Now, what was Lennon singing about? He was actually talking about mental imagery.

Mental imagery is referred to as “visualizing,” “seeing in the mind’s eye,” “hearing in the head,” “imagining the feel of,” etc.).

It resembles perceptual experience, but occurs in the absence of the appropriate external stimuli.

Now, I don’t want to sound like a cocky car salesman. But there will be times when the email or the phone is the only mode of communicating your product, services, skills, etc.

We, in the translation industry, are not selling tangible products, which you can see, feel, touch, give value to. We are selling services, services that are offered by our team of translators, editors, proofreaders and hard working project managers.

The cost of buying our services starts at the onset of the client’s phone call. No matter if it’s a small 1 page project or a 300 page manual. How you present yourself and your organization is what decides whether you will acquire this project or not.

It is not an easy task to show the client what we do; we do not offer virtual tours to our office, our manufacturing centers or our production line. We explain the process in the best possible way that we can, over the phone, through emails, conference calls, webinars, seminars, etc.

We live in a virtual world today and even though the old school mentality of meet and greet is still credible, we have to do the best we can based on what we have.

By mental imagery, what I mean is to show the client how their project flows through our various departments, how each step is carefully gauged and analyzed. How the account managers and the project managers go back and forth with our various departments to furnish the best possible product that we can.

Not only do we show how the project flows, but also the bottle necks that sometimes are difficult to avoid.

A mental imagery is created when we make our clients SEE through our eyes as to how simple text can be turned into a powerful marketing piece, an instruction manual, forms, brochures, etc.

At Trusted Translations, we take pride in our work and treat document translation as an art. An art that we want our clients to see, appreciate and recommend.

I would like to start this blog by telling you a story of what actually happened once in our office. A prospect had called our office and wanted to get further information regarding our costs per word and translation services and asked one of our new Account Managers if we had “one of those translation machines”. She answered, even though she didn´t know the response, that “yes, we have one of those”. After she ended the phone conversation with the prospect she asked her colleague, whether we had a translation machine and she was told that we did. She went over to the fax machine to check it out, thinking it was the translation machine, and acted very impressed that you could just insert a document in one language and it would come out translated. Later she was told that it was a joke, and she thought it was funny herself.

You might be thinking why I am telling you this story, but translating texts into other languages is not that easy, and there are certainly no machines that can do that for you, as explained above. Here are the different translation techniques used by professional translators and the Translation Industry:

Borrowing: This is when words are taken from one language and used in another without translation. A good example would be the word “trottoir” from French (used in German) or “Frankfurter” from German (used in English).

Calque: This is when a phrase is borrowed from another language and literally translated word-for-word.

Literal Translation: This is a word-for-word translation, however this works only in some languages and in other languages it doesn´t work.

Transposition: This is when parts of speech change their sequence when translated.

Modulation: This is when a phrase is used that is different in the source and target text, but represents the same idea. 

Equivalence: This is when the text has to be expressed in a completely different way, meaning it is the exact opposite of literal translation. This takes place with slogans or advertising material.

Adaptation: This is when a definition in the source text does not exist in the target language, due to cultural differences.

Compensation: This is when something cannot be translated, and therefore the meaning that is lost,  is then expressed somewhere else in the target or translated text. A good example would be “tu” and “vous” in French, but in English there is only “you”.

It is very important to remember that translation does not only involve the translation of one word to another, or two languages, but that it also involves 2 cultures and very often certain adaptations need to take place in order for the translation to make sense.

I could make a whole Clients’ FAQ section just with what I get from them when I receive a new quotation request and ask them to specify what language/ dialect they refer to:

-          What do you mean, “what kind of English”?!

-          Is there actually a Swiss French?!

-          What exactly are you trying to say by “what Spanish variety”?!

History is full of examples of Empires and their colonies. One of the very results of that historical trajectory that we nowadays cope with are, in fact, dialects, as they are usually called. These are geographical varieties, which depend on the region of the world where they are spoken. In this sense, American English differs from British English, Canadian French from Belgian French, Peruvian Spanish from Mexican Spanish, mainly in terms of the place where each is spoken.

