Check list for translation work
Before submitting your text for translation, it may be advisable to consider the following points, preferably in consultation with the translator:
- Time: Have you set aside sufficient time in your project planning and booked the translation in good time – this will ensure the best output
- Target audience: Have you considered your target audience and their background
- Scope: Consider whether you need to have every single word translated. Perhaps an abstract or a translation of parts of the text will suffice – savings could be made
- Format: If the text can be provided in Word, you will get a more accurate word count, and the translation may be carried out with the aid of translation software (call for details). That could result in savings
- Certified translations: If a text needs to be certified, it is worth finding out if the recipient requires originals or whether copies will suffice
- Contact: Are you able to provide a contact with specialist knowledge? Questions from the translator often improve the quality of the translation
- Proofreading: If your text is posted on the Internet or printed, it might pay to have an extra round of proofreading after setting in the new medium. It would be a waste of resources to have a perfect draft and a final version containing printers' errors
