Quality is an Experience, Not a Product: the Result of Intentional Decisions

Experience is everything. Whether trying a new restaurant or vetting a new vendor, first impressions and each touchpoint after will shape your future decisions. On both sides of the scale, experiences like unresponsiveness – or, on the other side, excellent communication – can determine the ultimate outcome of your project. 

Working with a language solutions partner is no different. 

While quality is the desired outcome, it isn’t necessarily synonymous with the final deliverables. Quality is an experience – not a product. A quality experience results from intentional decisions made by both you and your translation or transcription partner. 

On your end, a quality experience comes from selecting a discerning partner from the start; it’s vetting a vendor who is an expert in both your industry and theirs. For example, someone with a nuanced understanding of the desired language, culture, AND experience in the market research industry can produce a much different result than a standard translation agency or machine translation. It’s also finding someone who gets you, gets what you’re trying to do and does everything possible to support your needs and make the process as seamless as possible.

On the vendor side, it’s providing an experience that helps their client achieve their desired outcome on time and within budget. An expert team should be intentional about the scope of the work, provide flexibility in execution, compliance with needed security, and still deliver accurate work – all while focusing on clear communication, trust, and partnerships.

To guarantee partnership success and a high-quality experience, evaluating a language service provider should include conversations on these important topics: 

Scope 

Global research projects require the right language professionals, along with the scope of work, to execute the project efficiently. Both breadth (multiple markets and languages) and depth (translation, transcription, and transcreation services) are optimal for moving projects successfully across the finish line. When a language solutions organization can offer both, they have a competitive advantage to complete the entire project successfully. When fast-paced timelines are in play, a company with a global presence can create customized solutions to meet specific needs and expedite delivery over multiple time zones. 

As your business expands into new markets, it’s important to have a provider who can apply expert knowledge to each unique project. When vetting potential partners, look for businesses with native speakers in various global languages. Published case studies, client testimonials, and listed industries served can provide insight into a partner’s expertise. 

Flexibility

Workloads ebb and flow. Translation partners need to be ready, willing, and able to embrace high-volume work as well as smaller, ad-hoc project requests. Working with a vendor that understands your needs and adapts workflows to help you drive and scale your business can provide a competitive advantage. Having trusted partners who provide valuable services as needed allows your capacity to expand and contract without adding overhead expenses. Also, for times when quick turnarounds are necessary, having an established partnership can prove invaluable. 

Security 

Rigorous data security measures, nondisclosure agreements with all team members, secure file sharing, and data transmission methods are foundational for confidentiality in safe data handling. Critical data and client trust can be compromised when data security is not prioritized. Vendor partnerships must sometimes integrate and automate within a system. Select a partner that ensures confidentiality and security of your data when connecting with your internal system security at all stages of the multilingual translation service process. 

Accuracy

Accuracy is a start, but there’s more to consider. While a translation might be technically accurate, nuance, cultural insight, and subject matter expertise are essential to delivering on the promise of quality work. Experienced translators know how to collaborate and use proper in-country resources and cultural knowledge to deliver the right blend of accuracy and matching of intent and tone. 

Partnership

Tired of vendor hopping? Look for an experienced language solution provider that takes a genuine partnership approach to deliver top-notch services. Under this style of collaboration, a language partner will feel more like an extension of your team and less like an outsourced vendor. 

At Multilingual Connections, our partnership approach includes: 

• a project management team to oversee successful project completion and provide a quality experience
• vetted linguists who are trained on up-to-date industry best practices
• valued teamwork and collaboration to produce the exact result you need
• historical knowledge of past language projects 
• clear communication through each phase of the project

Our Aspiration: Your Peace of Mind

Our team of highly trained and engaged professionals will work with you to create custom language solutions for all transcription, translation, or transcreation needs. Getting your project right is not an accident – but the end result of our intentional efforts. Let us solve your translation challenges – and give you the time to focus on your business goals!