Recently updated on January 12th, 2024 at 01:51 pm
More often than not, translations are needed within a short turnaround time and not enough lead time is reserved for the translators. Then, how to get fast Mandarin translations without compromising on quality? Many factors can affect how long it would take to complete a translation project, for instance, the length and complexity of the content, the availability of the translators and proofreaders, whether the project is completed by a freelance translator or a team of native Chinese translators, etc. Moreover, as the client, you can also play your part in meeting the deadlines. In this article, we’ll walk you through some best practices to get fast Mandarin translation services while upholding the utmost quality.
Table of Contents
- Why Can’t You Use Automated Translation Tools?
- 5 Proven Tips to Get Fast and Accurate Mandarin Translation Services
- Frequently Asked Questions
Why Can’t You Use Automated Translation Tools?
You may think machine translation can deliver faster at a much affordable rate, and there’s no doubt that Computed Assisted Translation (CAT) is one of the brightest inventions of modern time. They’re great saviors when it comes to word-for-word translation, however, they don’t cut it when it comes to professional communication or correspondence with customers from a different culture. Here’re a few reasons why businesses should hire human Mandarin translators instead of using automatic translation tools.
Word-For-Word Machine Translation Can Ruin Your Business Reputation
It’s risky to rely on machine translations because of the way they work. First, these machines analyze each term, phrase structure of the source language and break them into easily translatable components. Then recompose and translate the terms with a similar structure in the target language. The structure of the English language and the Chinese language is a world apart, which can result in a verbatim and literal translation that is extremely terrible to read. In addition, many words can have multiple meanings depending on the semantic context. Without the analysis of a professional human translator, the word-for-word machine translations riddled with grammatical errors, poor structure, etc. can ruin the reputation of your business.
Humans Are Culturally Sensitive
Venturing into the Chinese market without a thorough understanding of the culture and localizing your content is a terrible idea. Businesses have to go beyond merely translating the message, instead, cultural nuances should be taken into account. Machines can’t understand cultural taboos as human translators do and incorporate them to make the marketing message more culturally appropriate.
Humans Can Think Critically
When it comes to frequently used terms, terminologies, the tone of the messages, human translators tend to be more discrete, and they can think critically about what’s coming next and what they don’t understand. They might contact you for more information, and you would never get a completely wrong translation from a human translator.
Humans Can Specialize in Your Field
In the field of technical translation, hiring human translators with expertise in your field is essentially important. You can hire a subject-matter human translator fully trained in your field with a thorough understanding of terminologies in English and Chinese, but you can never expect this from machine translation.
Humans Can Be Cost-Effective in the Long Run
Compared with machine translation that has zero cost, getting your documents translated by human translators might seem like an expense at the beginning. However, it usually turns out to be much cheaper in the long term. There is nothing worse than retracting a marketing campaign with an incorrect branding message, losing a million-dollar client because of a poorly translated insulting email, spending time correcting these mistakes, etc. Having a qualified Mandarin translation services provider from the beginning could spare your businesses from these deadly mistakes so you can spend your valuable time on what you’re good at.
5 Proven Tips to Get Fast and Accurate Mandarin Translation Services
If your business needs fast Mandarin translation services without compromising on quality, it’s always recommended to go with professional native Chinese translators who are familiar with your industry. Here’re some best practices to get a faster turnaround.
Book Mandarin Translators in Advance
Your Chinese translation agency will appreciate it a lot if you inform them in advance about your translation project rather than springing it on them. They can plan everything according to your schedule, reserve the necessary resources to ensure everything is in place to deliver the translation within a short turnaround.
Ask your mandarin translation services provider about the availability of professional translators for your field of projects. Depending on the volume and complexity of the project and your budget, the translation agency may recommend mandarin translators you need to finish the projects before the deadline.
Use a Translation Memory to Increase Efficiency
A translation memory is a database that helps translators work smarter and more efficiently by recording previously translated words, phrases, etc. To put it in a simple way, with a translation memory once a terminology/phrase/sentence has been translated, it never has to be translated again. This doesn’t just simplify and speed up work for translators, it also improves the consistency of the content. In addition, some Chinese business translation services providers offer discounts if the project consists of many repetitive words and phrases, therefore, you can save a bit when you’re charged per word.
Provide Clear, Complete Instructions and Only Send the Final Version
The more information you provide to your mandarin translator from the beginning of the project, the fewer questions they’ll ask and the quicker the turnaround time. Here’s a list of information you should provide.
- The final version of documents to be translated. Take your time, make sure you’re satisfied with your documents before sending them to your translator.
- What’s the lead time?
- What are the formatting requirements?
- Provide a translation glossary if there’re fixed translations of names, terminologies.
- Is there any specific tone or style that needs to be used?
- Is there any other important information your translation partner should know?
Allow Enough Time for the Translation
A saying goes in China, “Slow works yield fine products”. High-quality translations can’t be done in a rush, so make sure sufficient time is reserved for the translation process. On average professional translators can translate about 2,000 – 2,500 words per day, but more time would be required depending on the availability of the translators, complexity of the text, formatting time, proofreading process, etc. Chinese technical translation requires much longer time than the translation of a personal email or letter.
Work with Professional Mandarin Translation Services Providers
If your projects require a quicker turnaround time, collaborating with seasonal Chinese translators with over 10 years of experience is important. Professionals who have enriching experience in the industry work smarter and faster since they don’t have to learn the concepts and tools, they already know what they’re doing, and they can deliver at a much faster speed. However, speed, quality is on par with price, expect to pay more but you’ll get what you pay for with professionals.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best Mandarin translator?
Chinese Copywriter is the best Mandarin translator with over 13 years of experience in Mandarin translation.
Are there any free Mandarin translation services available?
There are several free machine translation services available that can translate text from Mandarin to English, including Google Translate, Microsoft Translator, and Yandex Translate.
If you need accurate and reliable translations for important documents or projects, it is best to use a professional Mandarin translation services company or a human translator.
Is Google Translate accurate for Mandarin?
Google Translate can be a useful tool for getting a general idea of the meaning of a piece of text. However, it is not always accurate while translating Mandarin and should not be relied upon for important or sensitive translations.
How much does it cost to translate a document from Mandarin to English?
The cost of translating a document from Mandarin to English varies depending on several factors, including the length and complexity of the document, the subject matter, the format of the document, and the deadline for the translation. In general, professional translation services charge by the word or by page, with longer documents, and those with more technical or specialized language tend to be more expensive.
Where can I find accurate English-to-Mandarin translators at a reasonable cost?
There are plenty of online translation agencies that provide Mandarin translation services at a reasonable cost, and one of them is Chinese Copywriter.
Can a Mandarin translation service translate handwritten documents?
It depends on the specific Mandarin translation services you are using and the quality of the handwriting in the document.
Some Mandarin translation services may require that the handwriting be clear and legible in order to be able to accurately translate the document. In some cases, it may be necessary to transcribe the handwritten document into a typed format before it can be translated.
Digital Entrepreneur and Co-Founder of Chinese Copywriter
Having lived and worked in Europe for 6 years, Ting returned to her hometown Guangzhou with the mission to help international businesses succeed in the Chinese market. With 15 years of marketing / web design background, Ting has proven records of digital marketing successes in China. Ting has been featured on diverse mainstream medias in China, including Southern TV, Sina News, Toutiao News, GRT News, etc.