Marketing translation starts long before the first word is translated.
When companies think about translation, they often imagine a linguist opening a document and starting to translate. In reality, one of the most important stages happens much earlier: selecting the right professional for the job.
For every project, we follow a structured vetting process inspired by the principles of ISO 17100, the international standard for translation services. This means reviewing qualifications, professional experience, specialist subject knowledge and previous translation work to ensure that every linguist has the skills required for the assignment.
For technical documents, this process is often straightforward because expertise in the subject matter is the primary consideration.
Marketing content is different.
A marketing campaign is designed to persuade, engage and reflect a company’s personality. Two experienced linguists may both produce accurate translations while writing in completely different styles. One may favour concise, direct language, while another naturally writes in a warmer, more conversational tone. Both translations may be technically correct, but only one will truly reflect the client’s brand.
For this reason, selecting a marketing linguist is much closer to selecting a copywriter than simply choosing someone who speaks another language.
Finding the right person at the beginning of a project takes time, but it creates the foundation for a successful long-term collaboration. Once the right linguist has been identified, every future project becomes more consistent, more efficient and easier to manage.
In the next article, we’ll explain why we often ask shortlisted linguists to complete a test translation, and why that small investment of time can make a significant difference to the success of an international marketing campaign.