In the fashion industry, styles may be international, but the reception that comes with each style can be different in each locale. While fashion brands seek global reach, localization remains a constant need for their success. Localizing in the fashion industry is not just marketing clothes; it is marketing ideas, lifestyles, emotions, and cultural representation from one region to another.

Localization goes beyond mere translation; it entails a holistic view of how the essence of a brand’s operation assimilates into the target market’s feel.

It is a process that may require the modification of sizes to meet the physical requirements of specific geographic locations, the changing of colors to capture the preferences of the target markets, or changing the wording used in communication and marketing materials to correspond with the cultural norms of specific regions.

The Importance of Fashion Industry Localization

• Increase in Sales: Localization in the fashion industry can provide more sales opportunities. When designs are made according to the trends in the target markets, brands will find it easy to appeal to those consumers. It may also lead to increased consumer demand, given that they cater to local tastes and cultures. For example, a fashion brand may present lightweight fabrics in bright colors for hot regions and low-intensity colors for cold zones. This flexibility proves very desirable in enabling fashion brands to gain market share by supplying exactly what consumers desire, thereby increasing sales.
• Customization of Customer Experience: As the world becomes a global village, localization in the fashion industry provides brands with a new way of creating unique customer experiences. This ranges from localized market recommendations for specific products or services to specific individuals with unique style preferences. For instance, fashion industries can develop and design new products for particular segments, reflecting the fashion trends of particular areas. This not only satisfies customers but also serves to create a strong and lasting attachment to a brand.
• Increase in Conversion Rate: Conversion rates can be boosted through localization. If a fashion brand produces with the target market in mind, paired with a localized marketing strategy, the brand will get more attention, which will most likely convert to sales.

Cultural Sensitivity in Fashion Design and Marketing

Fashion is inherently linked with culture; failure to respect cultural preferences may come off as inconsiderate. Cultural sensitivity is an important part of the localization process and should be considered in designing fashion products and marketing them.

Design: Not all fashion trends are ideal for every country or region. For instance, specific designs and materials used in the manufacture of garments for a specific region may not be appealing or desirable for another region.

Marketing: A campaign that contains the wrong graphics, symbols, or even wrong word choices may offend certain cultures. Thus, marketing activities should take into consideration cultural nuances in order to appeal to the audience while promoting a fashionable brand.

How to Localize a Fashion Brand for a Global Market

Step 1: Define its target customer base:

Before localizing in the fashion industry, one of the preliminary considerations is to identify the specific customer group and markets you plan to target. Know your target market from a demographic, psychographic, and behavioral perspective. Factors that need to be considered include age, gender, income, lifestyle, and fashion trends. Through a proper analysis of your target market, you can ensure that your brand and products communicate and relate well with such groups.

Step 2: Formulate and Draft Your Brand’s Mission Statement:

A well-written and professional mission statement is critical to your brand’s localization strategy when entering international markets. Your mission statement must echo your brand’s philosophy, mission, and vision. It should also infuse features of cultural relevance and flexibility. This shows that you are keen to appreciate the diverse cultures in different regions, thus making your brand the ideal fashion house for customers.

Step 3: Clearly State Your Style:

When you are localizing your brand, setting the style objective is a prerequisite to entering new markets. This entails researching and understanding the prevailing fashion trends, colors, fabric types, and designs in the target country. What do people like: fancy and bright colors or plain and timeless? Adopting a signature style is also how customers can spot and differentiate your brand from others.

Step 4: Buy Research and Analysis Tools:

Purchasing research and analysis tools would help in the retrieval of useful data about the consumers, their actions, and other factors such as trends and activities of the competitors in the targeted markets. With these tools, you can use data to make the right decisions regarding product offerings, pricing, and even marketing. Also, in order to track conversations and opinions about your brand, think about using social media monitoring. It can provide real-time feedback for your localization strategies so that you can adjust to the dynamics of the market.

Step 5: Create Market-Specific Products:

As a result of considerable analysis of the chosen market, you can design products tailored to a particular market. This may entail new designs, colors, or product attributes that the local consumers consider more suitable for their use. Collaborating with local designers or artisans is also helpful in strengthening and ‘branding’ the products, thus making them more attractive to the target group.

