Translation can be a quite confusing concept for the layman. The concept of having to transfer documents written in one language to another language can be quite puzzling. In fact, a lot of people are unclear about how things work in the translation industry. This has lead to some myths about operations in the industry.

For the purpose of this article, we'll be taking a look at some of these myths and will clear the air on the right things to believe. These myths include:

Good Translation only comes from large companies

It's a common idea to think that the best way to get the desired translation for yourself is by working with a large translation company. However, this couldn't be even further from the truth. Working with a multinational translation agency may allow you to enjoy some of the most impressive pieces of technology, equipment, and even professional help. But working with a small translation agency can still help you get the results which you need. These small agencies can work up-close with their clients and provide them with custom solutions to their problems. You don't even have to spend a huge amount of cash to work with them.

The more the translators, the better the quality

When translators work with clients, it's important to establish a level of consistency. As they work with you and become familiar with what you want, it offers a lot to your business. If you fail to make use of the translator or group of translators to handle a certain project, you will end up having a document that sounds or appears disjointed. The individual contributions of the translators will be obvious and it can be very confusing. It's best for you to get a dedicated team of professionals to handle your project and offer you impressive quality.

Bilingual employees will be capable of translating for you

Bilingual employees can be a great addition to your workforce but they don't necessarily need to act as translators. If they haven't been hired as translators, asking them to translate any document could be out of their reach because they aren't qualified for such work. The translation is much more complex than just speaking another language.

First, the translator has to have adept knowledge about both languages including grammar and syntax. Also, dealing with technical terms and terminologies may be confusing for your bilingual employees and could lead to errors and mistakes in the work.

The source content doesn't determine translation quality
Never make this mistake. Translation errors are sometimes due to errors that are found in the source document. Translators can only work with what they are given and as they are not the original authors of the work, errors can easily be translated as well. Therefore, if your source content is bad then the translation will be a bad one.

Professional translators will spot the errors in the original document and may make inquiries from clients. However, this slows down the entire process and consumes valuable time.