Why should you use a professional translator?
What is the point of using a professional translator when there are so many automatic programs and online translation tools offering translations into a whole host of languages for free?
If you need your documents translated into one or more languages, then it all depends on how important and valuable those documents are. Just imagine that you have received an email from a Chinese customer who cannot speak anything other than his native language. If you do not speak Chinese, you will want to know what he is saying, so you will obviously be tempted to use a free online service. You will end up with a text translated into your language, complete with spelling mistakes and poor grammar. On the whole, it will not make much sense, but a few keywords here and there will give you the gist of what your customer is saying. But just imagine that your customer has sent you a contract binding both your companies for five years. In that case, it would be in your best interest to use a professional translation agency such as MYLANDRIS.
Let me tell you an anecdote. One day, we had a meeting with a client, a small software start-up. They needed to translate their software’s interface, along with the user guide and online help system. It was a standard language combination (French into English). During the meeting, we heard the managing director say: “Anyway, it’s easy to translate. All you need to do is take a dictionary and replace each word with another.” Then the developer chipped in: “I’ve already started the translation. I would’ve finished it, but I didn’t have enough time.” That says it all! If customers place so little value in their own product, then they are obviously not going to give much importance to the translation.
Professional translation is a profession in its own right. It takes more than sitting at a kitchen table armed with a dictionary. Becoming a professional translator takes years of dedicated study. Translators have linguistic expertise in one or more languages and possess excellent textual analysis and writing skills. They are professionally committed to only translating into their mother tongue, the language that they master better than any other.
When it comes to technical translation, professional translators also have a strong technical background and are familiar with the terminology used in all their languages. They use the right terms specific to the field in question. For example, when dealing with an IT document, they will not translate “serveur” as “barman”, but “server”. They will not translate “numéro de facture” by “number invoice”, which we have come across before, but by “invoice number”, which makes a lot more sense!
Professional translators use the specific tools of the trade and keep abreast of the latest developments in their technical fields. They know how to produce a text in their native language so that people without any knowledge of the source text can use the product or software, understand the information provided by the author or identify with a culture that is different to their own.
Professional translators convey the ideas and concepts expressed in the original text. They cannot take the liberty of wording their translations in such a way as to introduce their opinions or hint at their own ideas. In addition, they cannot remove sections from the text simply because they are unhappy with the content or believe that they are pointless.
Do you value your products and services? Are you looking to win new business in the international market? Do you want every assurance that your messages will be faithfully reproduced and understood in another language? Then call on the professional translators at MYLANDRIS without further ado!