Have you ever been in touch with a translator to hire a service? When choosing a translator to work on your documents, precision and attention should always be present. As the client, you should analyze them thoroughly, either their personal or company profiles, until you finally decide who is going to work with you. If you don’t know the differences between them, I invite you to read about Translation agencies, freelancers and more: What’s the difference? so that you be informed and can make the best decision.

The translation market offers many options for companies or clients that are looking for internationalizing their product and/or service by having it translated into different languages and having a wider scope. In this field, there are from freelance translators, known as “freelancers”, to translation agencies that might help you make it possible.

Most of the companies or clients choose the person with which they want to work based on what they are offered, due date, quality control procedures, confidentiality standards, and most importantly… Experience! The real value of any service is better demonstrated with experience. As the client, you will prefer to work with someone with experience that can prove his/her knowledge. However, giving an opportunity to an early-professional translator or recently created company should be kept as an option too. If you are interested in this topic, I invite you to learn why the importance of translation quality is a key element for the development of your company.

But, assigning your documents, doesn’t mean abandoning them and just waiting for the translation. Communication is the key when working with a translator or agency. There might be questions that only you can answer being a professional of the field or area to which the documents belong.

In this article, I will share with you some reasons why client-translator communication is the key to a high-quality translation.

Better results or quality

When the project or document is accepted, the translator or translation agency shares with you an online worksheet to keep communication… but without spamming your inbox. If there is no worksheet, the translator or agency will keep in touch through e-mail to clarify any doubts. Doubts are usually related to terminology based on the area of interest of the project or document that needs to be translated.

Sometimes, the translator needs answers to his/her doubts to make decisions and translate the document correctly. Keeping communication with translators allows them to feel like part of the working team, which will lead them to feel the text as their own.

Building a stronger professional relationship

Communication always opens the door up to business. Or, as people say, “Communication is the key”. Translators are not always able to translate any document if they don’t know the area of interest, so, as the client, you should offer them the tools within reach such as glossaries or the original document. The more information there is, the faster the job will be completed.

Your translator will be immensely thankful and, maybe, that is going to be the start of a long and harmonious professional relationship that lead to future negotiations.

Higher text consistency

When starting a professional relationship with a translator or translation agency, it is recommended that you provide a basic glossary if you’re working with a technical text for the translator to keep up with specialized terminology.

A translator committed to the translation quality will consider the process as something much more complex than the area of interest, the due date, or the number of words… A professional translator will ask any question about the text to achieve a quality translation. As the client, don’t hesitate to share your knowledge related to your company or organization with the translator or agency.

Faster delivery time

Good client-translator communication optimizes the time it takes to translate, helping improving the translation quality of the project or document. If the translator keeps direct communication with the client or agent of the company, the delivery time will be shorter because doubts are going to be clarified sooner, allowing the translator to work faster.

Do not forget that the key element for a great business is communication!