Advice
Here are advice that will help you leverage your investment in translsation services.
Machine translation: Where do we stand?
Machine translation: Where do we stand?
Artificial intelligence (AI) has improved the quality of machine translation by leaps and bounds; it can even be a very helpful tool.
But its output isn’t always accurate and it can create other major problems with regard to quality, confidentiality, accountability and the role of humans in human affairs.
And let’s not forget that a text or a document is a coherent whole; it can’t be treated as a set of separate parts.
Let’s talk quality
Unpredictability
- A perfect translation: Hurray!
- An obviously bad translation: Useless, but at least you know it.
- A translation that looks good but turns out to be bad on closer examination: This is a big problem, which I will illustrate below.
Example
English: For buildings across Canada, water heating makes up the second largest source of energy consumption of homes.
AI: Partout au Canada, le chauffage à l’eau constitue la deuxième source de consommation d’énergie dans les maisons.
Human translator’s comment: “Chauffage à l’eau” (i.e. heat from water) should be “chauffage de l’eau” (i.e. heating of the water). A mistake that can get you into hot water!
Inconsistency
Remember that you’re dealing with a machine.
Since a machine can’t think, the same term, or even the same sentence, might be translated differently in a given document. These major consistency headaches could cause readers to misunderstand or misinterpret the translation
Example
(list of recommendations for the same organization)
English 1: All professional licensing bodies should monitor their members proactively to better ensure the safety and wellbeing of their patients.
AI 1: Tous les organismes d’agrément professionnel devraient contrôler leurs membres de manière proactive afin de mieux garantir la sécurité et le bien-être des patients.
English 2: All professional licensing bodies should track and demand accountability when discernable patterns of unethical are uncovered.
AI 2: Tous les organismes d’accréditation professionnelle devraient suivre et demander des comptes lorsque des modèles discernables de comportement contraire à l’éthique sont découverts.
English 3: All professional licensing bodies should take steps to promote awareness of complaints mechanisms.
AI 3: Tous les organismes de réglementation professionnelle devraient prendre des mesures pour promouvoir la connaissance des mécanismes de plainte [sic].
Human translator’s comment: The AI engine has translated the same term (professional licensing bodies) three different ways, even though the three sentences appeared one after the other.
Low tolerance for errors in the source document
AI doesn’t deal very well with errors in the source document (document to be translated). Whether typos, syntax errors or factual errors (e.g., numbers), the AI engine is rarely able to make the necessary correction. And, unlike a human, when it doesn’t know something, it won’t ask questions, it will simply make something up.
Examples
English: analong meter
AI: compteur analgésique
Human translator’s comment: It should actually be “compteur analogique.” Because the word was misspelled (analong), the AI engine didn’t understand what it meant and made up the answer (analgesic meter). Speaking of analgesic, this can be a real headache for the reader!
English: That colleges, universities and other education and training institutions and workplaces, to the extent they are not already doping so, provide practical training in support of effective and safe bystander intervention.
AI: Que les collèges, les universités et les autres établissements d’enseignement et de formation, ainsi que les milieux de travail, dans la mesure où ils ne sont pas déjà dopés, dispensent une formation pratique à l’appui d’une intervention efficace et sûre des témoins.
Human translator’s comment: There is a typo in English—doping instead of doing—which the AI engine didn’t understand. I certainly hope the students aren’t too doped up!
English: Please note that changes to shipping status are not reflected on SUPPORTWEB* until one business day after shipment until that time your order will appear with a status of “Pending” in the “Order Status” section of the site.
AI: Veuillez noter que les changements d’état d’expédition ne sont pas traduits dans SUPPORTWEB avant un jour ouvrable après l’expédition jusqu’à ce que votre commande apparaisse avec un état « en attente » dans la section « Statut de la commande » du site.
