Remote Interpreting for Virtual Events 

There is an opportunity for event planners who prioritize multilingual inclusivity to connect with an underserved audience. 

In a recent survey, nearly half of event planners said interpreting events was not a priority – though 77 percent saw an increase in multilingual attendance at their events.  

Incorporating interpreting services in your events could appeal to these frustrated users, gaining your organization's loyalty. 

Event interpretation services can be provided either on-site or remotely. If you're hosting an in-person event, you'll want to consider both options. 

For virtual events, Remote Simultaneous Interpretation (RSI) uses technology to allow each participant to listen and interact in their native language. 

For the best user experience, incorporate interpreting into your event plan from the very start of event planning. Addressing your interpreting needs last minute may make it difficult to create a seamless experience for multilingual attendees. It also costs valuable time you could spend marketing your event, registering attendees, and engaging with your audience. 

How Virtual Interpreting Works 

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation (RSI) is the gold standard for remote interpreting. Rather than the presenter and interpreter taking turns speaking, the interpretation happens in almost real-time, creating a seamless experience for the audience. 

1. The presenter speaks naturally in their native language. Their presentation is streamed through a cloud-based RSI platform. 
   
   
2. While the speaker is talking, the interpreter follows along and interprets into a microphone. The interpreter's audio is also streamed through the platform. 
   
   
3. The audience watches the video stream of the presenter and listens to the audio in their desired language. In this way, every audience member receives the same presentation experience. 

The advantage of live interpreting rather than making interpreted recordings available after the fact is that every audience member can participate. 

People who want to ask a question or respond to what the speaker has said can do so in their native language, and the interpreter will simultaneously interpret their comment and the presenter's response. 

Simultaneous interpreting is difficult to master, and the best interpreters are in high demand. Because the activity is so taxing, interpreters work in pairs, swapping every 20 to 30 minutes. 

This team also works together to research the topic and review reference materials before the event. During the event, the interpreters support one another and share notes. This will help ensure a successful event.

Coordinating Interpretation Services for Your Virtual Event 

The size and location of your event will determine the best interpreting format. Before you begin planning, consider every aspect of the event: 

• In what format will content be presented?, Slide presentations, lectures, panel discussions?
  
  
• How many people do you expect to attend, and what languages do they speak? 
  
  
• What platform will you use to host the event? In our experience, an RSI platform with Zoom integration provides the best experience. 
  
  
• Do you need event translation and interpretation? While the interpretation covers the presentations themselves, do you need translation of event materials such as: 
  
  
  • Communication before or after the event, such as email, social media, or advertising. 

• • Communications at the event, such as signage and instructions to access the interpreting services. 
    
    
  • Recordings of the presentations and their materials for increasing ROI of use. (Commonly used in situations such as Instructor Led Training.) 

Odds are, your attendees are already comfortable using Zoom for online meetings. When integrated with an RSI tool, the interpreters have their dedicated behind-the-scenes platform while the attendees stay in the familiar Zoom interface. 

Choosing the Best Interpreter 

The best technology in the world won't save you if your interpreter is subpar. 

Remember that interpreters are not machines simply spitting out word-for-word translations. They choose their words and phrases to convey the presenter's idea and message clearly. 

For example, an English-speaking Sinosphere client wanted to market a seminar to affiliates in France. The English materials used phrases like "ballpark number" in sales training – an idiom that doesn't exist in French. Had the interpreter simply interpreted the phrase word for word, it wouldn’t have made sense to the multilingual listener. Thus, rendering your message unheard and the listener’s time wasted.  

Fortunately, the client worked with an experienced interpreter who rephrased the material to convey the message. 

This becomes even more important in professional events where industry terminology, acronyms, and jargon may be used. Your interpreter must be not only a native speaker of the target language but also a subject matter expert in the topic of your presentation (and maybe even knowledgeable of your company-specific language). 

Subject matter experts will understand how to share information so that the presenter and the audience understand one another. 

The best interpreters are: 

• Responsive and professional 
• Subject matter experts who can convey the information confidently, inspiring audience trust 
• Concerned with the quality of the interpretation above all else 
• Native speakers of the particular dialect you need 
• Certified to perform conference-level interpreting 
• Familiar with the virtual platform you've chosen to host the event 

Finding a qualified interpreter is a monumental task. It's like hiring an employee – building a candidate list, reviewing resumes, checking references, confirming qualifications, and negotiating rates. 

It's much faster and easier to work with a trusted language service provider like Sinosphere, which has pre-vetted and qualified interpreters ready to work with you. 

Start Early 

You can't expect your interpreter to simply show up the day of the event, ready to go. To provide the best experience to your audience, they need to prepare. 

Send presentation materials such as slide decks and speaker notes to your interpreter as early as possible. This allows time for them to research the topic and familiarize themselves with the most relevant industry terminology in the target language. 

Localization experts can also weigh in on the visual elements of the presentation, ensuring graphics, symbols, and colors are understood the way they are intended. 

The interpreter isn't the only one who needs to prepare. Notify speakers that the event will be interpreted while presenting it, so it's important to moderate their speaking speed and stick to the planned material. 

Best Practices for Event Interpretation 

•  High-quality interpreters with subject matter expertise book up fast, so don't assume you can find one on short notice. Start looking for an interpreter as soon as you have a firm event date and know which languages you will need. 
•  Provide interpreters with relevant materials and speaker notes as soon as possible before the event. Include glossaries of industry terminology, reference materials, the agenda – anything that could help them prepare to deliver a seamless interpretation. 
• Clarify your expectations of the interpreter and your internal team before the event.
• Who will host the virtual conference room? 
• Who will coordinate with attendees to ensure they have the necessary technology, meeting ID, etc., to access the event? 
• Who will address video, audio, and technical issues during the event? 
• Rehearse. Before the event, have everyone involved log in to the platform and hold a practice event to uncover any issues.
• Interpreters should be able to see the presenter while they are speaking. A reliable video stream is a must.
• Latency between sound and image should be 2 seconds or less. 

Virtual Event Interpreting FAQs 

• How do you ensure interpreter quality and performance? 

  Sinosphere has high standards for our event interpreters. To join our team, a language professional must have a bachelor's or master's degree in conference interpretation or have provided interpreting services at 60 or more conferences over the past three years. If the professional specializes in a rare language, they must have some other means to demonstrate their skill in simultaneous interpretation. 
   
  Once hired, our interpreters undergo a rigorous onboarding process to ensure top-notch performance.

• How do you handle feedback about interpreting services? 

  To maintain our ISO certifications in Quality Management and Translation Services, we are committed to a culture of continuous improvement. We collect client feedback throughout and after each event to constantly improve our processes and build our understanding of client needs.