What Data Is Needed for Successful Fashion Industry Localization?

The use of data has been identified as an important factor in implementing a good localization strategy in the fashion industry. There are certain types of data that fashion industries have to collect and analyze in order to produce a localization strategy.

Here Are Some Critical Data Points:

• Market Research Data: It is important to know about the type of clients, their tastes, and trends for products and services in their market. Market research is essential for fashion industries to know what local customers consider important for fashion trends, fabrics, and designs.
• Consumer Behavior Data: Knowing how local customers view the fashion brand through the website, the rate of cart abandonment, and the products they prefer can be crucial in shaping the user experience for each of the regions in which the business operates.
• Sales Data: KPIs are performance indicators. Sales data analysis from different regions helps fashion industries determine which products are best-selling and which may require some changes for specific regions or demographics or be completely scrapped.
• Cultural Insights: Fashion industries require information on the culture and other social values of the target market. Working with a localization service provider such as GPI will help provide key insights that can be considered when introducing a fashion brand to a new market.

Localizing E-Commerce Platforms for Fashion

Since sales methods change rapidly, fashion industry localization is crucial. This entails developing e-commerce solutions that are compatible with a particular market in the following aspects: language, currency, payment options, and interface.

Key elements of e-commerce localization include:

• Language Localization: Translating most of the product description, online chat customer support options, and frequently asked questions into the local language.
• Currency and Payment Methods: By providing the option of payment in the local currency using regional credit cards or popular mobile payment method, the customer’s experience will be much more pleasant.
• Localized User Experience: The website interface should be designed with familiar elements and colors to suit the consumer’s preference while browsing and purchasing products on the internet. For instance, mobile shopping may be common in some areas, meaning that the fashion industry needs to design the site appropriately to match this aspect.
• Localized Shipping and Return Policies: Customizing customer service in terms of choice of the shipping carrier, delivery time, and return policies in accordance with the laws of the country also enhances consumer confidence and generates more sales.

Most Important Factors When Localizing Fashion Brands

Localizing a fashion brand is a delicate process that has multiple factors to consider. Here are the most important considerations for successfully localizing for the fashion industry.

• Cultural Sensitivity: It is important when marketing to other cultures that we are respectful. Pay attention to the demands and cultural nuances of the target market in order not to write or post something that may offend customers.
• Design Adaptation: Ensure that all your products conform to the regional fashion trends, favorite colors, and styles of dressing.
• Language and Communication: Marketing materials, appropriate product descriptions, and informative content in the local language must be well translated and localized. Employ native speakers and hire a professional translation service provider such as GPI to minimize the chances of falling into traps associated with the language.
• Distribution and Logistics: Adapt the supply chain to effectively cater to the local needs of consumers. Some of the possible factors to implement include shipping costs, delivery time, and inventory.
• Customer Support: Ensure customer care is available in the clients’ language and responsive to their time zone. Always responding to the customers’ issues and questions will help in building trust.

Fashion Brands with Successful Localization Strategies

1. Uniqlo

There is a good reason why Uniqlo is considered a fashionable clothing company renowned worldwide. Their localization strategy gave them those achievements. Uniqlo has built a sustainable and efficient business using the right localization strategy. It is their goal to provide a unique service to every customer in all markets worldwide.

Uniqlo’s strategy involves the forecast of market demands for particular products in every country. Using such data, they are in a position to change their prices to clear stocks and, most importantly, address the issues of raw material sourcing and production. This is how they can maintain the efficiency of the supply chain strategy for their organization.

Another important aspect incorporated in Uniqlo’s localization approach is personalization. They are individualistic in that they cut designs and colors to market requirements within a particular region. This approach saves the customers’ time and makes them feel valued, increasing their loyalty and brand recognition.

2. H&M

H&M is one of the world’s famous fashion brands that most clients appreciate and purchase from. Since its inception, the brand has been effective in having physical stores; however, with growing e-commerce expansion, H&M adjusted and began to engage in localization to benefit from the worldwide market. Hence, they aligned with the principles of personalization and localization, which are the driving forces of the fast-fashion industry. A major priority of H&M is to serve the customer’s needs.