Nevertheless, there are social, diachronic or situational varieties as well: the same exact language in the same exact place can be used differently, depending on the education level of the interlocutors, the year or generation, or the person someone addresses to. You don’t usually use the same exact Argentine Spanish when you talk to a friend and when you discuss with a teacher. American slang in 1962, for instance, was not the same as in 2012. It was still “a gas” though…

Dialects are varieties of the same (original) language that has dynamically evolved, both in its place of origin and in the “new” one. And as a translator or translation sales account manager, it is crucial to be aware of their existence in order to be able to meet the client’s needs, not only in terms of quality, but also relevance and accuracy in the target dialect.

One of the fun things about this job, as a sales person, are the sometimes “out there” questions that we get over the phone from prospective clients. “How do I email you my document if it’s physically in my hand? Can you translate 10,000 words in 1 hour? I understand that if you’re not in the business you don’t need to know how we do our job, but come on!

Today a new client asked me a question that actually wasn’t THAT out there. She said, “I sometimes hear how something in English – a particular sentence or phrase – doesn’t translate the same way in another language. Do your translators take that into consideration when translating and accommodate that by using a correct phrase in that language, or are they strictly translating verbatim?” Why don’t I think that this is a silly question? Well, because I’m sure that there are translation companies that do offer that. Luckily, I was able to assure her that we use the 3-Step Process. We Translate, Edit and Proof every document with 3 different translators to make sure everything that goes through us is done perfectly. So, what are the basic things a client needs to provide us so we can send you a quote right away? Send us the document, let us know what your target language is and do not forget to tell us if you have time constraints. Keep the silly questions coming though…They put a smile on my face !

Some people like swans, some relate with eagles and the weird ones associate themselves with ostriches.

What do they like about these noisy, oily, ugly creatures, you may ask? Well, it’s their ability in working together as a team. Ducks are known to work together and accomplish the impossible and unimaginable. Ducks cover hundred and thousands of miles, distances almost no other animal or bird can travel, and it’s all possible because they work as a team. As you may know, ducks fly together in formation. As each duck flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird following and that is perpetuated throughout their V formation. Each duck takes its turn leading the flock in flight. When the lead duck gets tired, it fades from the front and is enveloped back into the fold of the flock and naturally another bird takes the lead. By working together, the whole flock adds approximately 70% more flying range than if each bird flew alone.

Like ducks, people naturally gravitate toward organizations that will shelter and protect them and make their life easier than if they were left to fend for themselves.  I believe that people want to belong; they want to be a part of a team. A team that gives them a sense of a transcendent purpose, where they can be a part of something bigger than themselves.

I also find that most people perform to their greater potential when on a team than when on their own. They rise to meet the expectations of the team; if left alone to their own motivations, they wouldn’t push themselves nearly as hard.  I find that lots of people do more for the recognition of others than for their own satisfaction. Thus, team environments are a powerful force for drawing out the best within our individual potentials for achievement.

At Spanish Translation US, our team works together for our customers’ full satisfaction. The Account Manager analyzes and interprets the needs of the client. Then he passes this information on to the Project Manager who carefully fills the rest of the team in, including freelancers and in-house QA resources, with this same information. Our business model is based on Account Manager focusing on the customer service and a Project Manager concentrated in the operational aspects of the service.

What is the official Language of the United States? If you answered “English” to this question, you might want to do a little bit more research. The United States is actually one of the few nations in the World that does not have an “Official Language”. Many lawmakers and politicians have made proposals to make English the official language, but these requests are always denied at a Federal Level.

I was actually happy to stumble across this information. It makes me proud to come from a Country that has no official language. After all, The United States is a nation founded by immigrants of foreign lands. I think it is great that we accept everyone’s language as “our own”.

Although English is the most common spoken language in The U.S. (with over 86% of the population being native speakers), you will be surprised to hear how many other languages are spoken across the “Red, White, and Blue”. Spanish is the second most common spoken language in the States, with over 12% of the population being fluent. 12% might not sound like a lot, but The United States actually has the 5th highest level of Spanish Speakers in the World, beating out many Countries who use Spanish as their mother tongue.