• Which languages can you interpret? 

  Sinosphere can provide interpreters for virtually any existing modern language. 

Schedule Interpreting for Your Event 

When you know when your event will be held and which languages you need, it's time to secure your interpreters. 

The fastest, easiest way to do this is to work with a language services partner like Sinosphere. Rather than hunting for qualified interpreters and negotiating with them individually, you can leave it to us to provide high-quality professionals. 

We'll also guide you through interpreting your event for your virtual audience. In addition to interpreters, we provide industry-standard software, tech support, and a dedicated project manager to help your event go off without a hitch. 

Start Planning Your Multilingual Event 

Sources: 

Event Industry News 

While most familiar languages have evolved naturally over long periods of time, people interested in the art of language have put their talents to good use by developing their own languages, for a variety of different reasons. These individuals are known as conlangers, and their creations, conlangs (for “constructed languages”).

Regardless of the context, whether for a film, book, television show, or personal use, good conlangers need to keep in mind:

1. the speakers of their language (human or non-human),
2. the language’s format of transmission (spoken, written, or signed),
3. how the various parts of the body are used to express the language,
4. and how to make words build on each other organically.

The conlangs in this article are well-known examples of conlangers doing their jobs so effectively that their creations enter popular use. 

Check out these fictional languages and their origins.

This blog is for entertainment purposes only. Sinosphere Information Technology, the author of this blog, and our linguists don’t claim to be an expert in any of these fictional languages.

Klingon

The Klingon language, also known as Klingonese, is a conlang used in the Star Trek universe.

It originated on the fictional planet Qo'noS, the home of the Klingon species. Created by linguist Marc Okrand, Klingon was first introduced in the movie Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and gained significant attention in subsequent Star Trek films and television series.

The goal with Klingon was to create a believable and coherent language for the warlike Klingon characters, while making it sound unlike any human language. The task began with expanding a few lines of guttural sounds spoken by actors in the original Star Trek series to an organized linguistic system. Drawing inspiration from the existing sounds and phrases, Okrand meticulously crafted the Klingon language, giving it a distinct grammatical structure, vocabulary, and pronunciation.

Over time, the Klingon language has evolved into a fully functional constructed language with its own grammar rules, syntax, and vocabulary, becoming one of the most well-known fictional languages in popular culture. It is considered a real language, complete with books and resources for enthusiasts to learn and speak it. There are around 100 fluent speakers of Klingon, and there are even Klingon translations of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Sinosphere Information Technology does not offer Klingon translation services…yet!

Pig Latin

Pig Latin is a playful word game often used by children to create a secret or coded version of English words. To convert a word into Pig Latin, follow these simple rules:

1. Take the first consonant or consonant cluster of the word and move it to the end of the word. If the word starts with a vowel, you keep it as it is.
2. Add "ay" to the new end of the word.

For example:

• "Pig" becomes "igpay."
• "Latin" becomes "atinlay."

The origins of Pig Latin are unclear, but it has been a popular game among English-speaking children for generations. It serves as a fun way to communicate secret messages among friends and has appeared in various forms of media, including books, movies, and TV shows.

As it is not a true language, it lacks complex grammar or vocabulary rules, making it more of an entertaining diversion than a fully-functional communication system. 

To truly develop a conlang, speakers should move beyond simply substituting words for others in the same sentence structure, and take a holistic approach to viewing the fictional culture whose language they are creating.

Dothraki and Valyrian

Developed by linguist David J. Peterson for the TV series Game of Thrones, and based on the few words and phrases already provided by author George R.R. Martin in the books on which the show was based, Dothraki is the language spoken by the nomadic Dothraki people in the fictional world most famous for the characters of Westeros.

The Dothraki language has no written characters, but has still found an audience. It was first made famous in its fluent portrayal on the lips of actor Jason Momoa who, surprisingly, only has a background in English. Peterson won a competition among conlangers for the opportunity to design the language, and based it on Estonian, Inuktitut, Turkish, Russian, and Swahili.

Also consider Valyrian, another language crafted by David J. Peterson for Game of Thrones.

Valyrian has multiple forms and is spoken by the characters descended from the former empire of Valyria (analogous to our own Rome). Like other languages discussed here, in its world, Valyrian has been splintered among different locales and thus is beginning to be split into entirely different languages. This language draws inspiration from older Earth languages like Latin.

Parseltongue

This serpentine communication, famously expressed by Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort in J.K. Rowling’s iconic book series, is an example of how human/non-human differences impact the use of sounds. 

Since snakes have neither lips nor vocal folds, they cannot convey words the way humans do, which creates a somewhat difficult language barrier.  It’s tricky to classify Parseltongue as a language, as it is more a series of sounds than anything written, but it is certainly distinctive. Elements of this conlang are similar to Arabic, as well as Niger Congo dialects. 

Interestingly, in French, “Parseltongue” is translated fourchelangue, or “forked tongue.”  Can you guess in which language J.K. Rowling majored?

Elvish/Sindarin

In J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, he developed multiple Elvish languages, including Sindarin and Quenya.

Sindarin is perhaps the father of all modern conlangs, and, since Tolkien was himself a linguist, set a high standard for future fictional languages to come. Sindarin draws heavily from some of Tolkien’s favorite languages, Finnish, Old Norse, Welsh, and Irish.

Tolkien’s thousands of words and notes were built upon by dedicated fans, notably David Salo, enabling the completed lines of dialogue spoken in the Peter Jackson movies decades after Tolkien laid down his pen for the last time.

As mentioned in the introduction, languages change over time based on migration, social stimuli, and tastes. Tolkien established this principle in his own world, dividing Sindarin into the dialects of Doriathrin, Falathrin, North Sindarin, and Noldorin Sindarin. Sindarin itself grew from Common Telerin, itself a child of Common Eldarin, which came from Primitive Quendian, the original language of all Elves. The written script of Sindarin also changed from the Cirth to the Tengwar.

Outside of the world of Middle-earth, in a metatextual way, Tolkien also embarked on a linguistic evolution of his own as his tastes and conceptions of languages changed.

Na'vi

Developed by linguist Paul Frommer for the movie Avatar, Na'vi is the language spoken by the humanoid alien inhabitants of the planet Pandora.

Director James Cameron had written around thirty words early in the development of the film, but felt that a full language was needed to flesh out the world he was creating. To make the language easier on the actors to learn, Frommer used only elements found in the English language, but in a unique combination.

If the actors made mistakes, which they often did, these were attributed to the human characters’ tenuous grasp on the conlang or even incorporated by Frommer into the Na’vi language.

Frommer has taken an active role in the further development of his conlang, translating Avatar’s soundtrack lyrics, creating a compendium, and maintaining a blog on which he posts new words or clarifies grammar. Frommer has described the language as having a “Polynesian flavor.”

