Translation Matters - Helpful Tips for Translation Service Buyers

Written by Thomas Mayhew


Continued from page 1

If you need something more precise, try a forum where you can ask an expert. Translators Cafe is such a resource (www.translatorscafe.com ). As an example, you can click on to see my wife’s profile at Translators Cafe.

If you choose this option, you should be mindful that there is a limit to what Professional Translators will do for free on these forums. You might, judging fromrepparttar quality ofrepparttar 146933 responses you obtain, decide to hire one ofrepparttar 146934 freelance translators as an editor or proofreader to perform a quality check for you. As a rule, reviewrepparttar 146935 profiles ofrepparttar 146936 potential translators, editors or proofreaders. Ask them questions and comparerepparttar 146937 responses. In some cases, a simple check of their responses will give you some indication as to how good they really are. That is, if their response is careless or contains errors, you really need to cross them off your short list.

For translation,repparttar 146938 rate is sometimes hourly, but is usually byrepparttar 146939 word. A typical Professional Translator will charge between $0.10-$0.15 US/word on average. The relative difficulty ofrepparttar 146940 source language will be a determining factor inrepparttar 146941 per-word rate you will likely be offered. Typical editing rates average between $25 and $35/hour.

Of course, ifrepparttar 146942 company budget allows and you have absolutely no time, you are well advised to retain a top-notch translation service provider. Even in doing so, you should not assume that you can then close your eyes, receiverepparttar 146943 translation and be done with it. In fact, with respect torepparttar 146944 English-Chinese translation for which I was responsible, I did hire an agency with a sterling reputation and they performed with excellence. However, because of my diligence in checking with my in-house experts and my foreign country representatives, I was able to obtain a much, much finer translation product. I managed to do so without upsettingrepparttar 146945 translators orrepparttar 146946 translation manager.

When you do actually begin your translation review/feedback process, be sure that you present your questions in an orderly manner, so as not to annoyrepparttar 146947 person performing or coordinatingrepparttar 146948 work. Be mindful of their time. Try to minimizerepparttar 146949 number of times you go back and forth overrepparttar 146950 text.

Are you drawing a blank as to where you should start with respect to evaluating target language text or even evaluatingrepparttar 146951 service provider? You can see some ofrepparttar 146952 items we check for when editing a translation, at . Ask your potential translation service provider what they look for in providing a quality translation. If they seem clueless or give you a blankstare.com look, pass them by, as you deserve better.

As an executive, even though I did not knowrepparttar 146953 target languages ofrepparttar 146954 translations for which I was responsible, I was able to spot some potential problems and needed improvements that were addressed duringrepparttar 146955 review process. My diligence paid off and my on-site language expert played a critical role in winnowing outrepparttar 146956 finest of details. The bottom line is that you need to assess and utilize allrepparttar 146957 potential resources that you have available to you to ensure a well-done translation product.

With respect torepparttar 146958 other two vantage points from which I can speak, I will have to leave something to your imagination for now. I will write another article on these two subjects at another time. Forrepparttar 146959 next article, I will share significant ‘insider’ insights, gleaned from a professional translator. The title however, will be “Translation Matters - Insider Insights gleaned from a Professional Translator.” Copyright 2005 Thomas Mayhew

Thomas Mayhew is the President of Albanian Language Services (www.albanian-language.com). As part of his past Marketing Manager role for a high precision GPS manufacturer he has been a purchaser and overseer of translation services. He has performed Albanian-English editing and proofing. He has also written/co-written articles and information for a private Global Positioning System related newsletter received by hundreds of subscribers.


What Does Your Cleaning Business Name Say?

Written by Gail Metcalf


Continued from page 1

If your business name includes cleaning, people who would be interested in you are not thinking about laundry and dishes; they’re looking for good, thorough cleaning.

Your business name may include a benefit. If your vision includes houses or offices that sparkle, you may want to include it in your business name. You will actually get inquiry calls and new clients because of it.

Your business name is really important and must not be changed after you start using it. If you change it and people recognize that you did, they begin to wonder immediately why you had to change your business name, assessing it was for negative reasons.

Gail Metcalf built her cleaning business from the ground up and now shares her tips, tricks and trade secrets. Permission is granted to reproduce this article but no part of the article content can be modified and credit must be given to the author with a link back to: http://HouseCleaningPro.com


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