Human translator’s comment: The punctuation was omitted in the second part of the sentence in English, which completely confused the AI engine. It should have said:
– De plus, veuillez noter que les changements d’état des envois ne sont traduits dans SUPPORTWEB qu’un jour ouvrable après l’expédition; dans l’intervalle, votre commande apparaîtra avec un état « Pending » dans la section « Order Status ».
* Name changed for confidentiality reasons
No consideration for context
At the risk of repeating myself (although repetition helps!):
- Machine translation is done by a machine.
- Context is key in translation.
AI-assisted translation relies on algorithms; there is no consideration for context or meaning.
Examples
English: During the pandemic, the brand was able to bring all of the global urban running crews together under one roof.
AI: Pendant la pandémie, la marque a réussi à réunir sous un même toit toutes les équipes de gestion urbaine du monde.
Human translator’s comment: AI didn’t understand the context and understood running to mean “managing,” when in fact it’s referring to real urban runners (athletes) who were brought together by a sports equipment brand in the same virtual group.
Uneven quality
The quality of machine translation output also depends on the quality of the documents used to train the AI engine. However, depending on the engine, field and language combination (source and target language), the quality of training materials can be very uneven
Example
English: As of July 2022, note that the new formula for suppression of citizenship and immigration data does not apply to census cycles.
AI: En juillet 2022, veuillez noter que la nouvelle formule pour la suppression des données sur la citoyenneté et l’immigration ne s’applique pas aux cycles de recensement.
Human translator’s comment: The AI engine did not use French syntax. It should have said: Il est à noter que depuis juillet 2022, la nouvelle formule pour la suppression des données…
Poor adaptation
From a purely Canadian point of view, it’s important to note that many machine translation engines are trained on texts produced in Europe, which are not at all adapted to the North American context.
The output also generally doesn’t reflect the terminology of the organization concerned (namely, yours!).
Example
English: In Nova Scotia, a toll-free number is available for bystanders to access help.
AI: En Nouvelle-Écosse, un numéro vert est mis à la disposition des témoins pour leur permettre d’obtenir de l’aide.
Human translator’s comment: “Numéro vert” is the equivalent in France of a 1-800 number or other toll-free telephone number.
English: Meeting practices have been modified to support inclusion of all expertise, most notably Indigenous and local knowledge.
AI: Les pratiques de réunion ont été modifiées pour favoriser l’inclusion de toutes les compétences, notamment les connaissances indigènes et locales.
Human translator’s comment: If there’s one word to avoid in Canada, it’s “indigène.” The preferred word is autochtone.
AI isn’t impartial
Machine translation tools use algorithms and are trained on data that are neither objective nor neutral. This means they tend to introduce bias, often against women, minorities and other under-represented populations.
This phenomenon, well known to experts, is called mathwashing. It can create massive social problems by neglecting or mistreating entire segments of society
What about the human touch?
Would you find it normal—or even pleasant or sensible—if you were talking to your friends or your children and a machine suddenly answered you? It wouldn’t make much sense. Right?
The fundamental role of translation is to build bridges between people. Like all forms of human communication, it only makes sense if it’s carried out mainly by humans
Who’s responsible?
Like all professionals, translators are responsible for the service they provide and the product they deliver. If they make mistakes, you can ask them to correct them.
But who can you turn to if the translation was done by a machine?
Who will correct the mistakes? And what’s more, who’s going to find them in the first place?
Time for a giggle
(or not!)
A random interpretation, to say the least
English: The spell of Disney is universal
AI: L’orthographe de Disney est universelle
Human translator’s comment: True, everyone knows how to spell Disney(!), but this sentence is actually trying to say that Disney’s charm is universal.
When it doesn’t understand the context
English: Chicken Eggs
AI: oeufs de poulets
Human translator’s comment: No comment!
What to expect from your language professional?
What to expect from your language professional?
There’s no question about it: Hiring a translator or a copywriter can be expensive. But there are many ways to turn the expense into a (very) profitable investment. Remember, just like in any other field, there are myriad advantages to hiring a professional.
