{"id":46293,"date":"2015-11-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-11-03T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gengo.com\/uncategorized\/important-questions-translation-vendors\/"},"modified":"2019-10-23T18:13:09","modified_gmt":"2019-10-23T09:13:09","slug":"important-questions-translation-vendors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gengo.com\/business-insights\/important-questions-translation-vendors\/","title":{"rendered":"The most important questions to ask translation vendors"},"content":{"rendered":"Does your project require the human touch (human translation or HT), or will machine translation (MT) work well with your text? Maybe the middle-road of post-edited machine translation (PEMT) is precisely what you need. But, if you\u2019re not sure which translation solution best meets the needs of your company and project, you\u2019ll need to ask a few questions\u2014and dig deep for answers.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWhen comparing translation solutions, it\u2019s important to understand that there is no single approach that works equally well for everyone. There is no \u201cbest method\u201d either\u2014the best method is the one that works best for you. To find your ideal translation method, start by asking yourself a few questions before you contact a vendor.<\/span>\r\n

Ask yourself:<\/b><\/h3>\r\n
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  1. What is the size of your project?<\/b> If your annual volume is over one million words, most HT agencies and many PEMT agencies aren\u2019t prepared to handle that. Crowd or MT solutions will be your best bets.<\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
  2. How related are your languages?<\/b> Closely related languages, like Latin-based French, Italian and Spanish, are easier for MT solutions to translate correctly. But if you need to translate from English to Chinese, you\u2019ll need human translators to achieve the best results.<\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
  3. How fast and how well do you want it done? <\/b>HT agencies aren\u2019t built for speed, as a rule, but are built for quality. MT projects tend to be faster, but the setup for large MT projects also takes time. Either way, be clear from the beginning on what quality you expect from your vendor.<\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
  4. What price per word are you prepared to pay?<\/b> If your budget is restricted, MT, PEMT and crowd HT options are less expensive than HT.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nWith your internal answers in mind, it\u2019s time to ask prospective translation vendors their own set of very important questions.<\/span>\r\n

    Ask a vendor:<\/b><\/h3>\r\n
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    1. How do you define and measure quality in translations?<\/b><\/b>\r\nYou want to make sure the vendor has an objective way to measure quality so everyone\u2019s expectations are on the same page.<\/li>\r\n \t
    2. Can I see an unfiltered set of translation examples?<\/b><\/b>\r\nTranslation agencies, like any\u00a0other business, would prefer to only show samples of their best, highly edited work. But you\u2019ll get a better sense of the quality they provide if they let you see an unfiltered set of real translations.<\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
    3. Do you have minimum fees, or any additional costs?<\/b><\/b>\r\nMany HT services have minimum fees, and some services have hidden extra costs for project management, file handling or technology integration.<\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
    4. What is your max capacity for translation, and how will the scope of my project affect the timeline?<\/b><\/b>\r\nHT and PEMT providers often have trouble handling high volumes of work, or will gladly take the work, but give a very long timeline for project completion. <\/span><\/li>\r\n \t
    5. Do you have an API? What integrations are available?<\/b><\/b>\r\nProviders with APIs and integrations with platforms like mobile cloud services (MCSs) or ecommerce make managing content much easier.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nEach type of translation vendor works differently. Here are some vendor-specific questions you\u2019ll want to ask.<\/span>\r\n

      Ask the HT vendor:<\/h3>\r\nWhat parts of your workflow are manual and what are automated?<\/strong>\r\n\r\nThe answer to this question will give you insight into how scalable their process is. Completely manual translation sometimes means higher cost and lower speed. Crowd HT providers, on the other hand, normally automate project management tasks.\r\n

      Ask the crowd HT vendor:<\/h3>\r\nDo you have your own technology platform built for your purposes?<\/b>\r\n\r\nThis answer tells you how on top of technology the vendor is, and how ready they are to scale with you. Crowd providers should be absolutely on top of their technology and the best use leading-edge techniques (like their own platforms) to make processes hyper-efficient. Do we at Gengo have our own platform? You bet!\r\n

      Ask the MT vendor:<\/h3>\r\nWhat costs are associated with each stage of scale?<\/b>\r\n\r\nDepending on the provider and your needs, you may use cloud-based, self-hosted or other solutions for which there may be consultation or usage fees.\r\n

      Ask the PEMT vendor:<\/h3>\r\nWhat qualifications and experience do your post-editors have in our industry?<\/b>\r\n\r\nIf your translation work includes specialist content, inexperienced post-editors may make serious errors. If your company has different types of content, you may want to see if using different solutions for different purposes offers better value for your dollar.\r\n\r\nStill not sure which service will work best? Contact us for a free consultation<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nFor the complete list of questions to ask translation vendors, read our free white paper, Making sense of translation services<\/a><\/span>, to find out what you need to know to confidently reach a decision.<\/span>\r\n\r\n