The long awaited day arrived. Your company has grown so much that you have clients from other countries and you need to send them translated documents. If this is your case, you will probably soon have to decide on a professional company traduzione giurata online. It will not be an easy decision, because today there are many translation companies of various types. This growth is understandable, given that the demand for translation and interpretation services is much greater now than it was a few years ago.
If you visit the websites of different translation companies, you will see that their services are perfect and ideal for you, but how can you make sure of this? It is complicated, since trust always carries with it a factor of uncertainty and risk. Does this mean that you have to simply trust any company in the translation sector? Definitely not. In today’s article, we will tell you the main aspects that you should take into account when choosing your trusted translation company . Let’s go there!
- Freelance or company translator
This is the first thing that users who request translations think of. Mainly it happens because they are not very clear about the difference between the work done by a translation company and that of a freelance translator. To be able to get it right, it is necessary to know the process of a professional translation and the quality criteria that exist. As a professional company, we often come across the belief of users that a good translator is a being with superpowers who produces a perfect text the first time. They think that he is an expert in all areas of knowledge, a virtuoso and creative of languages and that he never makes mistakes.
Behind a good translation and a perfect text (suitable for publication), there is an entire collaborative process in which different professionals intervene . According to the ISO 1700 standard , at least one translator and one proofreader must be involved. This standard also stipulates that the translation must go through various quality controls depending on the purpose of the text. Furthermore, the growing documentary focus requires the use and maintenance of databases (translation memories) and terminological management or the development of writing standards.
It is increasingly common for translation projects to involve technical difficulties that do not strictly belong to the area of translation, such as web page design, software , layout, etc. This forces other professionals to intervene in the process.
Generally, companies want to delegate these tasks to a professional company . However, there are others that have their own translation department and work directly with independent translators . If you want to delve deeper into this topic, we recommend that you read our entry on Translator or Company .
- Reputation and professionalism
When you decide on a translation company, the first thing you should do is check the reputation it has in the market and verify that it does not lack the professionalism it boasts. How can you tell if they are professional or not?
Look for opinions and references on the web (for example, you can see opinions on Facebook or Google +).
Make sure they have professional native translators.
See if the physical address appears on the website.
Be wary if the prices are suspiciously cheap.
Ask about the tools they use.
Check which clients have worked with them.
Request a quote and pay attention to the response and advice you receive.
- Specialization and experience
“He who covers a lot, squeezes little,” our grandmothers already said. This saying can perfectly apply to translation companies. It is impossible to do everything and do it well. Therefore, be wary of those who want to offer you all kinds of services, among which translation is simply one more. Nowadays, professional translation requires highly specialized resources , such as computer-assisted translation systems, terminology extraction and management software , etc.
Look for translation companies that are specialized and have experience in your field. It would be of no use to you to hire the translation services of a company specialized in technical translation that has never performed technical translations.
- References, samples and translation tests
In the second point of the article we advised you to look for opinions from users who have requested translation services from a translation company. Generally, it is the companies that provide you with customer reviews. You can also find them on their website.
In the event that you do not find customer opinions, you can ask the translation company for references , samples of work carried out or a test translation if it is an important project. Those companies that have satisfied clients will not hesitate to provide you with a contact that can give you references about them.
- Quality certificates
If a translation company is certified according to some quality standard, it means that it maintains a quality control system that will be audited every year by an external company. To receive the certificate, the company must demonstrate that it has followed quality controls and processes . Normally, the certificates that a translation company has and the standards it follows appear on the website.
Some of the certificates that you will see on the pages of translation companies will be the international standard ISO 17100 (you will also see companies certified according to the European standard EN 15038:2006) , which establishes and defines the requirements for the provision of a quality service by part of translation service providers, and the ISO 9001 system , which constitutes a set of quality and management standards for any type of company. Don’t be afraid to trust a translation company that has these certificates.
- Rates and deadlines
You may come across a wide variety of prices that can sometimes range from double to half. This price variation is due to the fact that not all companies offer you the same thing, since, as we mentioned above, there are different translation qualities (T: simple translation; TP: translation with final checks; TEP: translation reviewed for a second translator and with final controls; MT: machine translation, PMT: post-edited machine translation, etc.). Make sure the type of translation you will receive is clearly specified.
If you already have the text you want to translate, we advise you to request a quote instead of asking exclusively about rates. Only then will you know exactly which counting method your potential translation provider applies. We have already mentioned that you should not trust a translation company that offers very low prices. We tell you this because quality has a price . Furthermore, in the long run it is more profitable to pay for a well-made product. Can you imagine having to pay another company again to correct a translation that was delivered poorly? It happens more times than you think.
It is also essential that you pay attention to deadlines . Always ask the translation company how many words they translate and revise per day, how long it will take to have your translation ready, and what the budget would be.
- Language combinations available
You can find three types of translation providers: SLV ( single language vendor ), specialized in a linguistic combination; those that offer specific linguistic combinations that appear on their website and, finally, the MLV ( multi language vendor ). The latter work with both in-house translators and external translators, so they can cover a wide variety of languages.
Whatever the type of translation company, the more years it has been active, the more evaluated resources it will have in the different language combinations. This has a positive impact on the result of the project.
- Confidentiality
Translation often goes hand in hand with novelty. Many clients request translations related to the development of new products, patents, opening of new establishments, prospecting agreements and contracts, etc., so it is common to find confidential documents . If you find yourself in this situation, make sure that the translation company offers you the possibility of signing a confidentiality document . In professional companies, employees sign contracts that establish confidentiality terms , so they will have no problem signing a confidentiality contract for your project. - Urgent translations and punctual delivery
Translation companies are used to dealing with urgent assignments . Surely they will arise at some point, but do not assume that the supplier you choose will accept these types of orders. It is difficult to know in advance what response a potential translation provider will give you when an emergency really arises. You don’t know if he’ll go out of his way for you or if you’ll get a “it’s not possible” for an answer. What you can do, to avoid unpleasant surprises, is to request information on standard delivery times .
Sometimes you will need an immediate response or a translation within a very tight deadline, which requires special schedules or weekend work. You can negotiate and set the conditions of this service with your provider. In any case, professional companies usually always indicate a deadline in their budget . If your translation has to be ready on a very specific date or time, ask your provider to specify and confirm the deadline.
Punctuality is another difficult aspect to assess before starting to work with a translation provider . User reviews on the Internet can be very useful to find out if the translation company meets delivery deadlines on time.
- Customer service
Last but not least, value the personal treatment that the translation company offers you. Translators are not asocial beings who live in our caves and only go out on designated dates, on the contrary. We work as a team and are in contact with our clients every day.
When you contact a professional company, pay attention to the treatment they give you. They should be attentive to you and pay attention to your needs. If you don’t receive the treatment and advice you want, they may not be the translation provider you deserve.