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Language in South Africa

English one of the many official languages in South Africa and almost all the people involved in business speak English, as the main language of commerce and politics is English, notwithstanding the fact that South Africans often take pride in using their own languages for any purpose.

Translation

You are in the process of starting up business overseas and selling products or services internationally, so you need professional translation services to understand what’s going on and allow you to make the money.

Lawyers, accountants, design agencies and other professionals are employed when starting up a business and so it should be when translating your business and marketing materials. At first, it may seem an unnecessary expense, especially as your friend with an ‘A-Level’ in French has offered to do it for free, but there are many reasons as to why paying for professional translation services pays off in the long run.

So Why Pay For Translation?

Often translation is more of an afterthought when it should really be at the forefront of your overseas business plan. The time, money and attention to detail spent in developing your business and brand is not only wasted if poor translation is used to represent your company to foreign markets, but potentially damaging. A quick Google search will find lots of examples of mistranslation and while amusing, would you want this misrepresentation to be your potential customers’ first impression of your company or product?

Poor translation also has a dramatic impact on overall profitability; as poor quality or ambiguous text can lead to dissatisfaction from vendors or suppliers, slippage in project deadlines - due to material having to be re-written - with the potential of complaints and calls to customer service, all as consequence of mistranslated documentation.

Foreign Tongues will ensure you avoid the common mistakes and pitfalls, as well as providing substantial added value to your brand, by advising you on the cultural nuances of your overseas marketing campaigns, helping you to adapt to and engage with foreign audiences to the full and so maximise your potential within your market.

Getting Professional Translation

As your company expands you will need to take professional consultation in co-ordinating your multi-national marketing campaigns. It may have been that an internal member of staff was able to undertake all of the translation required, at the start of the business, but as you look to other international opportunities your internal resources will start to dwindle and fade.

Foreign Tongues maintain a fully comprehensive pool of qualified linguists, skilled in all commercial sectors and disciplines, on call to help and provide your translation services whenever and wherever you need them. Through outsourcing, you can be confident that your translations will be managed and delivered to deadline, freeing up your own staff and resources to concentrate on running your business.

Why Professional Translation Works

Using a translation agency to manage and produce your translation and localisation projects is much more efficient and removes the risk, in both the short and long term, of loss in profitability of your business, rather than trying set up the resources and framework yourself. It’s what we do.

Professional linguists are not only mother-tongue fluent in your target markets’ language, but commercially experienced in the given subject matter. So, when you need your technical manual, business contracts and marketing material translated, we will ensure your translation is produced by a language expert, with years of working experience in your specific market sector, ensuring every detail is captured and presented correctly to your foreign market target audience.

What Does Professional Translation Cost?

Outsourcing your translation requirements will provide you with the highest quality end-product, to your deadline, giving you the advantage in the foreign market place and, most importantly, free-up your staff to get on with the most important aspect of your business – selling!

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