Have you ever wondered why the most used service in translation is not just a one-person work but a 3-step process TEP (translation, editing, proofreading)? We share our experience in the article below.
If you are reading this, you are probably familiar with the translation industry and the fact that the most common service offered is Translation, Editing, Proofreading. There should be a pretty good reason behind that, instead of the text being forwarded to only one person and saving time and money.
As a company, 1-StopAsia is in the translation industry for over two decades now. During all these years, we have been dedicated to work and focus mainly on one and the same field – translation. For us it is our “bread and butter” and we have been making mistakes and learning from them, throughout all our existence.
Here are our top 3 reasons for doing Translation, Editing, Proofreading with three different linguists a 3-Step process:
Spotting mistakes
You know that after looking at some information for a while, people have reduced ability to spot the details. This goes into full force where translation is involved. Imagine you are working on a long text file for hours… and then you have to do a second review and even edit it. After a while, a colleague passes by and just stares at your work for a second, and there it is – he points out something that will sound much better than you wrote in just a few moments.
We have all been through this, right?
So that is exactly why this is our Number 1 reason for having 2 more steps in each translation.
Different levels of experience in translation
When we assign a project to our colleagues, we always consider the level of experience of the people performing the various steps of the translation process. If you have an editor with wide experience, sometimes the level of the translator can be irrelevant. The same goes for Machine Translation – great editors can do wonders to the text processed through a machine translation tool. This more than anything relates to the Asian languages. The levels and shades of the speech in each of them (take Japanese for example) are so many, that you can easily slip up and translate something the wrong way. The same goes the other way around – if the translator is very experienced, then you might not need an editor.
Knowing your pools of translators is like a tool to operate on many levels and depending on the situation, you can easily create the success formula for your client. And that is what we all want. A good reason to classify it as a close Number 2 in our list.
The proofreader is a 3rd eye on the work
So once we get the text translated and edited, why do we still need a proofreader? It is not a matter of not trusting our own people. When we have an argument with someone in real life we sometimes get a 3rd party to help in the matter. This is exactly the same when it comes to using a proofreader as a third step in translation, editing, proofreading. Having one last check is essential and acts just as an assurance for the final product delivery. After all, we would like to do things the right way and be sure in the quality we deliver.
In conclusion
When it comes to the whole process, there are a lot more things involved in the Translation, Editing, Proofreading service. In this article, we are only talking about the linguists in the 3-Step process. We are not addressing the Quality Checks and the Quality Assurance processes we have implemented, because that will make it a very long reading material. And we all know in Translation Industry time is of the essence. So keep reading our Blog for more on other topics, that might be of interest to you.