Language professionals draw on their training, skills and experience to provide you with services far beyond simple copywriting or converting documents from one language into another. Their diverse skillset makes them a true partner in your success.
Ask you questions
That’s right, the first thing a language professional will do is ask you questions: about your expectations, your company, the project, and the context. And that’s what sets them apart from an amateur—or a machine.
All this information, called the “translation brief,” will help them to understand the broader context of the translation project and adapt their approach to offer you even more value.
Explain their process
Once the translator has determined the translation brief, they will clearly explain the services they can offer you. And these shouldn’t be limited to just translating or copywriting.
Then, they will let you know what they need (reference documents, contact person, time, context, etc.) to deliver you a quality product.
Adapt to your company
A translator is a lot like a chameleon: curious by nature and an expert at blending in! Provided you give them what they need, they’ll have no trouble adapting to your company’s culture and work methods.
Keep your information confidential
Your documents are highly sensitive. Security and confidentiality are paramount, especially when you entrust your documents to an outside contractor.
Good translators and copywriters know this and will agree with you on the need to protect your documents during transmission and archiving.
And if your language professional is also a member of a professional association, they will be bound by their code of ethics to keep your documents secure.
Give you writing advice
Your translator or copywriter is an expert in the written word. So, let them be your advisor! For example, your website home page might be crystal clear to you, but does it make sense to someone who doesn’t know you, like your clients, for example?
To each their own. Just as your engineer designs your products, and your lawyer handles your contracts, translation is a translator’s domain, and copywriting is a copywriter’s domain. And sometimes translators are the only communication experts involved in the publishing process
Help you ensure your documents are consistent
Over time, the translator or copywriter you hire will often become an expert on your company or service.
This means they’re well positioned to spot any errors or inconsistencies with other documents they’ve worked on (e.g., incorrect job title, mistakes in a financial report, etc.).
Help you manage your publishing projects
Ideally, the translator should be involved right from the planning phase of your document drafting process, to make sure translation is factored into the equation.
They can provide invaluable information on graphic design elements or the space needed for the text (some languages take up more room than others). They can also advise you on how much time to allow for translation.
A good translator will analyze your needs and recommend appropriate solutions.
Adapt your communications to the target culture
Translating is more than just switching out words between two different languages; it involves adapting a text so that readers believe it was always written in their native language. The translator may even need to change the structure of the text or the punctuation (different languages have different punctuation rules).
Culture is also a key consideration. Anglophones and francophones don’t operate the same way. For example, English speakers tend to write the way they speak, for the sake of brevity, whereas French-speakers focus more on elegance and accuracy.
Similarly, all people who speak the same language don’t necessarily think or write things the same way. For example, in Canada, a country in North America, a direct style is preferred when writing in French, and instructions are typically written in the imperative tense (more personal), whereas in France, a more formal European country, a descriptive style and the infinitive tense are more common.
Deliver turnkey projects
Depending on the field, the complexity of the job and your budget, a translator may offer you a turnkey project. This means they might hire terminologists, an IT specialist and a graphic designer.
10 tips for flawless documents
10 tips for flawless documents
Like all specialized fields (probably yours, too!), translation and copywriting have their own rules and specifications.
But it’s very easy to get the results you want and make the process smoother, and even enjoyable! Here are a few important points to keep in mind.
1 - Hire an expert
Choose a translator or a copywriter with expertise in your field. It’s tempting to hire a person or a company that offers you the lowest price, but what kind of results will you get? It’s unlikely you’ll actually get your money’s worth.
You hired a specialized agency to design your marketing campaign and trusted them to come up with your slogans. You hire lawyers to draw up your contracts. So, why wouldn’t you want to make sure your documents reflect your image, in your own language and in other languages?
With a few exceptions, professional translators translate in one direction only: into their native language. This is a guarantee their texts will connect with their target audience
One simple misunderstanding or meaning error can negate months of marketing efforts!