Conclusion

The fashion industry is a culturally sensitive one, and it is necessary to understand the culture of the desired locale to understand its fashion sense. Using the principles of fashion industry localization, as shared in this article, it is possible to expand a fashion brand into new markets with a good consumer reception.

Just as every individual has their style, the secret of success is to build a unique brand that consumers would feel they are a part of in each state.

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In today’s business landscape, embracing sustainable sourcing is not simply good for the planet—it is also a powerful driver of growth. It’s within this framework that languages play a pivotal role, enabling global partnerships and mutual understanding.

By mastering local languages and cultural nuances, businesses can more effectively implement green practices across their supply chains, enhancing both their environmental and economic footprint.

This discussion highlights the essential role of language as both a connector and booster for incorporating sustainable practices globally, focusing on the significant impact on supply chain management.

Sustainable Sourcing

Sustainable sourcing at its core, embodies the procurement of goods and services in a manner that fulfills present requirements without jeopardizing the capacity of future generations. It encompasses acquiring products and resources with minimal adverse effects on the environment, society, and economy, considering ethical labor practices, environmental preservation, and resource efficiency across the supply chain.

The Critical Role of Languages and Localization in Sustainable Sourcing for Business Growth

For the successful incorporation of sustainable sourcing, more is required than just a willingness to change; it demands clear and effective communication across varied cultural and linguistic landscapes. Languages and localization are at the forefront of this scenario, bridging the divide between global sustainability objectives and local implementation.

Breaking Down Barriers

Effective communication is the backbone of any successful supply chain management strategy, especially when pivoting towards sustainability. Languages are crucial in breaking down barriers among diverse stakeholders, such as suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and consumers. They enable the explicit delineation of environmental policies, objectives, and practices, ensuring that each participant in the supply chain understands their duties and the significance of their contributions towards sustainability.

Ensuring Compliance and Consistency:

A major challenge in adopting environmentally responsible practices across global supply chains is ensuring compliance with varied environmental regulations and standards. Languages play an instrumental role in translating these complex regulations into comprehensible guidelines that all stakeholders, irrespective of their geographical location, can understand and adhere to. This not only facilitates legal compliance but also promotes uniformity in sustainable practices throughout the supply chain.

Cultural Sensitivity and Local Engagement:

Understanding and respecting cultural differences is crucial for the effective implementation of environmental initiatives. Proficiency in languages enables businesses to meaningfully engage with local communities and stakeholders, considering their specific environmental concerns, values, and practices. This culturally sensitive approach fosters local support for sustainability efforts, making them more effective and impactful.

Enhancing Education and Training

Transitioning to environmentally responsible supply chains often requires significant operational and mindset shifts. Languages are key in educating and training employees, suppliers, and partners about new sustainable practices and technologies. Through accessible and unambiguous language, companies can ensure that all participants are equipped with the knowledge and skills required to contribute towards environmental objectives.

Building Trust and Transparency

In the current marketplace, consumers are increasingly vigilant about the environmental footprint of the products they purchase. Languages enable companies to communicate their sustainability efforts transparently and effectively to a global audience, building trust and loyalty among consumers. This transparency is crucial for companies aiming to distinguish themselves based on their environmental stewardship.

Despite the integral role of languages in promoting environmentally responsible supply chains, businesses face several challenges. These include the costs and complexities of translating materials into multiple languages, the risk of cultural misinterpretations, and the necessity for continuous updates and training amid evolving environmental standards. Overcoming these challenges requires a commitment to quality translation services, cultural competence, and ongoing learning.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, languages go beyond mere tools for communication; they are essential in the quest for environmental responsibility in global supply chains. By facilitating clear, culturally sensitive communication, languages enable businesses to navigate the complexities of implementing sustainable practices across borders. As the global community continues to face environmental challenges, the role of languages in fostering a sustainable future remains indispensable. Through understanding and collaboration, we can aspire towards a more sustainable and responsible global supply chain.

