Considering the large number of options you can choose from, it can be difficult to hire the right translation agency. Most of them will promise high-quality translations at competitive prices. So, how do you choose the most suitable agency for your translation project?
Let’s explore five factors you should consider when choosing a translation partner.
1. Check Their Language Translation Capabilities
The first consideration is to see what their language capabilities are. What language pairs do they offer? Do they match your project requirements? Not all translation agencies specialize in every language pair.
If you can, try to do some research on the translation agency services and their translators. Usually, you can find both the description of the services and the bios of their linguistic specialists in the “about us” and “services” sections of their website. See what type of expertise they have. You will want to choose an agency with native translators who are well versed in both the target language and culture.
2. Ask For Translation Agency’s Portfolio
One of the most important factors to consider when hiring a translation and localization agency is their track record. The projects they’ve handled in the past are good indicators of the quality of their work. Therefore, check their portfolio during the stage of negotiation. Did they just translate the content or did they also provide the additional services (localization, graphic design, voiceover, etc), acting like a one-top-shop solution for their clients?
Having well-known customers signals that they are more than capable of handling bigger jobs. Moreover, having clients that are similar to your company is a good reassurance that they can produce similar results for your project.
When it comes to quality, don’t just take their word for it. Ask for proof of the past projects they have completed.
3. Project Management Capabilities
Quality management of projects is a great asset in ensuring the success of your project. Therefore, you should find out how the team that will handle your project is structured and clearly establish from the beginning the ways of collaboration between you and the translation agency and the information flow.
Communication with the project manager must be transparent and open because he is your point of contact and coordinates all aspects related to your project.
Their project management capabilities are especially important when it comes to larger translation jobs with many moving parts.
4. Specialization In Your Field
Even if there are many generalist translation agencies, certain companies may specialize in a particular field. For instance, they may focus on areas such as:
- Medical Translation
- Technical Translation
- Literary Translation
- Game Translation
- Financial Translation
- And More…
An agency for translation services specializing in your domain would understand your needs much better than a generalist one. Besides, they might also have extra relevant resources that would better cater to your project.
Therefore try to hire a company you can partner with for a long time.
5. Pricing
Compare quotes from different translation agencies. Prices should be comparable to market prices. Like anything else, in this case, you get what you pay for. So, do not immediately hire the company that offers you the lowest price. Cheap and low-quality translation could cost you more in the end (i.e. rework). Consider and analyze all factors before making a decision, including the agency’s reputation, expertise, service offerings, and prices.
SandVox: Your Localization and Translation Agency
SandVox is a localization and translation agency specializing in the gaming industry. We have a team of project managers, translators, and localization experts who have experience working on large and small projects. Contact us to find out more about getting your game into international markets!
