Language Companies Don’t Actually Do Translation
Let’s take another look at the Language Service Providers or LSPs for short. They come in various sizes – small Single Language Vendors (SLVs), middle-sized Regional Language Vendors (RLVs), large Multi-Language Vendors (MLVs), or anything in between. These companies usually offer a variety of language services from translation and editing to brand research and SEO. And in the eyes of most people there’s just one main service associated with these companies – translation. And it’s wrong.
A Need for Language Translation
It is true that when you need something translated, you can go to a LSP and you will indeed get exactly that – a translation. So it’s quite normal to conclude that LSPs offer translation, right? Well… not so much. Yes, you do get a translated version of the original text, and this is what language translation is. Also, you can probably get similar results for less money if you know a good translator. Why do so many people work with LSPs then? Why not just find a translator and pay directly to them, especially if it could save you money? Read on 🙂
Vendor Management
One of the reasons why LSPs exist is that they save you time. When you need something translated, you can surely spend the time to find a good translator, negotiate rates and assign the project. And then you can wait, hoping that your translation will be delivered on time and with adequate quality.
LSPs can save you time by constantly keeping their translator database full, fresh and in check. They take the complex task of Vendor Management from your hands and guarantee that you won’t need to spend any of your time looking for a suitable linguist. Furthermore, all language specialists are thoroughly tested before adding them to the database, and regularly evaluated afterwards to monitor and keep their quality to the highest level.
Project Management
The second service LSPs actually do themselves is Project Management. This process requires a vast knowledge of the language industry to accurately plan, assign and monitor the translation project, as well as to resolve any issues and prepare the project for timely delivery. A well trained and experienced project management team can make sure all aspects of the task will be completed on time and with the best resources possible. It can also help LSPs protect themselves and their clients from unexpected problems or unwanted situations by planning accordingly and always having adequate backup options.
Having an entire team of professionals taking care of your project means you don’t have to do it all by yourself. And once you realize the scale of that “all” then you can start to understand what it is that LSPs actually do. It’s not translation per se, but it’s all else that makes sure the language translation you need will be delivered to you when you need it and in the way you expect it.
Hopefully now you have a better picture of how we at TransGlobe, as most of the LSPs, work and what is the main thing we do for our Clients. We are problem solvers who use their expert field knowledge to help you remove all language barriers. If you’d like to learn more, give us a call or send us an email at hello@transglobeinternational.com!
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