References:

• Sustainable Sourcing – Definition, Examples, Benefits & Best Practices
• Ethical And Sustainable Sourcing – Everything You Should Know

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As a machinery or medical device manufacturer, if you plan on selling in the European Union (EU), you need to plan to translate your manuals, instructions for use (IFU), safety labels and warnings, and more into the primary languages of your target market. This may seem daunting and expensive, but there are ways to streamline the translation process and manage costs.

Before we discuss that, let’s review the requirements you need to be aware of if you plan to sell your machinery or medical devices in the EU market.

Machinery Translation Requirements

The specific translation requirements may vary depending on the type of machinery and applicable regulations, but here are some general guidelines:

1. Technical Documentation: as the manufacturer, the EU Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) states that you must provide technical documentation, instruction manuals, or user guides, for your machinery. This documentation should be in the official language (s) of the EU member state(s) where the machinery is placed on the market. The information in the manuals should be clear and easily understandable by the end-users.
2. Safety Labels and Warnings: safety labels and warnings on the machinery will need to be translated. Users must be able to understand the safety instructions and warnings to operate the machinery safely.
3. Declarations of Conformity: the manufacturer or their authorized representative must issue a Declaration of Conformity stating that the machinery meets the essential health and safety requirements of the relevant EU directives. These may also require translation.
4. Certificates and Test Reports: if the machinery requires third-party conformity assessment, such as CE marking, the relevant certificates and test reports may need to be translated. This ensures that the authorities and customers can understand the compliance information.
5. Local Regulations: in addition to EU directives, individual EU member states may have their own specific regulations or requirements. It’s important to consult the regulations of each target market to determine any additional translation requirements.

It is advisable to consult with legal or specialized consultants familiar with the machinery industry and EU regulations to ensure compliance with all translation requirements and other obligations for selling machinery in the EU.

Medical Devices Translation Requirements

Specific translation requirements may vary depending on the classification of the medical device and the applicable regulations, such as the Medical Devices Regulation (MDR) or the In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices Regulation (IVDR).

It is recommended you consult with regulatory experts with experience in the medical device industry to help ensure compliance with all translation requirements for selling medical devices in the EU.

Translation requirements play a crucial role in ensuring that the devices meet the necessary standards and can be used safely and effectively by healthcare professionals and patients.

Here are the key translation requirements for medical devices in the EU:

1. Instructions for Use (IFU): manufacturers must provide IFUs for their medical devices. These instructions should be translated into the official language(s) of the EU member state(s) where the device will be marketed. The IFU should contain clear and comprehensive information on the device’s purpose, instructions for handling, storage, preparation, and usage, as well as precautions and warnings.
2. Labeling: medical device labeling, including product labels, packaging, and any accompanying materials, must also be translated. Labeling should include essential information such as the device name, intended use, warnings, precautions, contraindications, and any special instructions or symbols.
3. Summary of Safety and Clinical Performance (SSCP): for certain classes of medical devices, manufacturers are required to prepare a Summary of Safety and Clinical Performance. If this document is required, it must be provided in the official language(s) of the EU member state(s) where the device is placed on the market.
4. Technical Documentation: comprehensive technical documentation is essential for demonstrating compliance with EU regulations. While there is no explicit requirement to translate technical documentation in its entirety, manufacturers should be prepared to provide translation of critical sections upon request by authorities or notified bodies. This may include sections related to device specifications, design, manufacturing processes, risk management, and clinical evaluation.
5. Post-Market Surveillance Reports: manufacturers must establish post-market surveillance procedures and provide regular reports to competent authorities. If requested, these reports may need to be translated into the official language(s) of the relevant EU member state(s).
6. National Language Requirements: some EU member states may have additional language requirements specific to medical devices. Manufacturers should verify if there are any additional translation obligations in the countries where they plan to market their devices.