Newspeak

Created by George Orwell for his dystopian novel 1984, Newspeak is a fictional language designed to restrict freedom of thought and control the minds of the citizens of Oceania.

Unlike the other languages considered in this article, which change because society changes, in Orwell’s world society changes due to the restrictions of language. Put aptly by Orwell, “if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”

While Newspeak follows most rules of English grammar, words are far simpler, and continue to grow shorter while losing meaning. Newspeak serves as Orwell’s critique of the decline of the English language, which, aside from its lost artistry, represents a decrease in thought as its speakers lose the nuance granted by diversity of language. The population can only speak, as it were, in black and white, as the variety of colors that give language its beauty is thrown out. Newspeak was created as a warning to Orwell’s readers.

Groot

The alien tree-like creature, first introduced in Marvel Comics and later made famous by the Guardians of the Galaxy films, speaks the simplest language in this article, composed primarily of three words: “I am Groot” (Groot itself coming from the Dutch word meaning “tall”).

Logically, it seems that Groot’s inflections within sentences convey the meaning of other words and phrases. In fact, the character Thor states that Groot’s language could be taught in a class.

But James Gunn, the director of all three Guardians films, intended for Groot’s language to only be understood by those who connect with Groot over a period of time. Groot’s teammates learn to understand his speech by growing close with him from the first film to the second.

At the end of the third film, Groot finally speaks a phrase the audience can understand, meaning the viewers have finally reached that level of closeness with Groot.

Lapine

Richard Adams created the Lapine language for his 1972 book Watership Down.

The word “Lapine” comes from the French word for rabbit, lapin, which is appropriate since the novel’s main characters are rabbits. Adams provided several dozen distinct words for the rabbits’ names and objects encountered in their world. The conlang developed slowly and individually; in the words of Adams, “when the rabbits needed a word for something, so did I.”

As a result, some the words resemble the sound they describe, such as hrududu, meaning “motor vehicle,” while others just came from the author’s mind. The conlanger wanted to create a language that sounded “fluffy,” like rabbits themselves. Modern readers have seen the influences of Welsh, Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and even Arabic.

And More!

Constructed languages like these add depth and richness to fictional worlds and cultures, enhancing the experience and immersing audiences and readers. In that way, there is a connection between the real and the fictional, as immersion in any culture depends on a knowledge of its language.

Many conlangs have gained substantial followings outside of their original media, with enthusiasts learning and using these languages in fan communities. Though it may blend into the background of our days, language is truly a complex and miraculous phenomenon in all its forms, whether it has taken thousands of years or a decade to develop.

This year, I made the spontaneous decision to go to Japan for a week! I am happy to announce that I did in fact go and I loved my time in Japan. In this blog I would love to share with you my time in Japan and share some of my recommendations if you ever plan on going to Japan!

         Emalyn visiting Japan. 

Is it OK to go to Japan without speaking Japanese?

One of the questions that gets asked a lot when traveling: is Japan a good place to visit if you only speak English?

As someone who works with languages every day and has officially  visited Japan 😊, I wanted to touch upon this language barrier that many people seem to worry about. Surprisingly, language was no issue for me while I was in Japan!

Navigating Travel Signs and Public Announcements in Japanese

You don’t need to be worried about not being able to find your way around the country in Japan. The signs around Japan are in multiple languages, generally including Japanese, Korean, and English. Many times, I saw signs in Chinese too!

Let’s use the train, for example, all signs will be in English along with the other languages mentioned above. All the announcements that are made on the train will also be said in multiple languages including English, so you don’t miss your stop.

Conversations with Japanese Natives

The other question I hear a lot: Do Japanese people speak English?

When it comes to talking to people in Japan, you might be surprised to hear that many people in Japan actually know at least a little bit of English.

Of course, it’s always a great idea (and I strongly recommend this) to learn some basic Japanese before going to Japan. I’ve been studying Japanese for many years now but I am not completely fluent in the language so there are many words I do not know.

For example, I did not know the word for “plastic bag” in Japanese so whenever I would go to the コンビニ (Konbini) or convenience store I would get asked “Do you need a bag?” in Japanese but I would look confused. This then prompted the store clerk to ask me in broken English “Do you need a bagu?”

Situations like this happened many times but even when there were moments when we could not understand each other we would find solutions to understand one another!

Language barriers will happen when you travel, but this is an appropriate place to use translation apps like Google Translate. I did this many times.

So now with your Japanese language barriers solved, let’s go to Japan!😉

Osaka

Once I arrived in Japan, I met up with my friend in Osaka!

Osaka has always been at the top of my list of places to visit so I thought it would be a great idea to stay in Osaka for the majority of the time and travel to Tokyo and Kyoto for a day. I really recommend visiting Osaka while you are in Japan! It’s a beautiful place full of culture and so many iconic food choices.

Osaka is home to Dotonbori, where you can see the iconic Glico sign. This district is full of stores and so many restaurants and food stalls. This district is where I spent most of my time shopping and trying out new foods.

If you’re looking for a food that is popular in Osaka, I recommend trying Takoyaki while you’re visiting Dotonbori. Takoyaki is a food that consists of a batter that is put into a pan then filled with one piece of octopus then covered in batter again.

The food then comes out looking like this, covered in sauce and Japanese mayo and Bonito flakes. (Here's an example from Find Dining Lovers.)

Fun fact, “tako” (pronounced like "taco") in Japanese is actually “octopus”. Please be careful when eating this food, the inside is going to be very hot!

Another food that I ate while I was in Osaka specifically is called okonomiyaki. This food is a savory cabbage pancake that can either be prepared in front of you or simply served to you on a hot plate.

Okonomiyaki is one of my favorite Japanese foods and I can’t wait to go back to eat more! One fun thing about Dotonbori is that the streets and stalls are full of giant-looking food structures and signs. You can find a giant crab on top of a stall or a giant melon pan on top of a stall selling that food. It is such a fun place to explore!

Left: Okonomiyaki; Right: Dotonbori food stall

Kyoto

Although I was staying in Osaka for most of my trip, my friend and I did plan a day trip to Kyoto.

Let me tell you – Kyoto was my favorite place I’ve ever visited!

Kyoto if you don’t know, is well known for its matcha. Of course, I was excited to try lots of matcha powder – and they don’t just put it in drinks!

But also, this district is home to a Starbucks that looks like a traditional tea house. My friend and I wanted to visit this place first and then explore, so we first took a train from Osaka to Kyoto to visit a district called Ninenzaka, which is about a thirty-minute walk from the station.

Tea house Starbucks in Ninenzaka –
a must see when visiting Kyoto!

