Making sure that translated texts have the identity expected by the client is one of the challenges faced by professional translation agencies. For this reason, there are two tools that can really contribute to achieving consistency in materials: the Style Guide and the Glossary.

In addition to making sure that the writing is standardized between projects, these materials also give agencies independence for selecting the translator, given that the same professional won’t always be available to proceed with new work for the same client.

To understand the importance of these tools, the first step is to understand the role that each of them plays in the translation process.

The Style Guide is a document developed to define rules and instructions for addressing the various issues encountered when translating a text. Some of them are shown below:

• Verb tense: according to the client’s preference, it is possible to define whether certain terms in projects should always be translated in imperative (Install the software), infinitive (To install software) or even substantive form (Software installation);
• Use of upper- and lowercase: The Style Guide can indicate the use of uppercase and lowercase according to the client’s preference, or source and target language standards, as the rules vary from one language to another;
• Converting units of measure: if the text contains units of measure, an instruction on how to deal with them is necessary. As an example, let’s use 5 miles. In this case, we could:

1. a) adapt the decimal mark from the English language standard (dot) to the Portuguese language standard (comma) and translate the unit of measure for miles: 1,5 milha
2. b) also convert the unit into the standard used in Brazil: 2,4 quilômetros
3. c) use the bilingual standard, which keeps both units for reference: 2,4 quilômetros (1,5 milha)

• Target Audience: in a Style Guide, it’s helpful to specify which audience the client’s materials will be directed toward. This makes it easier to determine whether the tone of the text should be more or less formal, or if more technical or naturally fluent language should be used.

The Glossary in turn is used to standardize terminology. This kind of document can include:

• Translations of simple but recurring terms: For example, the term “employee” is considered simple for those with knowledge of the English language, but with the various possible translations (funcionário, empregado, trabalhador, colaborador, etc.), it makes sense to add this word to a glossary according to the client’s preference and the most common usage in the company;
• Translations for complex terms that could generate uncertainty: more technical terminology usually demands knowledge of the industry in question to achieve coherent and accurate translation.

To create a glossary, the agency analyzes documents to be translated in advance, extracting the main terms and indicating a translation to be approved by the client. From there on, the client actively participates in the process, indicating its preferred terms or the translation already used by the company.

Glossaries can also be imported into translation tools, which allows translators to automatically verify the suggestion when a glossary term appears in the text being translated. Translators therefore don’t have to memorize the preferences of each client, given that the tool itself shows alerts about preferred terminology.

Armed with this information, it will be easier to choose a translation partner. When hiring a service, be sure to research the processes and find out whether such tools are used, as they are essential for delivering a consistent, quality translation that matches the client’s style.

 About Netwire

Created in 2000, Netwire is the Latin American market leader, offering translations into any language. With offices in Brazil and Argentina, the company serves approximately 25 market segments and has a network of hundreds of tested native translators, residing all over the planet. In the past five years alone, Netwire processed over 110 million words, delivering an average of 400 projects per month.