There are 24 official languages of the European Union (EU) and some states have more than one official language. Here are a few examples of EU member states that may have additional language requirements:

• Belgium: has three official languages: Dutch (Flemish), French, and German. Depending on the region of Belgium where the medical device is marketed, translations may be required in one or more of these languages.
• Finland: Finnish and Swedish are the official languages of Finland. Finnish and Swedish. Medical device documentation may need to be translated into both languages for this market.
• Ireland: Irish Gaelic and English are the official languages of Ireland. While English is predominantly used in most contexts, including medical device documentation, there may be some requirements to include translations in Irish, especially in certain regions or for specific purposes.
• Luxembourg: with three official languages: Luxembourgish, French, and German, depending on the target market and region within Luxembourg, medical device documentation may need to be translated into one or more of these languages.
• Spain: While Spanish is the official language of Spain, several autonomous communities within Spain have their own co-official languages. For example, regions such as Catalonia (Catalan), Basque Country (Basque), and Galicia (Galician) have specific language requirements. Manufacturers may need to provide translations in these co-official languages alongside Spanish.

These are just a few examples of where language requirements may vary in different EU member states and their regions.

It is crucial for medical device manufacturers to thoroughly research and consult with local regulatory authorities or industry experts to determine the specific language requirements for each target market within the EU.

Considerations for Efficient Translation and Layout Adaptation

While these requirements may seem overwhelming, translating the needed materials does not to be. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Other languages can be longer or shorter than English, some expanding up to 25%. This will impact the layout of your materials. If the English layout is tight with very little whitespace, you should consider adjusting the layout to have room for the longer copy or plan to have the content flow to the following pages. Special consideration may be needed for safety labels, such as reducing the font size or utilizing universal symbols in the place of words. Be sure to check the appropriate regulations for what is acceptable.
2. Try not to include text in images. This content will need to be exported and then a new version will need to be created with the translated copy. This adds time and cost to the process. Additionally, text expansion will need to be taken into consideration.

Managing Costs: Effective Strategies for Translation Control

Partnering with a qualified Translation Service Provider (TSP) who specializes in medical device or machinery translations is highly recommended.

1. They have vetted professional translators that specialize in this type of translation and industry.
2. They have tools such as Translation Memory (TM) that can help reduce your translation costs. A TM is a database that stores translations (one language pair). The TM can analyze a file and determine if there are words that are repetitions or partial matches within a file. The value of this categorization is that they are priced at a lower rate than a word that is considered new. This will help drive down the effective per-word rate.

Another advantage, your TSP will maintain your translation memory and update it with each new project. If you have manuals that are similar or need to update a manual that was already translated, the new content is leveraged against the TM, and the cost savings can increase.

3. Glossary development: developing a glossary at the start of the project will save time and improve consistency. Once a glossary of key terms is developed from the material, the translation team will translate the glossary and the client can review the terms. This allows the client to update terms that their company uses, which may differ from the industry standard for that market.
4. They should have quality control processes in place to ensure accurate, high-quality translations. Companies like Globalization Partners International are ISO 17100:2015, which means they follow established ISO standards that include quality checks throughout the translation process.

While the EU Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) mandates the translation of machinery and medical device documentation, you should also consider translating your website (don’t forget targeted SEO) and marketing materials.

Translating this content into the languages of your target market can increase your market share and your ROI. Partner with a qualified translation services provider with experience in your industry as they will have professional, qualified translators that will ensure your material is translated accurately. In addition to translation, they should be able to provide desktop publishing, online QA, and SEO services.

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One of the biggest elements that support the global economy’s development is commonly measured by the growth of the manufacturing industry. The process of producing finished goods from raw materials is the key factor of every manufacturing company.

The manufacturing industry falls under the secondary sector and plays a very important role in the economic development of any country. Apart from all the other benefits of providing employment in remote villages, reducing the significant reliance on people’s agricultural income, and so on – this sector is considered to be the backbone of economic and social development.

The Rise of Manufacturing Communication in the Digital Age

Companies from all sectors have always found it difficult to reach their right audience/customers for growth purposes. While sectors like hospitality, medicine, e-commerce, and education have already digitalized themselves and consider communication to be their key factor for new customer acquisition; manufacturing companies have still relied on their old methods of marketing and advertising which solely depend on references within the industry.