2 - Hire professional copywriters
Whenever possible, hire professional copywriters for your publications, especially if the subject is complex; at the very least, have your communications proofread by a professional. You’ll gain clarity in your source language, make the translation process easier, and avoid misinterpretations.
To do their work properly, the translator needs a high-quality source document.
If the wording is confusing, the translator will end up guessing and making assumptions, which is never good!
3 - Set reasonable deadlines
We all want things to be done as soon as possible, but the reality is, everything takes time. If it took you months to write your manual, do you really think it will only take a week to translate it?
Before setting translation or copywriting deadlines, consult your language professional to make sure they are realistic.
Remember, your credibility is at stake!
4 - Provide as much information and context as possible
How many translators does it take to change a light bulb?
Answer: It depends on the context!
Context is everything when it comes to translation. For a translator, working without context is like taking a road trip without a GPS (or a map, as the case may be). You’ll end up somewhere, but not necessarily in the right place.
Give the translator as much information as possible about the document to be translated: context, purpose, audience, constraints (space, time), final medium (web? printed advertisement?), etc.
Illustrations, photos and diagrams are extremely helpful for a language professional, especially when it comes to technical translations. A photo can even help the translator to determine a person’s sex. Is Lindsay a woman or a man? This detail is extremely important in French, since adjectives agree in gender with the nouns they modify.
5 - Be grateful for your translator’s questions
Does your language professional have a lot of questions? Don’t worry, that’s the mark of a pro! Far from being a sign of incompetence, it’s proof they care about getting it right.
Answer their questions clearly and in detail, and more importantly, answer all their questions, even when you think the answer is obvious.
6 - Appoint a contact person
Speaking of questions, for each job, appoint a contact person who can answer the translator’s or copywriter’s technical and terminology questions.
This is very important, especially if the subject is complex, the terminology is specific to your sector or company, or you have a very strong corporate culture.
7 - Welcome suggestions
Your translator is your language expert. And as with any expert, their suggestions are backed by solid training and years of experience.
By heeding your language professional’s suggestions, you’ll be getting the most out of your translation or copywriting investment.
8 - Recognize the challenges of web translation
These days, there’s nothing trickier to translate than a website or an app. The structure is intricate and can include dozens of pages, forms and dialogue boxes.
The last thing you want to do is send the translator the link and tell them to figure it out; chances are they’ll overlook something. And sending them the content in a generic Word or Excel file without giving them access to the website or the app is even worse! Remember the importance of context.
Always provide all original files for your website. If you don’t have them, ask the company that designed your website. If your files are in a proprietary format, you may need to convert them to a more common one.
Important: Before going live with your translated website, have the translator proofread the offline version. This is a crucial step in the quality control process.
9 - Recognize that each file format has its challenges
Documents these days come in a wide variety of file formats, from general (Microsoft Office, PDF) to specialized (graphic design, desktop publishing, web design software), not to mention proprietary formats.
Don’t expect your language professional to own every software on the planet. If you work with them regularly, they’ll most likely purchase the one you use. But if not, you may need to convert files, or even have them work on site on a dedicated workstation. Ask them what they need.
10 - Participate in the process
Before sending a document for translation, make sure it’s the final version. Finish any incomplete sentences, and remove comments, notes and editorial marks, such as highlighting. Eliminate duplicate sentences. In short, take care of anything that will unnecessarily add to the translator’s workload and increase the risk of errors.
And make sure the translation is adapted for the target audience. For example, there’s no point including examples and resources from the UK or British Columbia if your document is intended for Canada or Québec, respectively.
A guide intended for Canada but originally written in the U.S. may talk about legal principles that don’t apply in Québec (for example) or contain references that aren’t relevant to Canada. This will confuse readers or even mislead them altogether. And ultimately, this will affect your credibility.
