In the age of artificial intelligence and machine translation tools, it is worth pausing to consider the dimensions that make up text quality. The basis for high-quality professional written communication is of course the competence of the translators in the source and target languages, but a high-quality result requires more than that. Read below to find out what other aspects are involved in creating a quality text and how they are taken into account in the provision of language services.
Sales text, agreement, user manual – what counts is the purpose of the text
Each business communications text serves a specific business purpose and is part of the wider communications landscape of the company – this is the backdrop against which all texts should be written, translated or edited. If not, there is a risk that texts will be treated as individual isolated projects, which is not optimal for the coherence of the client’s communication.
Each text also is a manifestation of a specific text genre and has different objectives. Agreements, instructions, training materials, brochures, sales presentations, newsletters, website product descriptions and articles – all of these have somewhat different textual features that the translator/writer/editor must take into account. In some genres, the phraseology is more established with little leeway, while others are highly repetitive due to the need for clarity.
In further genres on the other hand, the reading experience, the aesthetics of language and even the playfulness of words are of special importance. In addition, cultures differ in the way they approach different types of text: for example, marketing texts in Finland are often more laconic than in the United States, which requires the translator to be able to “neutralise” descriptions that a Finnish reader would find overwhelmingly positive. TellWell Translations’ team understands the functionality of texts as part of the client’s business. We also know the differences between different text genres, and we select the right people from the team for each project.
Quality assurance + service guarantee = peace of mind
There are many macro-level quality aspects involved in writing texts. The focus on the client’s business purpose and mastering the genres described above are two of the most important of ones. There are also a number of micro-level linguistic quality parameters that are systematically and comprehensively taken into account by professional revisers and editors.
Some basic linguistic quality issues can be checked automatically using the functions of the translation memory software – under the supervision of a linguist, of course. This category includes such things as spelling and numbers and consistency between the translations of identical source sentences. Some of these checks are quite mechanical in nature, detecting and eliminating errors – albeit always actively assessed against the immediate and overall context by the linguist. However, when it comes to boring checks” it is the work ethic that separates the wheat from the chaff, i.e. professionals from amateurs. A professional carries out the needed checks consistently and comprehensively, no matter what their vibe or level of motivation is, and never claims to have checked” a text with a cursory glance or random check.
When we move on to consider the quality of the reading experience in terms of fluency, idiomaticity and effectiveness, i.e. to assess does the text “sound good” or does it “work”, we are faced with more complex questions than mechanical checks. The best quality is usually ensured by a competent team of language specialists and their linguistic-cultural-commercial communication competence. A deep and wide-ranging understanding of texts, language and their use enables a professional and comprehensive assessment of the quality of a text, whereas a layperson may automatically identify the “right” solution as the one that first comes to mind or that they happen to find in a dictionary in a quick search.
A big part of the quality is, of course, the precise use of specialist terminology. As this topic is often of particular interest to companies in the technology and engineering sectors, this dimension of quality has been dealt with separately in a previous article in the Subcontracting Trade Fair series.
In TellWell Translations’ translation projects, quality is based on a quality review process where the text is reviewed by at least two pairs of eyes, taking into account micro- and macro-level quality issues. At least one of these specialists is a native speaker of the target language. In addition, the client receives a quality guarantee for the translation service: requests for corrections sent within ten days of delivery are included in the price of the service. This way, when considering a purchase, clients can already be sure that we will see things through to the end.
At the heart of quality are skilled translators, editors and writers
Whether a translation agency is big or small, the key to success is having linguists who communicate transparently and follow through the projects, along with their competence and work ethic. In addition to principles, another important human factor behind translation quality is empathy, putting oneself in the reader’s shoes. For example, how the reader experiences the text from his or her own culture and how the reader’s presumed knowledge of the subject guides how the topic is best verbalised.
As TellWell Translations is a small and entrepreneur-driven translation agency, we always take a genuine and personal interest in quality. This is why the translators, editors and content producers in the team are chosen by the entrepreneur herself. We don’t sell services vaguely or blindly, but when we receive a request for a quote, we always make sure we have the right people on our team for the job.
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Hope you enjoyed the Subcontracting Trade Fair! No worries if you didn’t have the chance to meet Paula from TellWell Translations at Lempäälän Kehitys Oy’s / Business Lempäälä’s stand on Tuesday: you can get to know us by browsing our services, by reading about our mission and values, and enjoying our series of articles published during the Subcontracting Trade Fair week. If you’d like to talk about your potential language service needs with us, feel free to contact us at paula.erkintalo@tellwell.fi or +358458551734!
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Click the links to read the articles published earlier this week:
Subcontracting Trade Fair in Tampere | Technical Marketing Texts Require Creativity & a Native Eye