As the world is moving towards consuming the majority of its information through websites, emails, and social media platforms – manufacturing companies have started to realize that digital communication is the next step they need to explore to reach the global marketplace.

Many companies are not only updating their website with the latest type of logos and colors, but they are also paying attention to the content; putting efforts to cater to each local region within the same country. As the competition in this fierce industry is growing, many companies have opted for translation/localization to increase their customer engagement and SEO rankings to appear at the top of various search results.

Digital marketing teams within these companies have also received higher budgets to incorporate translations as one of their tools to increase traffic through not only marketing collaterals, social media posts, brochures, etc, but also through their translated websites.

To achieve a successful website translation project, it is essential to adhere to the recommended best practices outlined in the following 16 steps, which involve numerous processes, tools, and procedures:

1. Review & Analysis of Source Website Assets
2. Best Practice Multilingual Workflow Based on CMS (content management system)
3. Project Kick-Off
4. Subject Matter Training and Research
5. Cultural Correctness Assessment
6. Glossary & Style Guide Development
7. SEO – Keyword Research & Localization
8. Translation, Editing, and Proofreading (Transcreation-Copywriting)
9. Localization of all Graphics
10. Localization of Documents
11. Localization of Multimedia
12. Basic Online QA & Testing
13. SEO and Internet Marketing
14. Launch Language Versions
15. Final Delivery
16. Final Edits and Archiving of Files

It is always recommended that any company choose the localization process over translations for their website translation needs. Localization (L10N) involves translating and localizing the front end of your website into different languages ensuring all content (text and graphics) is translated in an accurate and culturally correct manner.

In addition to the content of a website, when deciding to present other languages, the structure of the site must be reviewed. The structure of the site should be language-independent. Since dates, addresses, and phone numbers can vary in format based on the country, it is important to make sure that site functionality is not dependent on how these are entered.

Finding the Right Translation Partner:

According to a recent source, there are approximately 1.8 million translators across the globe. Hence, finding the right one that meets your expectations and satisfies your needs through the best quality and cost could be challenging. While some corporations have an in-house team of translators, for many companies, outsourcing translations to an agency makes sense. There are many nuances to language and a professional language services provider (LSP) has the expertise to help you navigate the pitfalls.

Here are some key elements that can help you find the right partner for translations:

• A professional translation agency must be ISO certified.
• Should have expertise within your field/subject matter and should provide references/case studies when requested.
• Should follow the best practices of localization by using tools and processes like Translation Memory (TM), Glossary Creation, Online QA, etc.
• Employ professional, native, and subject matter experts for translation. Remember, anyone who speaks a particular language may not be an expert in translations
• Must be familiar with key terminologies within your industry and be willing to get on calls with your stakeholders to discuss the style, tone of voice, and preferences of the translations.
• They involve you in the translation process. This gives an opportunity for those companies with bilingual staff to provide feedback on specific terminology being used within the organization.

While these elements may seem a lot to verify, their benefits will serve you in the long run by helping you save costs on repeated content, shorten turnaround times, and provide optimum quality of translations, and SEO rankings.

Conclusion:

With the rapid growth of the manufacturing industry around the globe, it is crucial for every company to be on top of its game when it comes to marketing and advertising. Thus, through translations, you will always have a competitive advantage compared to other companies that would still be using only one universal language to reach out to the global audience. As marketing experts say, customers always buy products where they feel more comfortable and welcomed, so, what other way would be as beneficial as presenting your services in their local language?

References:
Importance of Manufacturing Industries – GeeksforGeeks

The post The Importance of Localization/Translation in the Manufacturing Industry appeared first on Globalization Partners International.

Manufacturing is as global a business as there is with onshoring, offshoring, nearshoring, etc. to produce the world’s products. As such, language is a key part of running the business for employee, customer, and other business needs for which manufacturing translation may be required.

With this blog, I wish to review 5 key best practices to consider for the translation of content that will help for a successful and more cost-efficient translation process.

