How to Predict Your Translation Costs

Introducción

Website translation and localization is a crucial step in reaching a greater audience and increasing revenue. According to a Common Sense Advisory study, businesses that translated their content into multiple languages were more likely to see a revenue increase. That study also found that companies that translated their content saw a 1.5x increase in revenue compared to those that did not. While it’s evident that insourcing translation isn’t the best idea, how can you be sure that your translation vendor won’t overcharge you for their services? Read on to learn more. 

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According to a study by the European Union, machine translation can reduce translation costs by up to 80% compared to human translation. MotionPoint’s Adaptive Translation™ technology is a combination of translation memory, algorithmic translation, and artificial intelligence, plus an optional layer of human review, that keeps costs predictable and helps them decrease over time. 

Let’s Talk About Your Translation Approach 

When it comes to machine translation, do you know all your options? While human translation may offer the best quality, it is time-consuming and extremely costly. A customer may choose to use human translators for marketing content and content where more transcreation is required and use machine translation for content that is less sensitive to translation quality. If your goal is to reduce costs and keep them predictable, then you need Adaptive Translation™. Here’s a break-down of our technology produces high-quality translation that fits in the budget: 

Neural Machine Translation (NMT) 

Neural Machine Translation (NMT) is one of the most advanced translation solutions available. In a world of rapidly advancing technology, AI and NMT systems are now able to “learn” new languages and apply that knowledge to the translation process. Using this method, your AI can produce repeated translated content quickly and accurately. MotionPoint leverages the latest AI models to produce high quality Neural Machine Translation. 

So how does using NMT help you predict and manage your translation costs? Since NMTs ensure that your technology is learning and adapting over time, it will require less of a need for manual translation as it learns your frequently used words and phrases. You will still need human translation, but what percentage of your translations is human is up to you. But the ultimate judgement of human quality remains humans themselves, so it is common for human translators to remain in the loop to provide a final human review and edit of machine translation. This helps reduce costs.

Learn How NMTs Reduce Translation Costs

Translation Memory 

In a survey conducted by Common Sense Advisory in 2020, 61% of respondents reported using translation memory technology as part of their translation process, making it the most widely used translation technology. Your translation memory is the key to ensuring fast and consistent translations. By having access to previously translated words and phrases, you can reduce your human translation costs and increase speed-to-market. 

According to a study by the Translation Automation User Society (TAUS), the use of translation memory technology can increase translation productivity by up to 80%. While it’s true that translation memory technology can shorten speed-to-market and save you money, if you don’t have full control over your saved segments, you could be overpaying. Some language service providers hold your translated segments hostage when you decide to switch or leave them. When this is the case, you have to start from scratch and pay for those translations all over again. But with the right translation partner (hint, hint: MotionPoint), you won’t be paying for any translations twice and you can own your translated segments for free. So, while translation memory is designed to save you money and a great tool to have at your disposal, beware of the hidden costs that you may face. 

Algorithmic Translation 

Algorithmic translation is the use of smart algorithms designed to leverage your translation memory to its greatest extent for repetitive or similar content. The algorithmic translation process could save companies up to 60% on translation costs. This is something most other vendors don’t have. 

Algorithmic translation processes text quickly and produces consistent translations, ensuring that the same term is translated the same way every time. Algorithmic translation can be customized to suit specific industries or use cases, such as medical or legal translation, and can translate multiple languages simultaneously. This automation makes it cost-efficient for businesses to achieve high-quality translation.

Translation Dashboards 

Translation dashboards are real time data sets that help you achieve predictable translation outcomes over time. They are designed to help you plan your budget for any future translation projects. You should ask your translation vendors for translation dashboards that depict cost savings and the utility of your translation memory pick up. All the translation technology you’ve invested in (translation memory, machine translation, algorithmic) should have metrics associated to them to measure ROI. 

How to Ensure Consistent Cost-Per-Word 

At MotionPoint, our Adaptive Translation™ technology is designed to reduce translation costs while maintaining translation quality. Traditional human translation has different prices per word for every language, which can make budgeting unpredictable. In contrast, leveraging your translation memory in tandem with algorithmic translation and NMT can help you better predict translation costs. 

Make sure your translation vendor is keeping your translation memory up to date. In most cases, translation vendors are not incentivized to update your translation memory because most vendors only profit from human translation.

Do you want to learn if your translation vendor is using your translation memory properly? 

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Reach out to us for more on how to stick to your translation budget.