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When I started my first job in the translation industry as a project manager more than 15 years ago, one of the biggest surprises for me was the number of translation requests we received for French. After all, weren’t Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic the most “important” languages for translation now?

Now amid the digital age, the need for generating enormous volumes of content has exploded. From marketing materials to website localization, blogs, white papers, news & research articles, manuals, and so much more, many organizations and businesses (and consumers) are struggling to keep up with the seemingly insatiable demand for new and engaging content.

Your marketing team has been working tirelessly on developing catchy and alluring content over the last several months for your imminent global marketing plan. Now, one of the final steps is translating all of that content, perhaps into Spanish, Chinese, Arabic, or even Swahili.

Translation, interpretation, and localization services have become one of the most important industries in the global marketplace. What was once considered to be a small, niche industry is now valued at close to $50 billion worldwide and serves as one of the key driving forces of global economic integration. However, despite the industry’s importance, it may come as a surprise that there are still many misconceptions when it comes to foreign language translation. Therefore, this week’s blog is devoted to debunking the most common translation myths.

When you’ve finally found the perfect language service provider (LSP) to work with you on your organization’s foreign language translation needs, the next step is how to go about setting your translation partner up for success. If you take the time to develop a plan and institute some fundamental processes, you will be well on your way to establishing a successful and long-term relationship.

If you’re an old hand when it comes to working with translation services providers, you have almost certainly worked with a translation project manager. For most clients, the interaction is relatively superficial, and the project manager (PM) is simply the person to whom you send your translation project and then sends back your completed translations.

One of the more difficult pills for customers and prospective customers to swallow when it comes to procuring translation services is the cost. While translation costs have come down in recent years due in part to an increase in competition in the industry as well as the implementation of new technology solutions such as computer-assisted translation (CAT) and machine translation (MT), many clients still experience “sticker shock” when they start receiving quotes for their translation or localization project.

Is your company poised to leap into overseas markets? From the acquisition of weakened companies to selling products overseas, there are many pathways to international business, and American companies are leaping at the chance to “go global.” For instance,ABC News has reported on the uptick in American-made products being exported overseas. As ABC writer Sharyn Alfonsi points out, “For the first time since the 1930s, U.S. manufacturers have an advantage in exports.” Fracking and an overall increase in domestic extraction have pushed down American energy costs, and American labor rates are more competitive than they have been in decades. If your company has survived the Great Recession, expanding into overseas markets is a logical next step – not to mention an enormous opportunity.

We are proud and excited to be named a finalist in the 2012 SBEAs – come support us Thursday as we find out who wins each category!

“Translation is not a matter of words only; it is a matter of making intelligible a whole culture.” This quote, from Anthony Burgess, expresses the intention behind a specific form of business translation service: transcreation. The word transcreation is a portmanteau that melds together two smaller words: translation and creation. Sometimes translators will be asked toadapt, rather than transcreate, a document. Regardless of which of these synonyms is used, much more than just a word-for-word translation is required. Business translation services that offer transcreation must add creativity and an appreciation for nuance to the already challenging job of translation.