Choosing your translation services provider can be daunting, particularly when you don’t know what to look for in a reliable translation agency. This article shares a few hopefully useful tips to help you focus on the things that matter.
Industry-Specific Knowledge And Experience
One of the key things to consider when searching for a professional French translation is the industry they have a wealth of experience with. Whether you need legal, marketing, medical, or technical translations, you should seek for an agency that can offer you a translator who is also an expert in the industry or area of activity you’re interested in. Such professionals are able to handle the sector-specific jargon much better than a linguist with no experience in your industry.
Confidentiality
Keeping your business aspects secret is mandatory if you want to prevent your competitors from stealing your ideas. A good translation agency should enforce strict confidentiality policies, in order to ensure that your information will remain private. Always ask them to sign a non-disclosure agreement prior to starting your business relationship.
Turnaround Times
In some situations, fast turnaround times are an absolute must. If this is also your situation, you have to ensure that the translation company you choose will be able to handle your requests and accommodate your very short turnaround times. At the same time, you have to make it clear that the fact that you need your translations on a very short notice doesn’t mean you are willing to compromise on their quality. A good agency is the one that can provide you the fast and high-quality services you need.
Dedicated Account Manager
A truly professional translation services provider will acknowledge your need to stay in touch with them at all times. They should assign you a dedicated account manager to handle your requests and your objections, and to make sure that your material will be translated to the highest standards of quality. Basically, this account manager should enable fast communication between you and the agency, to the benefit of both parties.
Human Experts
Unfortunately, more and more business owners make use of machine translations. The SME industry is one of the most affected, due to their need for very fast turnaround times and very low costs. Keep in mind, though, that this can do more harm than good on a longer term. Poor quality, automatic translations can harm your brand and your market reputation. When reaching out to a translation agency for the first time, request them that your material gets translated by human professionals. This is the best way to ensure a good accuracy and proper localization. Both these things are extremely important when entering new markets. Even a small translation mistake can cost you your entire business.
Good Agencies Ask Questions
Professional translation agencies are aware that every project is unique. They know that they should approach each and every client from a unique angle and tailor their offer to match the specific needs of these potential clients. When communicating with a translation agency for the first time, be happy if the account manager asks you a lot of questions about your materials and about your industry. This is a sign that they do know what it takes to provide a high-quality translation. The more questions they ask you, the higher the odds that they will live up to your expectations in terms of accuracy and localization quality.
The conclusion is that picking the right translation agency isn’t an easy task. Before making your choice, try to check at least some of the above mentioned points. We, at Translation Services 24, are ready to help you, regardless of your industry and translation needs.
