The Perils of Cutting Corners When Doing Translation

In 2020, having translations done for any business is very important. It might be your entire website, product labels, or even just needed for a meeting.

No matter what your needs are, it’s important not to cut any corners.

Yes, we know it can feel expensive depending on your project, but this will ultimately generate more income down the line.

By cutting corners are you are actually going to increase your costs of translation alongside some other issues we will explore below.

Unprofessional Website

One of the biggest errors we see when a company cuts corners with their translation is a poor, unprofessional website.

For example – you may need to translate your English site to Spanish and French. You purchased a translation package from a non-reputable company, or opt for the Google Translate function, because the cost was more effective for your business at the time. Unfortunately, you don’t speak either of those languages, so when the translation was complete you just accepted it for what it was. The problem now is that the translations are not as good as they should be and don’t portray the right message to your customer.

The other problem with poor translated websites is that potential customers were leave the site if they can’t navigate it, understand the purpose or are offended by a lack of attention to detail with their language.

As you can see if your website isn’t up to par with the appropriate translation, you are leaving money on the table.

Poor Communication

Zoom meetings are now our everyday lives – at least for most of us. We are communicating with hundreds of people across the world through video and audio, which already makes it a bit complicated.

A challenge we face is ensuring that we have appropriate Interpreters on the call when needed to communicate effectively.

When you cut corners and bring your best friend, or simply a staff member that  that you need on the call,  but they are not a professional interpreter and you really don’t know their level of fluency in the language, you may be risking closing that sale or looking unprofessional.

Having a professional interpreter who is knowledgeable with working on a Zoom meeting is exactly what you need to help keep communication lines clear.

In todays’ society communication is everything, especially when we are all being more conscious of where we spend our money and how it affects our companies in the long run.

Ultimately, we want to ensure our customer always has the best experience no matter what language they speak.

Less Customer Reach

This one should be a little more obvious, but without a good translation you limit your customer reach.

You might be a Canadian company that has their business materials translated from English to French, but what about those who speak Portuguese, Spanish or Mandarin?

Sure, they may all know how to speak English or maybe even French, but in a global economy most are more comfortable with their primary language.

When you translate your business in as many was possible, with professional translators – you open up your business to be more accessible.

The more accessible your business is, the more customers you will reach, and the more potential sales you can close.

No matter what your needs are, always make sure you take the right steps towards translation or interpretation. Your first step should be to contact Language Marketplace to get started on your first quote.