Translation:

When companies grow – regionally or internationally, documents need to be translated.  The translation can go through translation house, part timers, colleagues or even through media owners.  But many times, we can spot "errors" or are unhappy with the translated copy even it is done "professionally". This is especially so when the original materials are slightly technical. Sometime the error is not obvious, as the translated text sounds logical and all information that is supposed to be translated is, in fact translated. But do you know they may fail to "localized" it? – adding the local flavour or touch - or if it is an ad copy, the original design impact is lost?

It was extremely wonderful that I was able to understand 2 languages, English and Mandarin, which therefore allows me to verify what was translated. For example the same message in Chinese is phrased differently in China, Taiwan and Singapore. Knowing a language is not good enough, you need to understand the culture as well, thereby giving the text the local flavour, otherwise the reader will find it awkward. The sentence structure is correct in one country may not sound right in another.

Some common problems that you may encounter :

1. lack of local phrases
2. poor sentence construction
3. error in translation in technical terms
4. no punch or impact on copy.

Simple guide to minimize the above problems :

1. If the subject is technical look for a technical translator
2. After translation, send it to some local guys that can vet for you.
3. If you have enough money, get a local copy writer to add some punch or improve on the sentences.

The above is recommended for 1 or 2 page translation. What happen if you have 50 (A4) pages?  The process will be slightly more complex or complicated and will not be discussed in this paper.

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