Ninenzaka

Throughout this area, you can find many cafes and shops with unique and local items. Make sure to also visit the many character shops while you are in Kyoto.

In Ninenzaka, I visited the Studio Ghibli store and the Sumikko Gurashi cafe and store. At these stores, I bought so many cute character items like stickers, keychains, and socks.

When it comes to food, we stopped at a cafe called Kumonocha cafe for a quick sweet. This cafe is known for its cloud-shaped mousse sweet, matcha, and other sweet drinks.

Afterwards, we found a shop selling tanghulu, which is a snack food that consists of skewered fruit covered in sugar and dried. I’ve always wanted to try the strawberry tanghulu, so we found a shop selling them. Please try this whenever you have the chance. 

Left: Kumonocha macha drink and cloud-like mousse.
Right: Strawberry Tanghulu – the best thing I ever had!

Arashiyama

After our time in Ninenzaka, I wanted to see Arashiyama so we hopped on a train and made our way over. Once getting off the train in Arashiyama, you can walk for a couple of minutes and you will find a park where you can see a beautiful river and where you can get some snacks like Mitarashi Dango.

If you don’t know how amazing this dessert is, mitarashi dango is a rice flour dumpling that is that usually comes skewered but is grilled first and then brushed with a sweet soy sauce glaze. One of my biggest regrets, while I was in Kyoto, is not having bought at least one more of these sweets!

After viewing the park area, we made our way over to find a rikisha. My friend insisted all day that we needed to find a rikisha and we did! A rikisha is a man pulled carriage, this ride/activity takes you around all of Arashiyama to view all of the best spots in the area.

Specifically in this area, we were taken to see the famous bamboo forest. But instead of walking the public path, we were taken through a path that only these carriages are allowed in. The person pulling the carriage acts as a tour guide telling you all of the facts they know about the area.

So many fun photos and videos were taken during this ride! After this ride, we made our way over to see some of the shops in the area. Here you can find multiple character shops and cafes such as the Miffy bakery and the Rilakkuma shop and café.

Of course, I had to buy so many things from these shops. If I could go back to Japan, I would spend so many more days in Kyoto.

 Left: Bamboo Forest; Center: River in Arashiyama, Kyoto; Right: Rilakkuma Store and Café

Tokyo

­­On my last day in Japan, my friend and I hopped on a local train to a station with a bullet train to make our way over to Tokyo. This was my first time ever riding a train that fast! It took us about a little under three hours to make it to Tokyo.

Once in Tokyo, we made it over to our first spot on our list, Harajuku. We had seen that there was a Sanrio (the company who made Hello Kitty) café in this area and wanted this experience.

We made our first stop at the Pompompurin café!! This was one of the cutest places I had ever been to. Immediately after entering the café, you are greeted by the very friendly staff and guided over to a table. We were each given a little card that is an invitation to Pompompurin’s party.

I ordered a rice dish known as omurice shaped as Pompompurin sleeping and an iced coffee with a cute little chocolate character on top. The food was actually very tasty! If you’re a Sanrio or Pompompurin fan, you should put this on your list of places to visit.

While we were waiting outside of the café, we saw a Shiba Inu café right across the street so of course we needed to go right after eating. We made our way over put our names on the list and continued exploring while we waited for our turn to play with the dogs. (If fashion is your thing, then I really recommend shopping in Harajuku. Here I bought a lot of accessories like earrings and hair clips.)

Once it was our turn at the Shiba Inu café we were greeted by so many dogs immediately when walking into the café!

In these types of cafes, a drink (juice or coffee) is included in the price you pay. I picked a mango juice and found a nice spot by some dogs. As we were sitting, one of the dogs came over to my friend and sat on her lap for a while but then walked over to me and sat on my lap!

Left: Pompompurin Café; Center: Pompompurin omurice; Right: Shiba Inu café

Shibuya

After our thirty minutes was finished with the dogs, we decided to go see the Nintendo Store and Pokémon Center.

Shibuya, Japan is a very busy place with tons of stores and people. If you are a fan of video games and anime, you’ll love this place!

The Nintendo Store was very busy but such a cool place to visit. There were so many life sized statues of some of my favorite video game characters like Isabelle from Animal Crossing.

After doing some shopping, we went to check out the Pokémon Center, and let me tell you how cool this place was! Like the Nintendo Store, there were a lot of life sized statues of characters from Pokémon and a lot of cute goodies from the game.

If you’re a big video game or Pokémon fan, you should definitely visit the Pokémon Center.

Left: Nintendo Store Shibuya; Center: Pokémon Center Shibuya; Right: Spicy miso ramen

After shopping for some stickers and other stationary from other stores like Tokyo Hands (if you love stationery and stickers like me, Japan is the place to find the best stuff) we made our way over for some dinner. For my last dinner in Japan, we picked a small ramen shop to try. I ordered a spicy miso ramen and it was delicious and surprisingly spicy!

Back to the United States

And like that, my trip to Japan had come to an end. The next day, I grabbed some breakfast from a konbini (convenience store) and took a train to the airport. 

Visiting Japan was the best thing I have ever done! If I could recommend one thing in Japan, it’s visiting Kyoto and riding a rikisha. Out of everything that I did while in Japan, the rikisha ride was just absolutely stunning and the most fun I’ve ever had! I cannot recommend this enough.

Please try everything you can while in Japan, if it’s food or an activity, try it! 😊 I hope you can visit this beautiful place one day!

Our language experts answer basic to more complex questions related to Multilingual Desktop Publishing (Multilingual DTP).

How to Use Multilingual Desktop Publishing to Keep Documents Sharp Across Languages

The goal of incorporating multilingual DTP into the translation process is to have design elements like images, headlines, image captions, and line and paragraph breaks all feel natural in every language. This gives each language’s audience the impression that the publication was created just for them.

Let’s explore why design matters to your target audience and how to avoid common multilingual DTP challenges.

Why you need multilingual desktop publishing services for your translated content

From brochures to employee handbooks, catalogs, and instruction manuals, your business's materials have important information to convey. Translating them into a new language is the first step in making that information accessible to a wider audience.

But don’t underestimate the importance of multilingual DTP. After all, those publications weren’t designed by accident. There’s a specific reason your designer chose the images, fonts, and layout that they did.

What does multilingual DTP involve when translating content? It is typesetting and formatting layouts with localization guidance from expert linguists to ensure your intended message is received correctly.

A document’s appearance is as much a part of its message as its text. The effect can be jarring when the text is translated, but the design is not.

Not only does the publication fail to convey its intended message, it can create a negative impression of your company.

