#WhereWeWork
Happy fall! Teneo Linguistics Company is proud to bring you the third edition of our monthly newsletter. This month at TLC we are launching a new and exciting campaign called #WhereWeWork! In a world where nearly all of our translation business is online, TLC still values the human connection. We care about you and want to recognize our stellar clients! Our #WhereWeWork Campaign will be a series of photos posted to our Facebook from our clients and translators all over the world. Please send us a picture of where you work - perhaps a scenic shot of the city in which you live or the pleasant view from your office desk. We want to emphasize the importance we place on quality customer relations at TLC. We are excited to see your shots! Please send your photos to lizzie@tlctranslation.com and include a short description of your photo and the city in which you live. Be sure to like our Facebook page to see your photo! Enjoy the first #WhereWeWork post about our TLC home in Fort Worth, Texas and the rest of our newsletter below. As always, we appreciate your business and hope you have a great November.
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Where TLC Works
Fort Worth, Texas - Located just a few steps from Dallas, Fort Worth is truly "Where the West Begins." From the Cultural District with the world renowned Kimball Art Museum to the historic Stockyards and location of the first ever indoor rodeo in the world, Fort Worth has a little bit of fun for every walk of life. We love our city!
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TLC's New Service - Formatting of Original Documents
On November 1st, we began offering a new service for our clients - professional formatting of documents. Sometimes we feel like we frustrate you by asking for a "native file" for translation. By that, we basically mean "anything but a PDF." While, in some cases, PDF is all that is available to you.
We can certainly work with a PDF, if need be. But from now on, instead of just delivering your translated document in a text editable format, we will be asking you if you would like formatting recreated in your original document as well. Maybe you need a print-ready version of both the original and the translation. Perhaps, at a future date, you'd like to be able to revise or update the document. Or the person who created your document is not particularly strong in formatting in the first place. Or maybe you have all elements of a future document but would like for someone to give it the "face lift" it needs to become a beautiful, print-ready version of itself.
Regardless, TLC is now ready to take on projects one step before translation and work on formatting your original documents.
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TLC Tips: How to Effectively Write for Translation
Our main priority at TLC is keeping our clients and their international readers satisfied. Many of our clients work in an industry that translates most of its work into another language. We often have clients express to us that they wish they knew how to create a document for translation that will be perfectly understood in another language. It is not easy to translate some common phrases or nuances of a language. Therefore, we've generated a few tips on how to produce work that can be translated into the highest quality. Check out the important tips below on how to write for translation in a way that increases understanding, is consistent, and saves your company time and money.
1. Avoid using multiple synonyms for one word. For instance, using three different words such as "paper" or "file" when referring to "document" later in a translation reduces clarity. Write the same way every time to increase consistency of your translation. Sticking to one term to describe a concept can also decrease cost, as translation memories use previously written content.
2. Don't use jargon. Rarely does humor translate nicely into another language. Phrases like "costs an arm and a leg" or "bigger bang for your buck" are not universally understood and take awake from the overall clarity of the document.
3. Make sure international dates are unmistakable. In most countries outside the U.S., dates are written in a date-month-year format as opposed to month-date-year. Clarifying which number is the date or spelling out the month is always the safest choice.
4. Check the length. If your translation project is in Word or InDesign, leave space for expansion. Some languages are much longer than others, so planning ahead on the spacing of text box and graphics may benefit. Don't try to fit too much text on one page - it will help your document's translation process run more efficiently.
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Prioritizing Content for Translation
By the time companies plan a new product launch abroad, they typically have already gathered lots of content in their home market. Just as translating into multiple languages right away can be overwhelming, attempting to translate everything at once is a sure path to a costly failure. Below we have highlighted some of the most effective ways to prioritize content while keeping cost under control. Be sure to read the full press release here and feel free to contact our In-House staff for more guidance.
Sales & Marketing
Any content that supports sales of the actual product is typically critical for success. Think website content, any marketing collateral, and campaigns needed to promote the product in question. The consideration should be how to capture interest that results from distributing translated content. After someone reads information on a website in French, they will feel like they can send an email with an inquiry in French.
Legal Content
This is the fine print and details customers need to understand so that a sale can be completed in compliance with any legal regulations in the target market. Agreements, contracts, disclaimers, forms and any other legal notices will fall into this category. Is the product regulated, like medical devices or pharmaceutical products? A proficient translation vendor should be able to help navigate the target regulatory environment as well.
Product Literature
Technical documentation, user manuals, instructions for use, packaging inserts and packaging itself all fall under product literature that needs to be translated for customers once business is secured. If the product is software, consider translating (localizing) user interface as well.
How to Minimize Risk:
Sometimes business owners wonder if they need to translate at all. The rest of the world seems to speak English, after all. The answer is, unmistakably, that translation should take place whenever possible. Even if someone speaks perfect English, they are psychologically much more likely to be attracted to a product/service if it is presented to them in their mother tongue. Plus, taking the extra step toward a customer and meeting them in the middle represents a valuable competitive advantage.
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