to the translation industry, below you will find a few pointers:
- What Service Do you Need?
Since there are many different types of translations services offered, please select the purpose of the translation, you can then select the service you feel best fits your need. Is the translated texts being used for personal use, internal or external use, expanding your company, etc. It’s best to have translations completed by a professional human translator rather than machine translation.
Here’s a list of few services you may be interested in:
- Document Translation (Professional and Certified) :
Some types of document translations include but are not limited to are: Employee Handbooks, Manuals ( Technical, Instruction and Operation), Contracts, SDS and MSDS, Legal Documents (Birth Certificates, Diplomas, Transcripts, Medical Records, etc.), Text Messages, Newspaper Articles. These types of documents should be completed by a professional native speakers to ensure accuracy and quality. - Certified Translations: Depending on the translation purpose, whether it’s for a government agency, school , or DMV, you will need a professional, certified, notarized translation.
- Website Translation and Localization : Clients who wish to expand their businesses internationally may be in need of this service. The first question you might want to ask yourself, are you looking for a Professional Human translation, or a Free Website Plugin. Some website formats include .php, .hmtl, .xml, .pot, .txt, .xhtml. The translation company should be able to provide the translation back in the same format sent in keeping all coding as the original and ready to upload.
- Audio Transcription: These are recordings from interviews, phone conversations, business meeting, etc. When requesting this service, you will need to know if you are looking to have the audio transcribed to texts only or translated into another language(s). This must be completed by a professional transcriptionist specialized in the subject area. Some of the accepted formats are mp3, mp4, ogg, wav.
Some other services include: Phone and Onsite Interpreting, Voice Over and Voice Acting, Software Localization, Video Captioning, Subtitling. You can contact a Customer Service Representative over the phone to discuss this.
- How Does Translation Pricing Works?
Not finding immediate pricing on the translation company’s website can be a bit frustrating. However, you will not find an exact price list on most companies websites. The main reason is that each project requires a unique approach based on volume, format, complexity and terminology. Companies can charge per word or per page for document translations only after reviewing the content.
- Delivery and Turnaround
Document and Website Translations: If you’re wondering how quickly a translation can be completed, on average, a translator can complete 1,500 – 2,000 words in 24 hours. This timeframe does not include any editing, formatting or proofreading which may be needed. Based on the page count, volume, format and terminology of your document, additional time may be needed. Rushing a project may result to low quality translation.
For other services, you will need to discuss delivery time with the Customer Service Representative as this differs from Document translation.