The audience reading your translated brochure or manual will notice that it feels "off". All that white space, those margins, and line breaks aren't normal. Images may not make sense in the context of nearby words. The text, no matter how well translated, is difficult to absorb. The result can make the material feel cheap and untargeted, damaging the brand's reputation.

How Multilingual DTP Enhances the Message for The Reader

Multilingual DTP makes translated material feel natural in every language. The audience feels the publication is just for them, not a copy-paste knockoff of an English-language piece.

Multilingual DTP is crucial in localizing many documents to make them relevant to different cultures.

Multilingual DTP can help you avoid using inappropriate images or color palettes. Images in your publications should include people and settings that resemble what the audience sees daily. And you wouldn’t want the cheery message of your brochure to be lost on an audience who associates the color palette you chose with death.

Multilingual DTP combines the talents of page design experts and native-speaking translators to ensure the audience can focus on the message, not the words or look of the piece.

Technical Issues That Multilingual DTP Solves

To translate a formatted print piece like an employee handbook, the text is typically extracted from the source file, translated, then imported back into the document.

If you try this without the aid of a multilingual DTP specialist, several issues are likely to arise.

• Image Localization. Most frequently, localizing images involves translating text or adapting cultural references to the target language (such as colors, symbols, currency, and measurements such as imperial to metric). All while matching current brand guides, and ensuring the document is consistent with the quality of your source-language documents.
  
  
• Language expansion and contraction. Translating English into other languages can increase or decrease the lines of text by more than 30%. It will take your German manual two pages to say what your English manual said in one. Meanwhile, the Chinese manual will get the point across in two-thirds of a page, leaving awkward white space to fill. The text will flow unevenly across each document, breaking in odd places, and making images and graphics appear out of place.
  
  
• Flipped reading direction. English is read from left to right. Some languages, like Hebrew and Arabic, are read from right to left. Translating from one of these languages to another means reversing paragraph alignment, including flipping bullets and numbering to the opposite side of each paragraph, and possibly moving the binding to the opposite side of the page.
  
  

• Readability. Besides correcting alignment, multilingual DTP takes into account the movement of the reader’s eye. Rather than flowing the translated text around existing elements like images and callouts, a multilingual DTP expert mirrors the reading flow of the source material, placing these elements next to the text the original designer intended them to appear with.

• Illegible fonts. Your font may be an important part of your visual brand. But many fonts that look appealing to English-speaking readers are impossible to apply to languages like Korean or Simplified Chinese. A multilingual DTP specialist can apply a font that honors your brand tone while making the text easy to read.
  
  
• Re-sorted glossaries and lists. Glossaries and other alphabetized lists need to be re-sorted after translation to restore the entries to alphabetical order. Generated lists like tables of contents, cross-references, and indices also need to be revised to ensure they’re in the correct order, and the page numbers line up with the translated text.

The Multilingual DTP Process

To translate and format a document using multilingual DTP, we begin with the complete source-language file, such as an Adobe InDesign file. The text is exported to an interchange format, and imported into a translation tool.

The DTP specialist protects content and coding that should not be altered from the original document. They identify any embedded text - such as text-based graphics - to be handled separately.

After complete translation and proofreading, the DTP specialist imports the translated text back into the application. They then adjust the design to accommodate the translated content while remaining true to the document’s original message and feeling.

Common Challenges of Multilingual DTP

Some businesses recognize how important multilingual DTP is, but underestimate the challenges it poses.

Missing source files

One of the most common challenges DTP specialists face is a need for original source files. A business might design a brochure in InDesign, save it as a PDF, and use it for years before deciding they want to translate it for a new audience. By then, the InDesign file is long lost, or the designer who developed the file is no longer reachable.

The problem with translating a PDF is that it is not a source file. It is difficult - sometimes impossible - to edit the text and formatting in these files. That’s one of the primary reasons people use PDFs: to preserve a document’s appearance.

It could be less work to start over and create the brochure from scratch in InDesign or another design application.

Source files might also include graphics with embedded text, which is extracted separately for translation. Manually replacing this text can be time-intensive, particularly if it’s laid over a photograph. This manual process adds scope in terms of cost and timing to a project.

Quality assurance

Ambitious do-it-yourselfers have been known to copy their text into an AI-powered translator and then copy and paste the text back into their document with no quality assurance process.

Even if the machine translates all the words correctly - which is unlikely - it won’t make sure the design elements of the message weren’t lost in translation.

Does a reference to “miles per hour” resonate with an audience that uses the metric system? Do dates match the audience’s format, whether they use “day-month-year” or “month-day-year?” Were currencies correctly converted?

Sinosphere is ISO certified, meaning our Multilingual DTP specialists adhere to strict internationally recognized standards for quality to ensure mistakes like this don’t happen, resulting in a more accurate translation.

Designs are not intended for translation

You can make the multilingual DTP process much faster and smoother by keeping future translations in mind when you design your source-language document.

Incorporating simple layouts, grouped elements, white space, and other design techniques at the outset makes it much easier for a DTP specialist to adjust the layout later while preserving the original feel. Check out this post for tips on preparing an InDesign file for future translation.

Some images may need to be completely recreated, because there isn’t a great way to localize the image to any language. This most often applies to creative materials, such as marketing campaigns.

That’s where your global marketing strategy should include a localization expert to help you create new ideas that are just as great as the original marketing campaign.

Choosing Your Multilingual DTP Specialist

A multilingual DTP specialist is just one step of the translation and localization journey. We've found if you need multilingual DTP, you need a translation partner. Especially if you want to create effective materials and not spend any more time and money than necessary on your translation projects.

As you can see, there are many things to remember before distributing your documents across cultures. There is a reason we encourage companies to take their multilingual goals seriously when selecting a reliable translation partner. 

The ultimate goal of using multilingual DTP is to preserve your brand's reputation and make information more accessible for your audience - wherever they may be.

Localization Strategy Consultation for Multilingual DTP Projects

Sinosphere is an established authority in multilingual DTP translation services. Since 1995, we’ve used expert linguists and tested methodologies to help companies effectively translate any file and spread their messages across the globe.

Sinosphere has an expert team of translators, DTP specialists, and engineers to ensure on time delivery of quality translations. Our multilingual DTP experts work in both Mac and PC, using the most popular authoring, layout, and graphics software on the market. We deliver documents ready for publication for all file types.

Multilingual DTP services are available in every language we work in, including difficult-to-format languages like Arabic, Hebrew, and Thai. Our ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 17100:2015 certifications guarantee our work meets the highest quality standards.

Give all your multilingual audiences the same brand experience by incorporating multilingual DTP into your translation process. Schedule a consultation, and take advantage of Sinosphere’s decades of localization experience.

Are you looking for more translation tips? Join 5,000+ professionals who receive the best translation tips straight to your inbox!

