Translation Tips | TranslationJM.com

TranslationJM.com June 15, 2017 Leave a Comment

Why should you use a professional translation service rather than Google Translate?

Technology unites the world, but language barriers still prevent free and easy communication. Luckily there are professional translators and interpreters who stand in as bridges across the language gap, and they can provide a useful and necessary aid to your multilingual needs.

Using a translator not only includes a list of pros that outstrip the cons, it’s also a far smarter choice for global professional endeavors. While hiring a professional translator may not be the easiest decision for a strained wallet, receiving reliable, consistent quality work is undeniably a case of money well spent.

A professional translator’s fees are not only necessary (they need to make a living), it should also set your mind at ease. Charging for their work shows a dedication to the job that a free service cannot guarantee. By contrast, Google Translate is free to use by anyone whenever they wish, and this ease comes at a cost. There’s no guarantee the auto-translated work will maintain reliable consistency, or if it’ll even be coherent.

Being able to communicate and think critically also sets professional translators far above Google’s technology. Regardless of all the advancements made in technology, computer translations are still in their infancy. Choosing a professional’s service will ensure that you are working with someone who has a better understanding of your text’s needs, as well as the nuances required to best express it in another language. You can also explain to a translator what you’re trying to say and how you want to say it, but Google Translate can’t engage in a conversation at all–not yet, anyway.

Another good reason to choose professionals for your translating project is the reduced chance for embarrassing mistakes. A human translator knows both grammatical and colloquial expressions, and can fine tune a project to be natural and easy to read. Their experience in translating will ensure that your project is in capable hands by someone who devotes time into their work. Your translator’s focus and experience also enhance your project’s professional appearance and appeal to a global audience. Google Translate may be a good way to cross reference some words you already know, but it will be a few more years before computer translations can even compare to people who are not only trained to translate, but are dedicated to doing it well.

A professional translation service’s dedication isn’t the only thing to keep in mind: you should also be committed to your own. Choosing to pay for a professional’s talents helps you save face and avoid any embarrassing situations, especially if native speakers are going to be reading or listening to your work. If you’re looking to reach out to a foreign audience either for your business or creative endeavors on a global market, the last thing you want to do is show off a sloppy, unpolished message in their own language. First impressions leave lasting marks, so a little extra time paid to communication goes a long way, and helps cross the divide between language barriers.

TranslationJM.com June 7, 2017 Leave a Comment

You should use an editing and proofreading service

Do I need an editing and/or proofreading service?

Almost without exception, the answer to that question is a resounding “Yes!” Although the two are often viewed as the same process, editing and proofreading are, in fact, two very different procedures.

Proofreading

Usually, proofreading occurs when the writing is complete and before it is submitted for publication or another purpose. This process focuses on obvious grammar and spelling errors, format and punctuation inaccuracies, syntax inconsistencies, and so forth.

No matter how brilliant the concept or innovative the subject matter, a publication that is fraught with misspelled words, poor grammar, or punctuation errors will lose credibility. Conversely, a publication that is free of these types of errors will appear more polished and professional and provide more credibility to the author.

Editing

Although the editing process usually involves proofreading, it goes far deeper than that. The editing process will analyze the overall article to determine how it will impact its audience. This means determining if the publication is appropriate for its target audience in content, language, and structure. The editor will provide recommendations for improvements that could be made to the content to enhance clarity or understanding of the document as well as content technicalities that may need to be addressed.

The Need For Both

Those who speak English as their native language may feel that their written document(s) don’t need improvement: This is fallacious thinking. No matter your education level or your proficiency with the language and/or subject matter, a fresh point of view from a professional can always provide new insight.

Using both editing and proofreading processes will provide the most polished and professional publication or document. Many professional editors and proofreaders have a PhD, a passion for the English language, and have specialized in one or more technical disciplines. This enables them to provide not only the best content and structure for a publication, but technical advice as well.

Whether the publication is for an academic paper, a peer-reviewed journal, a scientific presentation, a short story, or any other audience, there’s an editing and proofreading service available. A resume and cover letter that has been proofread and edited may provide the edge necessary to land a coveted job. Fine-tuning an essay for a college application may make the difference between acceptance and rejection.

Many online services will provide a cursory proofreading and editing for free or a nominal charge. For a more sophisticated analysis, many professional companies are available online with reasonable rates and a quick turnaround time.

Freelance proofreaders and editors are available but be sure to check their reputation before committing to one. Proofreading alone is less expensive than editing, but editing will yield a better document for publication. For more information on the proofreading and editing process, click here.

TranslationJM.com March 20, 2008 3 Comments

The SEO Aspect of Country-Specific Domain Extensions

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, is a familiar term to almost anyone who owns and operates a website – especially a website that is used for business. This is what puts your business in front of internet users and what keeps bringing in new customers; however, some website owners make the mistake of only focusing on Meta tags and keywords during their SEO efforts. On the contrary, there are actually many aspects of Search Engine Optimization that should be considered when one is marketing a website. One such important, and often overlooked, consideration is a country-specific top-level domain extension.

Why These Extensions Make For Good Business

When you are trying to attract an international audience, a good way to do so is to translate your website into (at least) a few of the most often used foreign languages around the globe. But in order to attract as many international customers as possible, you need to take this strategy a step further by attaching the translated website to a URL containing a country-specific top-level domain, a TLD, extension.

