Usually, language buyers will characterize their needs and the LSP will have to do their best to capture their attention and show that they can satisfy the needs to be considered as a potential partner. In this case, the needs could be anything from time constraints, to specific languages, to translations or interpretations in specific fields, or to convey the meaning clearly. The language buyers will then look into the LSP and see if they believe that LSPs can deliver the type of service that they are looking for. If everything seems ok, they may typically take them on as a language supplier, but they will observe them over time to see if they crack or show that they are suited for their needs. The LSP will in turn do their best to try and foster a trusting relationship with the language buyer and try to make sure to meet their expectations to become a trusted supplier for frequent use and a closer partnership.

For the buyers, it starts with the fact that they have to look at themselves and figure out what exactly they are looking for and then find a LSP that can meet the most amount of requirements. They then have to continue to monitor the LSP to make sure that they are keeping up with the set expectations while also assessing whether they are the best option for the price that they are paying. They might need to understand that quality work is valuable and priceless because quality work usually requires huge efforts from the providers.

For LSPs, the efforts could be quite a few different people need to spend the weekends to go through a document before it gets to the client. Another is find issues and address problems quickly. Another is to figure out what is important and what is critical for clients in a translation or interpretation project.

We will continue to talk about the recommendations for both language buyers and LSPs, but the main point here is that a good relationship between buyers and LSPs is precious. When that happens, it’s ideal to better meet the needs of each other, to be more efficient in taking care of requests and questions from both sides, and both sides can thrive and grow together positively and effectively.

For example, even within English, there are regional differences that can sometimes prevent fellow English speakers from having the same understanding of even simple conversations. Winter can get cold, and when that happens, people in the United States (US) might want to buy a sweater. However, in the United Kingdom (UK), if you asked for a sweater, you might be met with some confusion. Sweater is not the common word that people in the UK would use. Instead, they would use the word “jumper.” Conversely, if you asked for a “jumper” in the US, you would be met with a lot of confusion because the word “jumper” is typically reserved for people who do such activities as jumping.

Moreover, word for word conversion is the number one killer in rendering translation and interpretation. Often times, target audiences have no idea of what a translation is trying to say is because of that. For example, we often have to adjust English to Chinese translations done by other people, and to make the focus of each point clear and to be sure it’s easy to read and understand. The issue is that the original translation was literally written in a way that followed English words and grammar too closely. Unfortunately, Chinese grammar is not the same as English grammar. Therefore, ideas/points were not communicated easily and clearly for Chinese readers.

Another tough aspect to deal with is related to cultures. Many translators or interpreters struggle to find a perfect fit to certain idioms or phrases that might be frequently used in one country, but not in another. For example, in Japan, every time they eat, they have a small ritual of expressing gratitude for the food both before and after eating the food. In most other cultures, there is no such ritual, so it is hard to perfectly translate it. In general, there are many phrases in Japanese to show respect that would not translate easily into other languages without the same kind of rituals. Instead, translators and interpreters will have to skirt around and find similar phrases or words that will be “good enough” to convey the meaning.

Culture is a big part of what makes languages end up having such a big gap in phrases and words, and because of that, a one to one translation is virtually impossible for languages. There will almost always be at least some tiny nuance that is lost in translation. Even so, translators and interpreters do their best to minimize these bumps in the road. Translators and interpreters ensure that even if nuances are lost, an understanding is still able to be passed on, which in our opinion is the essence of translation and interpretation.