Subscribe

In March, 1995, we opened our doors as an IBM AS/400 software localization service provider. As our clients – happy with the work we delivered – came back to us with requests for additional services, we rapidly expanded our offering to include localization of DOS and Windows software, translation of websites, online Help systems, eLearning courses, documentation, audio, and video. Additional services included complex multilingual desktop publishing, event/conference interpreting, and consulting services.

We serve a diverse range of industries including software, not-for-profit associations, manufacturing, healthcare/medical, training, travel/hospitality, and entertainment. Our clients are located in North America, Europe and Asia, and range from small, local companies to Fortune 500 multinationals.

Sinosphere’s dedicated team of professionals, coupled with our Worldwide Partner Network, afford scalability and flexibility in delivering high quality linguistic services on time, and within established budgets. These are the people who make it happen for our clients, project after project, year after year.

I founded Sinosphere as a trusted partner to organizations who needed to make their products and information available in the languages of their target audiences. Twenty-five years later, this continues to be the primary motivation for our existence. Our core values of quality, client satisfaction, continuous improvement, and long-term relationship building that I started the company with in 1995 are stronger than ever in 2020. In 2021, we were awarded certification for ISO standards 9001:2015 and 17100:2015, further emphasizing our commitment to these core values.

To our loyal clients, our global partners, and our incredible Sinosphere team, thank you for everything you do for Sinosphere. Because of you, our Company is well positioned for the next 25 years and beyond.

Dear Friends of Sinosphere!

As Q3 comes to a close, I am astounded at how quickly 2023 has gone by. It’s no wonder, with so much going on. I’d like to share with you some of what has been happening at Sinosphere since our last update.

Our Recurring Theme:

Our strategic investments in people, resources, and continual improvement are designed to ensure consistently positive outcomes for our clients.

Building Our Team's Culture

Because of our RemoteFirst environment, a growing number of the Sinosphere team is located outside of the Chicago area. While local employees may select to work from home or the office, it is a constant challenge to keep people “connected”.

In order to connect colleagues who only know each other through online meetings, we flew everyone to Sinosphere's Global Headquarters from points east (South Carolina), west (Washington), north (Minnesota, Michigan), and south (Missouri) in June. We all worked together and everyone got to know their colleagues through a weeklong series of meetings and team-building activities.

Beyond building our own team, we are also involved in helping build other teams.

Armstrong International, an Sinosphere client since 2010, invited us to participate and present at their first-ever Global Marketing Retreat earlier this month in St. Joseph, MI. As their valued translation partner, we were honored to be included as part of their team, and ecstatic to take part in the global marketing discussions that ensued during the week. We look forward to participating in more localization-centric workshops with our clients and prospects.

We were thrilled to do this for Armstrong International, and are excited to do more workshop consulting in the future.

Proving Our Continual Improvement

With the results of this year’s Client Satisfaction Survey compiled, I am extremely pleased to report that 98% of our clients are happy with Sinosphere's service – quite an achievement.

Client Satisfaction is what ISO is all about, and soliciting your feedback every year gives us an opportunity to:

• gauge your satisfaction with our performance.
• listen to you concerning where we need to improve.

make us aware of any additional services that your organization needs and that Sinosphere may be able to provide.

Of course, there are areas we need to work on improving as well as additional services that we are looking into eventually offering. More to come on that in a future edition of Sinospherespectives.

And speaking of ISO, I am thrilled to report that Sinosphere passed its second ISO Surveillance Audit with flying colors on May 18th, allowing us to maintain our 9001:2015 and 17100:2015 certifications for another year. 

Welcome to Sinosphere!

Our most valuable asset has always been the Sinosphere professionals, without whom there would be no Sinosphere.

I am excited to introduce the latest additions to the Sinosphere family.

Jolie Parker joined Sinosphere this past May as a Project Manager. She's been in the localization industry for over eight years as a Project Manager Lead, Project Support Specialist, and IT Technician. Jolie has an M.A. in Translation Studies from the University of Hull (Yorkshire, UK) and is fluent in French and Spanish. She works remotely from her home near Seattle, WA.

Elizabeth Chivers has been active in the translation and localization industry since 2012, taking on various roles, including translator, reviewer, interpreter, Translation Manager, and Language Access Coordinator at several companies in both North and South America. Elizabeth received her M.A. in Translation & Interpreting from the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) and is fluent in Spanish and German. Elizabeth joined Sinosphere as a Project Manager in August and works remotely from her home in suburban Pittsburgh, PA.

The search for talented and experienced localization professionals anxious to join a dynamic team focused on quality and client satisfaction continues.

As always, everyone here at Sinosphere is grateful for the opportunity to share our news with you, and we thank you for your interest.

Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions, comments, or suggestions for the next edition of Sinospherespectives.

We look forward to touching base again closer to the holidays.

Cheers!
Ralph Strozza
Chief Executive Officer
Sinosphere Information Technology

Legal Requirements First: Do employee handbooks need to be translated?

If you're not sure if you need your handbook translated, here's what we can tell you:

As an HR professional, you know that federal law plays a large part in employment agreements. One requirement is that employees must have access to HR documents in a language that they can understand. This could include the employment contract, employee handbook, company policies, pay stubs, and benefits information.

So then answer the question: Does your company hire multilingual staff? Or contractors, vendors, or partners that may have English as a Second Language? Translating employee handbooks might be crucial for you.

Additional legal language requirements may apply depending on your location, industry, subject matter, and audience. We highly recommend consulting with any compliance organizations with which your company works and asking if they have multilingual language-access requirements.

Laws aside, it's important that documents be translated accurately for your employees. Translating documents into a reader’s native language has been shown to increase comprehension. Many HR-related documents might fly under the radar and not get translated despite the need for multilingual employment documents.

We list the types of handbooks that are commonly translated later in this article but list other HR documents that are commonly translated in the Ultimate Guide to Translation for Human Resources.

Prepare for Translating Employee Handbook: Do Your Translation Homework Before Seeking a Quote

So you've decided you need your employee handbook translated... now what? 

If you’re considering an external translator or translation company, you need to be able to answer the following questions:

1. What languages (and dialects) do you need for translation?
2. How much localization is required?
3. Do you need one handbook translated? Or are there other handbooks, policies, websites, and documents? (Think: does your handbook refer to a vacation policy or insubordination policy?)
4. What are the file formats? Word Documents and PowerPoints? Or Adobe InDesign files with PDFs?
5. Do any of those documents require Multilingual DTP or Engineering?
6. Can you provide any information, such as a style guide, glossary, or translation memory, to assist with the translation?
7. Will your company provide a secondary review with someone that speaks the target language?

Some of these answers might have tricky responses.