There are over 1 million people who speak Vietnamese and Tagalog in The United States. Millions of Japanese, Chinese, German, Russian, Italian, Polish, and Greek speakers. And let’s not forget the thousands of people who still speak Native American tribal languages or use sign language to communicate.

Being an Account Manager at a World Wide Translations Company, I realize the importance of different languages. With so many languages spoken, not only in The United States but in the World, the need for translations is constantly growing. Translations open the gap between all language barriers and takes communicating or expanding your business to a whole other level.

As times are getting harder and as the world economy is running on the brink of going through another word wide recession, it is only normal for companies to go through their goals and objectives to see what realistically can be reached and what adjustements might need to be implemented in order to meet these goals. This is not very different for  Translation Agencies. Below, please find 7 points of how more sales can be generated:

1)    Analyze the biggest Accounts – In our industry, the total number of projects and the total amount of revenue should be detected for each business year (2011 in this case) and these numbers should be analyzed. Account Managers can adjust their offered per Word Rates according to the total Revenue, to see if the client will purchase more projects in 2012. Additional language pairs can be offered to clients in order to have higher potential of closing translation projects. TMs  (Translation Memories)  can be offered to give the client a monetary benefit, as this will over the long run reduce the translation cost for the client.

2)    E-mail Campaigns – Sending e-mail campaigns by e-mail and offering 10% discounts helps generate more sales and might even persuade long-lost clients to come back and take the offer to his/her advantage. This incorporates an added value to your client and can increase trust and confidence levels.

3)    Increase Database of translators/editors that have TRADOS as this will enable you  to offer Repetitions, Fuzzy Matches, 100% Matches etc. and will make you more competitive on the market. This can be a huge benefit for your client.

4)    Sales Incentives should be established for all Account Managers, as this will keep them motivated and can result in higher Sales.

5)    Performance feedback – twice a year, the Sales Mgr. should sit down with the AM to give feedback over the AM´s performance. This will enable the AM to improve on bad habits and can result in generating higher Sales if these bad habits will be stopped.

6)    Every Quarter, the per word rates of all language pairs need to be compared to various markets, to see if if the company is still competitive. This can result in higher sales if appropriate actions are taken.

7)  Adwords and SEO: whenever the Revenue forecast shows that a “slow” month is coming, additional investment into Adwords and SEO should be invested, in order to overbridge the “low” time period. This means the company can proactively act to overcome slow sales and not react to slow sales.

I hope I was able to give you a few ideas of how higher Sales can be generated, as these points helped our Company a lot to generate more Sales.  Do not forget that all of this goes along with being focused and following your goals.

Welcome to the year 2012 and guess what, time is still of the essence. Because there is a lot of talk around the world regarding this year being our last year on Earth as we know it, I have the growing sense that more people are in even more of a hurry to get things done than never before.

And I mean NOW.

Below are the 3 principal drivers to continually take into account preceding this year’s translation projects.

TIME – As I had mentioned in my previous blog post Gambling Quality http://spanish-translation-blog.spanishtranslation.us/gambling-quality-2011-07-19.html, quick turnaround times often means timesaving methods are being carried out during the work flow to meet client deadlines. When there is not sufficient time to administer a correct translation or Desktop Publishing quality assessment (DTP QA), there is a danger of mistranslation and loss of future business. This occurs mainly when translated files are to be printed or financial amounts within contracts are incorrect.

QUALITY – Like I had written in October 2011 http://spanish-translation-blog.spanishtranslation.us/top-4-tips-for-rush-translations-2011-10-19.html, starting a project without arranging in advance the guidelines is not recommended particularly when you are working under a tight deadline. The most important factors to firmly establish are the target market, dialect, tone, register and measurement conversion/localization.  Remember, if you do not follow this crucial step, you will not have the time to alter the translation after the final delivery is completed.

PRICE – Do not forget the common expression of “You get what you pay for”. This idea can be applied in the translation industry as well. Be aware of companies which may offer under market value price quotes and unrealistic turnaround times because these companies are most likely processing your translations using “under value techniques”.

Whether or not you believe the hype about our planet suddenly lighting up like a match stick or Big Foot to finally appear to eat our beautiful home like a delicious wild Malus sieversii apple, you should still stop and take a deep breath before you start your important ventures in 2012.