The field of corporate translation has become increasingly important for large corporations across the world as successful and profitable business has become synonymous with international business.
However, there is still an abundance of misconceptions and inaccuracies surrounding corporate translations. Here are our top ten myths of corporate translation:
1. Machine translation services are useless and have no value for large United States corporations.
Truth: Appropriate use of machine translation can act as a helpful aid to people translating. It can help fix simple errors in professional translator’s writings if used well.
2. Machine translations are just as good as human translators and are a better value.
Truth: Important corporate and business information needs the human elements of nuance and contextual reference to be fully translated. Relying on a machine is a foolish move that can lead to big trouble in certain topics such as ethics violations with foreign workers.
3. All translating services are the same, give or take.
Truth: Make sure the company you use has the necessary expertise, reputation, and qualifications to successfully represent your business through corporate translation.
4. There are no guarantees that you can get consistently accurate translations online.
Truth: The right company can distinguish themselves with effective quality control methods to ensure the best corporate translation results every time.
5. Interpreting and translating are interchangeable words.
Truth: Interpreting refers to oral interpretation, the spoken word, typically seen in meetings, conferences, and court depositions for example. Translating is a written document being translated into another language.
6. There is only one type of interpreter available.
Truth: An important distinction in interpretation is between consecutive interpreters (the interpreter speaks during the pauses) and a simultaneous interpreter (the interpreter speaks at the same time as the native language speaker).
7. It is difficult to find out how accurate the corporate translation I received is.
Truth: only hire an agency that has a proven track record. One way you can be sure they will do a good job for you is to find out who their clients are. If established, reputable companies trust the agency, you probably can too.
8. Our thick employee handbook will surely take months to be translated.
Truth: Full translation of a 50-page document can be expedited to under 10 business days and the normal completion time is around 10-15 business days.
9. It is not necessary to have a translating service for our US-based business.
Truth: The US has the fifth highest Spanish speaking population in the world. It behooves any US based company with Hispanic employees to translate their HR materials.
10. Corporate translations for non-Spanish and non-Chinese clients are impossible to find.
Truth: weLanguages offers over 30 different languages ranging from Amharic to Zulu!