1. Language/Locale

To provide the most accurate translation, the locale of the people who will use the translation should be considered. Perhaps the need is for translation of training content for a factory in Mexico. Then the translation should be Spanish for Mexico. Alternatively, a translation could be for customers in the United States that speak Portuguese. In this case, you would want to consider should it be Portuguese for Portugal or Brazil. While the people for who the translation is for are based in the USA, it would be best to know what “locale” of Portuguese is required as there is a difference that the reader will see and for some terms may have difficulty understanding. Additionally, the translated material may not be well-received by the intended audience which may have an impact on the success of the product or the purpose of the material.

2. Glossary

A key foundation step for a successful ongoing translation process for any company should be to develop a glossary, a listing of the key terms and phrases that a company uses daily. Some companies may have developed a glossary for their source language, say English, but many companies have not done so, let alone for additional languages. Since there are various ways to refer to an item, it is important to know how the specific organization refers to that item. Having a glossary developed in the target language(s) and approved by a client reviewer at the start of the translation process will enable the translator to use the phrasing that your business is using across the various channels of communication. Without a glossary, a translator will be able to provide an accurate translation for your business, but with the glossary, they can provide translations that are consistent with the key terms of your organization.

For example, GE uses a phrase called “GE Speak” for which they can consistently use terminology across the enterprise.
With a glossary in place for the source and target languages, the review process for client reviewers (where a bilingual member of the organization reviews the translation) will be performed much quicker, as they will see the key terminology translated as per their agreed upon preferences. If it can speed up their review process, they are more likely to agree to review translated content in the future.

3. Translation, Edit and Proofreading (TEP)

A professional translation should include translation, editing, and proofreading (TEP). Three phases. Over the years, I have heard of a business using a staff member or a family member to perform translation because they know the language. They may even know the subject matter well. But they may not be a writer and/or linguist.

When a company creates source English content, they will have a person write it and it will go through multiple other staff members to review before it is to be published. But in cases where translation is performed with a staff member, it may not be reviewed by other speakers of the language.

An ISO 17100 Certified vendor will perform the translation in a TEP (translation, editing, proofreading) workflow, with a translation team that is specialized in the subject matter. In a TEP process, the translator will translate the content for the target audience. This is not simply a conversion of one language to another, but a rewriting of the content into the target language so that it sounds as if it was originally written in that language. A key factor in success is that the translator is a subject-matter expert in that industry, thereby knowing the terminology of the industry, and the type of material being translated (marketing vs technical specifications).

The next phase is editing. This is where another translator will review the translation against the original language and will be checking for accuracy, completeness, adherence to the glossary and industry terms, grammar, and punctuation. The final phase, to be completed by another translator is proofreading, a final review of the translation to confirm it is error-free. The client speaker of the language would then be an excellent person to include in the final client review process.

4. Images and Screen Captures

When creating content it may be preferred and easy to include text within images. Where control panels or software/app images are used, many times these graphics include text. But when having to support the same content in many languages handling images and screen captures the same way can inflate formatting costs significantly.

For illustrative images, it is best to use numbers as labels in the image, with a corresponding table that contains the corresponding text for the image. For translation, the image can stay as it is in the source and only the table would need to be updated with the appropriate translation.

It is also a best practice when knowing that the content will need to be translated into multiple languages, to limit the number of screenshots to be used. Having to capture matching screenshots for multiple languages can be time-consuming and therefore add quite a bit to formatting cost per language.

5. Client review

While you may have translated your content for a specific language and locale, developed and approved a glossary, and worked with a professional ISO 17100 certified translation agency, the delivered translation should still be reviewed by an appropriate client-side speaker of the language. Usually, this will be a member of your organization who can provide valuable insight into how your organization communicates internally and with your clients through their specific comments on the translation. This is great feedback for your translation agency to receive. The vendor will review the comments, make sure they are error-free and in line with the original content, and update the deliverable as required.

This is a phase in which the vendor is learning more about the client’s preferences. The translation memory will be updated with the revisions and applied during future translation projects.

While much goes into the overall manufacturing translation workflow, the basic items above will help improve the quality of translations and reduce the translation costs that a manufacturer may have for technical manuals, training courses, website translation, legal agreements, marketing collateral, software, and apps that may be required.

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