For example, say you need a handbook translated into Spanish - but which dialect? There are over 7 dialects of Spanish to choose from. A localization professional will help you pick the dialect that's right for your audience. 

This article will help you answer these questions and get you started translating your employee handbook.

You can also meet with one of our experts in managing translation projects for a complimentary localization strategy session.  Sinosphere is happy to help and get your questions answered.

How much does it cost to translate employee handbook(s)?

This question can only be answered accurately with a quote, mainly because there are too many variables that impact the cost.

These are the biggest factors that will impact the cost of a translation:

1. What’s your target language(s)?
2. How many pages is your document? Is it multiple documents?
3. Do you need Multilingual DTP or Engineering? (Translating images, audio, video, websites, certifications, quizzes, or eLearning courses)
4. How much localization is required?

Essentially, if you need to translate a Word Document with just text and nothing else, expect lower costs and fast turnaround. Have an eLearning course with videos and images? The intricacies of the file type will cause a higher cost and longer delivery times.

This is why we recommend looping in your translators when you are writing the English version. They can help you make decisions that will make localization (and saving cash) easier when it comes time to develop the multilingual versions. 

Types of Handbooks to Translate

If you’re not sure which documents you should translate, some common examples are below. We also share in another article additional HR documents that are commonly translated.

Types of handbooks to translate:

• Administration Handbook
• Sales Handbook
• Customer Service Handbook
• Fulfillment Handbook
• HR Handbook
• Marketing Handbook
• Safety Handbook
• Maintenance Handbook
• Production Handbook
• International Student Handbook Translation

Other types of HR documents to translate:

• Employment Policies
• Employee Guidebook
• Code of Conduct
• Compensation and development
• Benefits and Perks
• Working Hours, PTO, and Vacation
• Employee Resignation and Termination

In addition to documentation, a good translation company can help you translate any training that goes along with your documents, including:

• computer-based training, tests, certifications, and surveys
• online courses or modules
• new employee orientation

What is Multilingual DTP, and do you need it for your handbook?

Multilingual Desktop Publishing (or Multilingual DTP) means the translator can also localize images and design files and not just Word documents. Translators like Sinosphere can translate from any file type, including InDesign, Microsoft Office Suite, PowerPoint, PDF, or any other authoring software. 

So do you need Multilingual DTP for your handbook? Only if your handbook has images or graphic elements.

If a Multilingual DTP specialist is needed for your project, they will adjust:

• Text expansion and pagination. German text requires more space than English text, which could affect the layout and format. This could add or remove pages, depending on the text.
• Justification and leading. This is your basic right/left/center alignment (among your other complicated options like text on a path). And the spacing between lines to ensure legibility.
• Font and character matching and compatibility. How does your Helvetica font translate to Arabic? (Your DTP specialist will have the font, and make sure it’s not the equivalent of using Comic Sans in Arabic!)
• Right-to-Left languages. Consider languages like Arabic and Hebrew may have to have a page completely reformatted to accommodate the new alignment.
• Image and graphic localization. Sometimes this means recreating the text elements in the graphic, but sometimes it means finding or creating a brand-new graphic.
• Proofreading and quality control of the final document. A DTP specialist will ensure the translated file meets the expected digital or print specs and that you have everything you need when you want to update the document in the future.

Using native design tools to format the translated content keeps it consistent with the original file. With Multilingual DTP, you can translate:

• Images, graphic elements, and videos;
• Interactive Employee Handbooks;
• Instructor Led Training;
• Any employee educational course, including audio, video, websites, quizzes, and comprehension tests.

Multilingual DTP goes far beyond documents and handbooks. Multilingual DTP can be applied to any image or graphic anywhere, like on this multilingual website Sinosphere translated.

The bottom line is: if you have a graphic you need to translate, you need a translator with a Multilingual DTP specialist. 

United States Language Example: Translate an Employee Handbook to Spanish

Why call out Spanish? Because this is the most commonly requested HR translation service in the United States. But it’s also a great example of how a language can have many dialects to consider in translation.

Many companies are hiring Spanish-speaking individuals for new employment talent, even for domestic companies that do not operate globally.

According to the United States Census Bureau's 2019 American Community Survey, approximately 41.5 million people in the United States speak Spanish at home, representing around 12.6% of the total population.

When it comes to English-to-Spanish document translation, there are many different dialects of Spanish. Specifying "English to Spanish translation" isn’t enough – here are just a few of the Spanish dialects available:

• Latin American Spanish
• European Spanish (Spain)
• Mexican Spanish
• USA Spanish
• Universal/International Spanish
• Catalan (Spanish adjacent, or part of the Spanish language family. Think of how a yellow labrador is in the dog family)
• Galician (Spanish adjacent – similar to Catalan)

Speaking with a localization expert can help you pick the right Spanish dialect that will resonate with the reader.

International Language Example: Canada Requires English and French

Canada is a bilingual country with both English and French as its official languages. Businesses in Canada are required to include both French and English on any packaging and labels, and French has to be listed first.

This also applies to:

• Employment Documents
• Signage
• Customer Service
• Websites
• Interpreting Meetings and Events

(Learn about the localization differences between Canadian French and European French here.)

Find a Subject Matter Expert for Employee Handbooks

You need your translator to be a subject matter expert in three specific ways:

1. An expert in the target language and culture.
2. An expert in project management and how to create fast, accurate translations.
3. An expert in your industry (in this case, HR handbooks, employment policies, legal contracts).

As you might imagine, federal laws and regulations require accuracy when being translated. It's critical that your HR translator understands and can accurately translate legal terms to be understood in the target language. An accurate translation can help limit miscommunication at best and legal action, injury, or even death. 

Look for an HR translator who is also a subject matter expert in employment law or has vast experience translating employment documents and policies. 

For additional assurance you’re working with a qualified translator, see if the translation agency holds ISO certifications. Learn more about why ISO Certifications matter.  

Ideally, your translation service should be such an expert at the language and subject matter the reader will never know the handbook was translated in the first place.

Consistent Translation of Information for Employees

It's important to maintain consistency between translated documents. If you have reference materials from previous translations, you'll want to provide those in addition to source files as soon as possible. 

Example: If you call your employees “teammates”, you want to make sure they are called “teammates” every time, and not a mix of other terms like “employees”, “staff”, “crew members”, or “associates”.

Here are some ways to help keep a translation consistent when you translate documents:

• Write with the same jargon and references across all the English company documents, and share the jargon and references with your translator. Like in the “teammate” example, share that with your translator so you can find a word of equal meaning in the target language.
• Share your Brand Guide. Or, at the very least, use the same branding and formatting for the translated documents. Consistent branding signals are official company documents. 
• Create a Glossary or Style Guide. Similar to a brand guide, but for translation. You or a company like Sinosphere can create these documents that outline the tone and certain specific translation preferences.
• Use one translation service that offers a Translation Memory, especially if you’re translating into multiple languages. It saves money over time and keeps your translations consistent.

