subject: Choosing A Language Translator [print this page] Translation should be proofread by a native speaker of the target language. This is particularly important if you cannot provide your own native proofreaders.
The language translator should preferably live in the target country
People lose touch with their first language after a while. If your potential candidate lives in the source country, e.g. in Canada or the US, she should have strong ties to her home country.
The language translator should have some sort of education in translation and preferably also in the subject matter of your documents. However, more important than a translation degree is experience
Look for a language translator with at least several years of experience in translation, expecially in the subject matter of your documents.
If you decide to hand your job over to a good translation agency, the agency will take care of the selection process. Remember, they add a valuable service because they have extensive experience in picking quality providers. A good agency retains its top translators and uses proven candidates over and over again.
How to pick a good translation agency:
Quality
The number one factor when choosing a translation service provider must be quality. Period. While there are many agencies out there that offer rock-bottom prices, be aware that you will pay for a poor-quality translation over and over again. Every time someone reads the translation, your company will be shed in a poor light. But how do you know if the agency you choose will provide a quality service? Here are some questions to ask:
How do you pick your translators? What qualifications do your translators have? How experienced are your translators?
The translator working on your job should have pertinent education in translation and knowledge of the subject of your translation. If you need legal translation services, the translator should be certified by a court. However, experience is far more important than formal education. Some of the best translators never took a translation degree. The translator should only translate into his or her mother tongue and preferably live in a country that speaks the target language or have close ties to his or her home country.
How do you ensure the quality of the translation?
Is the translation proofread by a second translator? This should always be the case unless you will only be using the translation internally or you have your own proofreaders. Good translation agencies will also have tight quality management to weed out underperforming translators.
Do you use translation memories?
This is becoming more and more important and is now used by many translation agencies. A translation memory is a database that is used by so-called CAT software. It effectively recycles translations done in the past. When you have a second text to be translated, the software searches its database for each source sentence to check if it has been translated in the past. If so, the old translation is inserted in place of the source text. A good translation agency will still have all the text proofread in context to make sure it fits, but you will not have to pay for the same translation twice. When you update your documents or have several similar documents to be translated, this can potentially save you thousands of dollars on translation services. It should not be confused with machine translation or automated translation. All translations are still performed by a human translator.
When choosing a translation agency, price should be a secondary consideration. As mentioned above, you will pay a high price for a poor-quality translation. After you narrow down your choice to a few translation agencies though, you might want to get several quotes from several agencies before you make your final decision.
Aunes Oversettelser AS has been in the business for 26 years, and we are specialized in technical translations. We are specializing in the Nordic languages, and can offer services into Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Icelandic. The premier translation agency for Norway and the Nordic region! Technical translation services for businesses in the Nordic countries and translation agencies world-wide.