Don’t hesitate to contact your language professional if you have any doubts or questions about the process. They’ll be happy to explain their decisions or give you advice. After all, that’s part of their job
Machine translation: Where do we stand?
Artificial intelligence (AI) has improved the quality of machine translation by leaps and bounds; it can even be a very helpful tool.
But its output isn’t always accurate and it can create other major problems with regard to quality, confidentiality, accountability and the role of humans in human affairs.
And let’s not forget that a text or a document is a coherent whole; it can’t be treated as a set of separate parts.
Let’s talk quality
Unpredictability
- A perfect translation: Hurray!
- An obviously bad translation: Useless, but at least you know it.
- A translation that looks good but turns out to be bad on closer examination: This is a big problem, which I will illustrate below.
Example
English: For buildings across Canada, water heating makes up the second largest source of energy consumption of homes.
AI: Partout au Canada, le chauffage à l’eau constitue la deuxième source de consommation d’énergie dans les maisons.
Human translator’s comment: “Chauffage à l’eau” (i.e. heat from water) should be “chauffage de l’eau” (i.e. heating of the water). A mistake that can get you into hot water!
Inconsistency
Remember that you’re dealing with a machine.
Since a machine can’t think, the same term, or even the same sentence, might be translated differently in a given document. These major consistency headaches could cause readers to misunderstand or misinterpret the translation
Example
(list of recommendations for the same organization)
English 1: All professional licensing bodies should monitor their members proactively to better ensure the safety and wellbeing of their patients.
AI 1: Tous les organismes d’agrément professionnel devraient contrôler leurs membres de manière proactive afin de mieux garantir la sécurité et le bien-être des patients.
English 2: All professional licensing bodies should track and demand accountability when discernable patterns of unethical are uncovered.
AI 2: Tous les organismes d’accréditation professionnelle devraient suivre et demander des comptes lorsque des modèles discernables de comportement contraire à l’éthique sont découverts.
English 3: All professional licensing bodies should take steps to promote awareness of complaints mechanisms.
AI 3: Tous les organismes de réglementation professionnelle devraient prendre des mesures pour promouvoir la connaissance des mécanismes de plainte [sic].
Human translator’s comment: The AI engine has translated the same term (professional licensing bodies) three different ways, even though the three sentences appeared one after the other.
Low tolerance for errors in the source document
AI doesn’t deal very well with errors in the source document (document to be translated). Whether typos, syntax errors or factual errors (e.g., numbers), the AI engine is rarely able to make the necessary correction. And, unlike a human, when it doesn’t know something, it won’t ask questions, it will simply make something up.
Examples
English: analong meter
AI: compteur analgésique
Human translator’s comment: It should actually be “compteur analogique.” Because the word was misspelled (analong), the AI engine didn’t understand what it meant and made up the answer (analgesic meter). Speaking of analgesic, this can be a real headache for the reader!
English: That colleges, universities and other education and training institutions and workplaces, to the extent they are not already doping so, provide practical training in support of effective and safe bystander intervention.
AI: Que les collèges, les universités et les autres établissements d’enseignement et de formation, ainsi que les milieux de travail, dans la mesure où ils ne sont pas déjà dopés, dispensent une formation pratique à l’appui d’une intervention efficace et sûre des témoins.
Human translator’s comment: There is a typo in English—doping instead of doing—which the AI engine didn’t understand. I certainly hope the students aren’t too doped up!
English: Please note that changes to shipping status are not reflected on SUPPORTWEB* until one business day after shipment until that time your order will appear with a status of “Pending” in the “Order Status” section of the site.
AI: Veuillez noter que les changements d’état d’expédition ne sont pas traduits dans SUPPORTWEB avant un jour ouvrable après l’expédition jusqu’à ce que votre commande apparaisse avec un état « en attente » dans la section « Statut de la commande » du site.