Consider this: Each country has a customized form of Google just for them, such as www.google.co.uk for internet users in the United Kingdom. As expected, many internet users from foreign countries, especially those not fluent in English, are likely to utilize the Google search engine specific to their country (as opposed to the one found at good ‘ole www.google.com). This is for two reasons:

These country-specific search engines are more likely to feature websites written in a user’s native language. This means that internet users in a non-English speaking country won’t have to wade through a bunch of English-based websites just to find what they are looking for, in a language that they can easily understand.
They can find relevant content, which is targeted directly at them, and nearby merchandise vendors with greater ease. Many times those of us from English-speaking countries can forget how alienated non-English speakers can feel when searching a World Wide Web of English-based content. It can be a much friendlier place when all the articles that pop up are in your own language.

The frequent use of these county-specific search engines is just one of the many reasons why using a country-specific top-level domain extension is an essential component to targeting an international audience.

There are also two important SEO-related benefits that you gain from when using this kind of domain extension: these domains will be ranked higher than normal dot-coms in country-specific search engines and the owners of these domains will then have the opportunity to be included in exclusive county-specific website directories.

Ranking Higher in Country-Specific Search Engines

The ability to rank highly in country specific search engines is one of the best methods for growing a large international customer base. Although you can get a normal dot-com name ranked and included in country-specific search engines, you will likely not get the kind of results that you expect. This is because country-specific search engines give greater priority to those websites that use the two-letter top-level domain extension specific to their country, which will produce friendlier search listings for internet users in that country.

Of course, as with any search engine (no matter what language it serves), the higher your website ranks, the more “hits” you are likely to receive. This raises the percentage of interested buyers who will land on your page, which will result in more sales and a higher ROI; all equaling a larger profit for your business. It is also the first step to international brand awareness for your company.

Inclusion in Exclusive Country-Specific Web Directories

Having a country-specific top-level domain extension also gives you the eligibility to be part of exclusive country-specific web directories, where one of the main requirements for inclusion is that you use the two-letter top-level domain name extension specific to that country. Many people in foreign countries choose to use these web directories in place of English-language directories for the same reason they choose to use search engines that are specific to their country: because it results in friendlier search listings for internet users in that country.

Inclusion in these directories is a great way to be discovered by customers from around the world who use these directories to find what they are looking for and to again rank even higher with search engines, since they place greater value on websites that have been accepted into their web directory. It may also help get your websites indexed by these search engines more quickly. All the additional benefits of English-based website directories still apply, including the SEO benefits that come from these one-way links and customized anchor text, as well as the marketing and budget benefits of free, targeted website traffic.

Failure to use a country-specific top-level domain extension for your translated websites may result in slower international growth for your business. The practice of giving your translated websites a country-specific top-level domain extension should be as important to your business as any other SEO strategy. Then, and only then, will you be able to target and receive the type of international attention that your company needs to flourish in a global market place.

Charles March 5, 2008 4 Comments

Machine Translation – How Bad Is It?

To a certain extent, it’s quite amazing that a piece of software can take a piece of text and magically translate it into any languages. Website owners often wonder how accurate those free tools are and if they should use it on their websites. Unfortunately, the result is often dismal. Being native in French, and fairly at ease with Spanish, I always notice a website that has been translated using a free machine translation tool, and it is not pretty.

Now, being that I represent a human translation agency, I’m probably not exactly objective when it comes to machine translation. So, instead of taking my word for it, let’s take a look at a simple example.

Take the below short four sentences paragraph, which I wrote in French, and then translated myself (literally) in English:

Bob travaille pour une petite entreprise au centre-ville. Le travail de Bob consiste dans la réparation d’ordinateurs et l’installation de nouveaux logiciels. Durant ses temps libres, il aime lire, regarder des films et jouer au poker avec ses amis. Bob a 30 ans et vit dans une grande maison avec sa femme et ses enfants.

Bob works for a small company downtown. Bob’s job consists of repairing computers and installing new software. In his spare time, he likes to read, watch movies and play poker with his friends. Bob is 30 years old and lives in a big house with his wife and kids.

Now, I used one of the popular free translation software to translate the same French text. I got the following result:

Bobsled works for a small business to the center city. The work of Bobsled consists in the repair of computers and the installation again software. During its free time, it likes to read, look at films and to play poker with its friends. Bobsled is 30 years old and lives in a big house with his woman and its children.

Four sentences, and already we can spot at least 10 significant mistakes. And don’t ask me why Bob gets translated in Bobsled!

So, let’s take it further. Since many use free machine translation to offer their pages in other languages, let’s try to get a better idea of what get shown to their foreign visitors.

I took the human translated English text and used the machine translation to translate it in French and then retranslate it in English. Here is the result:

Bobsled works for a small company in city. The bobsled work consists in to repair computers and installing again software. In its leisures, it likes to read, look at poker of films and piece with its friends. Bobsled is 30 years old and lives in a big house with his woman and its childlike ones.

Obviously, here, there’s the double effect of the machine translation, but, truth is, machine translation is even worst when translating from English into another language than the other way around. Publishing copy like the one above is like slapping your readers in the face!