How to Prepare Your Document Prior to Translation

March 28, 2022

Translation services grant people and businesses around the world the ability to communicate important information without the issue of language barriers.

However, successful translations aren’t something that just happens when a customer sends a business document for translation without context. Yes, an experienced translator can perform an accurate translation with minimal information, but, in order to ensure your translation is pitched correctly, there are several preparatory steps we recommend sending in with your documents.

Here’s a closer look at the key reasons why we suggest prepare your document for translation and 5 easy ways you can guarantee your translation is useful for its recipient.

Why Should You Prepare Your Document for Translation?

A certified translation is the result of a thorough process that starts with the quality of the original documents sent to a translating company. If a document is delivered without any direction aside from the language it needs to be translated into there is always the risk of terms or phrases getting lost in translation, resulting in a document that doesn’t meet a client’s expectations.

A document that doesn’t accurately reflect a client’s message could lead to rejected immigration status, ruined business deals, and cultural miscommunications.

5 Ways to Ensure a Smooth Document Translation

While preparation may add a bit more time in the process on a client’s end, it can guarantee a successful document translation that hits all essential tones, cultural, and grammatical notes.

Here are 5 ways to improve your document translation experience with a translation agency.

Review for Linguistic Issues

Not every culture has the same sayings, and providing direct translations of local idioms could lead to confusion that ruins your translation efforts.

Before you submit your document for translation, review it and check for any idioms or cultural sayings that could get lost in translation. If you feel like something in your document could be culturally misconstrued, taking a direct approach to your meaning could be best for your translation results.

Check Your Spelling and Grammar

Many translation agencies promote a swift turnaround for their work. At Certified Translation Dallas, we can actually provide clients with translations in 24 hours or less in some situations.

Speed combined with translation experience makes our process possible. However, if your document is riddled with grammatical and spelling errors, not only can they ruin the translation process, but they also add extra work on a translator’s plate that extends the time it takes for a certified translation.

Provide a List of Technical Terms

If you are translating a healthcare document or professional white paper, technical industry terms can easily become problematic and result in inconsistencies throughout your documents. Providing your translation team with an added glossary of technical terms you need to be used throughout the document can prevent any mishaps and retain the original intent of your document.

Define the Scope of Your Translation

At Certified Translation Dallas, we give our clients the opportunity to add any additional information about their documents that further clarify the scope of a translation.

Some ways a client could further help a translator understand the meaning behind a document are:

Defining the purpose of the translation. Is it something informative? Are you trying to sell an idea to another business? Etc.
How the document will be used once translated. Will the document be mass distributed or remain in-house for localized use?

Receive Professional, Notarized Translations Today, With Certified Translation in Dallas

If you are a business owner that needs to translate important documents like employee manuals or presentation notes, the experienced translators of Certified Translation Dallas can help!

Our reliable translation process guarantees acceptance from any organization, or we’ll give you your money back. We operate 100 percent online and can provide nationwide translation services for our clients.