Human translator’s comment: The punctuation was omitted in the second part of the sentence in English, which completely confused the AI engine. It should have said:
– De plus, veuillez noter que les changements d’état des envois ne sont traduits dans SUPPORTWEB qu’un jour ouvrable après l’expédition; dans l’intervalle, votre commande apparaîtra avec un état « Pending » dans la section « Order Status ».
* Name changed for confidentiality reasons
No consideration for context
At the risk of repeating myself (although repetition helps!):
- Machine translation is done by a machine.
- Context is key in translation.
AI-assisted translation relies on algorithms; there is no consideration for context or meaning.
Examples
English: During the pandemic, the brand was able to bring all of the global urban running crews together under one roof.
AI: Pendant la pandémie, la marque a réussi à réunir sous un même toit toutes les équipes de gestion urbaine du monde.
Human translator’s comment: AI didn’t understand the context and understood running to mean “managing,” when in fact it’s referring to real urban runners (athletes) who were brought together by a sports equipment brand in the same virtual group.
Uneven quality
The quality of machine translation output also depends on the quality of the documents used to train the AI engine. However, depending on the engine, field and language combination (source and target language), the quality of training materials can be very uneven
Example
English: As of July 2022, note that the new formula for suppression of citizenship and immigration data does not apply to census cycles.
AI: En juillet 2022, veuillez noter que la nouvelle formule pour la suppression des données sur la citoyenneté et l’immigration ne s’applique pas aux cycles de recensement.
Human translator’s comment: The AI engine did not use French syntax. It should have said: Il est à noter que depuis juillet 2022, la nouvelle formule pour la suppression des données…
Poor adaptation
From a purely Canadian point of view, it’s important to note that many machine translation engines are trained on texts produced in Europe, which are not at all adapted to the North American context.
The output also generally doesn’t reflect the terminology of the organization concerned (namely, yours!).
Example
English: In Nova Scotia, a toll-free number is available for bystanders to access help.
AI: En Nouvelle-Écosse, un numéro vert est mis à la disposition des témoins pour leur permettre d’obtenir de l’aide.
Human translator’s comment: “Numéro vert” is the equivalent in France of a 1-800 number or other toll-free telephone number.
English: Meeting practices have been modified to support inclusion of all expertise, most notably Indigenous and local knowledge.
AI: Les pratiques de réunion ont été modifiées pour favoriser l’inclusion de toutes les compétences, notamment les connaissances indigènes et locales.
Human translator’s comment: If there’s one word to avoid in Canada, it’s “indigène.” The preferred word is autochtone.
Who’s responsible?
Like all professionals, translators are responsible for the service they provide and the product they deliver. If they make mistakes, you can ask them to correct them.
But who can you turn to if the translation was done by a machine?
Who will correct the mistakes? And what’s more, who’s going to find them in the first place?
AI isn’t impartial
Machine translation tools use algorithms and are trained on data that are neither objective nor neutral. This means they tend to introduce bias, often against women, minorities and other under-represented populations.
This phenomenon, well known to experts, is called mathwashing. It can create massive social problems by neglecting or mistreating entire segments of society
What about the human touch?
Would you find it normal—or even pleasant or sensible—if you were talking to your friends or your children and a machine suddenly answered you? It wouldn’t make much sense. Right?
The fundamental role of translation is to build bridges between people. Like all forms of human communication, it only makes sense if it’s carried out mainly by humans
Time for a giggle (or not!)
A random interpretation, to say the least
English: The spell of Disney is universal
AI: L’orthographe de Disney est universelle
Human translator’s comment: True, everyone knows how to spell Disney(!), but this sentence is actually trying to say that Disney’s charm is universal.
When it doesn’t understand the context
English: Chicken Eggs
AI: oeufs de poulets
Human translator’s comment: No comment!
What to expect from your language professional?
There’s no question about it: Hiring a translator or a copywriter can be expensive. But there are many ways to turn the expense into a (very) profitable investment. Remember, just like in any other field, there are myriad advantages to hiring a professional.
Language professionals draw on their training, skills and experience to provide you with services far beyond simple copywriting or converting documents from one language into another. Their diverse skillset makes them a true partner in your success.
Ask you questions
That’s right, the first thing a language professional will do is ask you questions: about your expectations, your company, the project, and the context. And that’s what sets them apart from an amateur—or a machine.
All this information, called the “translation brief,” will help them to understand the broader context of the translation project and adapt their approach to offer you even more value.
Explain their process
Once the translator has determined the translation brief, they will clearly explain the services they can offer you. And these shouldn’t be limited to just translating or copywriting.
Then, they will let you know what they need (reference documents, contact person, time, context, etc.) to deliver you a quality product.
Adapt to your company
A translator is a lot like a chameleon: curious by nature and an expert at blending in! Provided you give them what they need, they’ll have no trouble adapting to your company’s culture and work methods.
Keep your information confidential
Your documents are highly sensitive. Security and confidentiality are paramount, especially when you entrust your documents to an outside contractor.
Good translators and copywriters know this and will agree with you on the need to protect your documents during transmission and archiving.
And if your language professional is also a member of a professional association, they will be bound by their code of ethics to keep your documents secure.
Give you writing advice
Your translator or copywriter is an expert in the written word. So, let them be your advisor! For example, your website home page might be crystal clear to you, but does it make sense to someone who doesn’t know you, like your clients, for example?
To each their own. Just as your engineer designs your products, and your lawyer handles your contracts, translation is a translator’s domain, and copywriting is a copywriter’s domain. And sometimes translators are the only communication experts involved in the publishing process
Help you ensure your documents are consistent
Over time, the translator or copywriter you hire will often become an expert on your company or service.
This means they’re well positioned to spot any errors or inconsistencies with other documents they’ve worked on (e.g., incorrect job title, mistakes in a financial report, etc.).
Help you manage your publishing projects
Ideally, the translator should be involved right from the planning phase of your document drafting process, to make sure translation is factored into the equation.
They can provide invaluable information on graphic design elements or the space needed for the text (some languages take up more room than others). They can also advise you on how much time to allow for translation.
A good translator will analyze your needs and recommend appropriate solutions.
Adapt your communications to the target culture
Translating is more than just switching out words between two different languages; it involves adapting a text so that readers believe it was always written in their native language. The translator may even need to change the structure of the text or the punctuation (different languages have different punctuation rules).
Culture is also a key consideration. Anglophones and francophones don’t operate the same way. For example, English speakers tend to write the way they speak, for the sake of brevity, whereas French-speakers focus more on elegance and accuracy.
Similarly, all people who speak the same language don’t necessarily think or write things the same way. For example, in Canada, a country in North America, a direct style is preferred when writing in French, and instructions are typically written in the imperative tense (more personal), whereas in France, a more formal European country, a descriptive style and the infinitive tense are more common.
Deliver turnkey projects
Depending on the field, the complexity of the job and your budget, a translator may offer you a turnkey project. This means they might hire terminologists, an IT specialist and a graphic designer.
10 tips for flawless documents
Like all specialized fields (probably yours, too!), translation and copywriting have their own rules and specifications.
But it’s very easy to get the results you want and make the process smoother, and even enjoyable! Here are a few important points to keep in mind.
1 - Hire an expert
Choose a translator or a copywriter with expertise in your field. It’s tempting to hire a person or a company that offers you the lowest price, but what kind of results will you get? It’s unlikely you’ll actually get your money’s worth.
You hired a specialized agency to design your marketing campaign and trusted them to come up with your slogans. You hire lawyers to draw up your contracts. So, why wouldn’t you want to make sure your documents reflect your image, in your own language and in other languages?
With a few exceptions, professional translators translate in one direction only: into their native language. This is a guarantee their texts will connect with their target audience
One simple misunderstanding or meaning error can negate months of marketing efforts!
2 - Hire professional copywriters
Whenever possible, hire professional copywriters for your publications, especially if the subject is complex; at the very least, have your communications proofread by a professional. You’ll gain clarity in your source language, make the translation process easier, and avoid misinterpretations.
To do their work properly, the translator needs a high-quality source document.
If the wording is confusing, the translator will end up guessing and making assumptions, which is never good!
3 - Set reasonable deadlines
We all want things to be done as soon as possible, but the reality is, everything takes time. If it took you months to write your manual, do you really think it will only take a week to translate it?
Before setting translation or copywriting deadlines, consult your language professional to make sure they are realistic.
Remember, your credibility is at stake!
4 - Provide as much information and context as possible
Translator’s joke: How many translators does it take to change a light bulb?<br> Answer: It depends on the context!
Context is everything when it comes to translation. For a translator, working without context is like taking a road trip without a GPS (or a map, as the case may be). You’ll end up somewhere, but not necessarily in the right place.
Give the translator as much information as possible about the document to be translated: context, purpose, audience, constraints (space, time), final medium (web? printed advertisement?), etc.
Illustrations, photos and diagrams are extremely helpful for a language professional, especially when it comes to technical translations. A photo can even help the translator to determine a person’s sex. Is Lindsay a woman or a man? This detail is extremely important in French, since adjectives agree in gender with the nouns they modify.
5 - Be grateful for your translator’s questions
Does your language professional have a lot of questions? Don’t worry, that’s the mark of a pro! Far from being a sign of incompetence, it’s proof they care about getting it right.
Answer their questions clearly and in detail, and more importantly, answer all their questions, even when you think the answer is obvious.
6 - Appoint a contact person
Speaking of questions, for each job, appoint a contact person who can answer the translator’s or copywriter’s technical and terminology questions.
This is very important, especially if the subject is complex, the terminology is specific to your sector or company, or you have a very strong corporate culture.
7 - Welcome suggestions
Your translator is your language expert. And as with any expert, their suggestions are backed by solid training and years of experience.
By heeding your language professional’s suggestions, you’ll be getting the most out of your translation or copywriting investment.
8 - Recognize the challenges of web translation
These days, there’s nothing trickier to translate than a website or an app. The structure is intricate and can include dozens of pages, forms and dialogue boxes.
The last thing you want to do is send the translator the link and tell them to figure it out; chances are they’ll overlook something. And sending them the content in a generic Word or Excel file without giving them access to the website or the app is even worse! Remember the importance of context.
Always provide all original files for your website. If you don’t have them, ask the company that designed your website. If your files are in a proprietary format, you may need to convert them to a more common one.
Important: Before going live with your translated website, have the translator proofread the offline version. This is a crucial step in the quality control process.
9 - Recognize that each file format has its challenges
Documents these days come in a wide variety of file formats, from general (Microsoft Office, PDF) to specialized (graphic design, desktop publishing, web design software), not to mention proprietary formats.
Don’t expect your language professional to own every software on the planet. If you work with them regularly, they’ll most likely purchase the one you use. But if not, you may need to convert files, or even have them work on site on a dedicated workstation. Ask them what they need.
10 - Participate in the process
Before sending a document for translation, make sure it’s the final version. Finish any incomplete sentences, and remove comments, notes and editorial marks, such as highlighting. Eliminate duplicate sentences. In short, take care of anything that will unnecessarily add to the translator’s workload and increase the risk of errors.
And make sure the translation is adapted for the target audience. For example, there’s no point including examples and resources from the UK or British Columbia if your document is intended for Canada or Québec, respectively.
A guide intended for Canada but originally written in the U.S. may talk about legal principles that don’t apply in Québec (for example) or contain references that aren’t relevant to Canada. This will confuse readers or even mislead them altogether. And ultimately, this will affect your credibility.
Don’t hesitate to contact your language professional if you have any doubts or questions about the process. They’ll be happy to explain their decisions or give you advice. After all, that’s part of their job