Adding these steps to your translation process will help ensure an efficient and accurate translation and that all rights, responsibilities, and conditions are clear to your employees.

What is a Translation Memory?

Speaking of consistency, a translation memory (TM) can help with any translation project, especially when it comes to human resources translation services. TM is a linguistic database used by a translator to help leverage words and phrases during the translation process.

Once a word, phrase, or sentence (referred to as segments) is translated, it becomes part of the database. Translators using a translation memory tool can take advantage of the automation the tool provides, similar to using find-and-replace in Word. 

Leveraging a TM allows for quicker turnaround times, increased efficiency, and consistent translations (and faster translation keeps costs down). Make sure you ask your translation service if they utilize a TM in their process.

You should also own your TM. We say should because Sinosphere sees your TM as our intellectual property. It is a digital asset your team hangs on to for future translations, even if you choose to use a different translator or translation company. But not all translators see it this way, so it's good to ask the question.

Write for Localization and Multilingual Access

There is a growing need to provide access to information in multiple languages. And there's no better place to begin than with the employee handbook.

Localization is key when performing HR translation for global companies—but what is it? While translation uses the same words in another language, localization adapts the content for a culture or region. The translation is just one part of the localization process.

A skilled HR translation service will tailor the translation to the target cultural audience.

To  localize your multilingual handbook, do two things:

1. Provide information to your translator on the reader’s demographics and how much localization you’ll need (the translator should also be able to provide consultative advice on this as well).
2. Write your English text in a way that is easy to translate. (See articles linked below.)

How do you translate a document professionally?

For the most professional, consistent translations, we recommend using a professional translation agency with ISO Certifications, quality analysis processes, and historical proof of delivering consistent, accurate translations.

We recommend checking out these three additional resources for professional translation:

1. 8 Tips When Writing for a Multilingual Audience - Tips on how to write your English sources so they translate easily with less hassle to you.
2. How to Choose a Translation Partner eBook - Learn how to interview and vet potential translation services.
3. Schedule a Complimentary Localization Strategy Session and get started with an Sinosphere a localization specialist today.

Get a Professional Translation Service for Your Human Resource Materials

 Sinosphere has an expert team of translators, DTP specialists, and engineers to deliver accurate translations according to schedule. Our proven expertise in human resources translation services quickly delivers accurate information to support your employees. 

Are you looking for more translation tips? Join 5,000+ professionals that receive the best translation tips straight to your inbox!

Subscribe

*https://educaloi.qc.ca/en/capsules/language-laws-and-doing-business-in-quebec/#:~:text=Employers%20can't%20fire%20or,a%20language%20other%20than%20French

Chat GPT can write code! It can write copy! But…

Can ChatGPT translate?

ChatGPT, Bard, Google Translate, Azure AI, and similar bots can translate, but a human should  always be involved in the translation process. AI and Machine Translators may be able to write and translate but you need to understand potential issues when you use ChatGPT for translation.

Find out if Chat GPT is your friend or foe. If we don’t answer your question in this article, email us here so we can.

ChatGPT: Not new, just different

If you haven’t heard of ChatGPT yet, don’t worry – we interviewed ChatGPT, so it can tell you itself:

Sounds perfect, but notice it doesn’t mention translation quality. So…

Is ChatGPT good for translation?

It depends on what you’re translating and if you have a good quality analysis step in your translation process. 

Machine Translation tools powered by artificial intelligence like ChatGPT or Google Translate have been around for years, and accuracy is always a concern when using them. Simply take a look at some often-hilarious translations.

New Machine Translation tools like ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and Microsoft’s Azure AI approach the task differently. Rather than translating word-for-word, the tool tries to understand the message behind the text. Then it performs the translation.

Just like a human translator, right?

Not quite.

Essentially, ChatGPT is an improved version of the predictive text feature on your phone. It uses a probability distribution to guess the next word in  a sequence.

ChatGPT bases this prediction on information it’s been fed, which can be inaccurate or biased. (We’ll dive into this more later in the article.)

This large language model (LLM) technology is how Bard and Azure can handle tasks like writing an essay, email, or limerick. The AI guesses what you want, looks for examples, and mimics them.

The hidden issues of using AI for translation

Because AI platforms like ChatGPT base their output on input scraped from other sources, we need analyze the possible issues that can occur when using it for translation:

Issue #1: Inaccurate & Emotionless Translations

Critics complain that AI can’t be relatable and can’t connect emotionally. But  it also can’t read the room.

Chatbots choose their words based on probability. For example, if they encounter many instances of the word “pooch” being used for “dog,” they’ll include “pooch” in their essay on dog training.

They have no idea if that word is derogatory or offensive. Imagine instead we’re talking about people instead of dogs…

Applying this to localization, imagine the potential dangers of counting on a computer program to translate a marketing email for a foreign country.  Quality control won’t be able to help you here!

Issue #2: Information Privacy Isn’t Guaranteed

When we asked Chat GPT about translation and information security, it responded:

Confusing? Let us translate:

ChatGPT says “…it is not stored or used for any purpose other than generating a response…”

This means: Information pasted into ChatGPT is still being saved somewhere. This means it can be accessed by someone and used without your permission.

If you load private information into ChatGPT for translation, that information isn’t used for future ChatGPT answers. But it is still stored, even if the current model of ChatGPT isn’t accessing it.

As far as why it’s saved and who can access it – we don’t know. That means all they have to do is change their terms and conditions to access past answers and poof – your confidential content is fair game. It could be the company that owns ChatGPT, someone who hacks the company, or marketing agencies targeting you.

During the interview, Chat GPT went on to state the following risks/disclaimers over and over:

• “text loaded into ChatGPT may be visible to the user and anyone else who has access to the device or platform”
• “avoid sharing sensitive or confidential information”
• “consult any relevant laws or regulations that may apply in your jurisdiction [regarding what information is considered private or confidential]”

You don’t know who or what will have access to the information you provide to online AI tools.

Issue #3: ChatGPT Doesn’t Consider Copyright Laws In Its Answers

… except to give a disclaimer that ChatGPT’s answers might infringe on someone’s intellectual property. That’s not ChatGPT’s problem, though, according to the previous image.

ChatGPT has a lot of content, but we might not know who owns it or if it has any intellectual property restrictions.

Want to translate the word coffee into ten languages? ChatGPT might not be accurate, but it won’t be copyright infringement.

However, if you ask for it to draft a mission statement and translate it into ten languages, you might just end up playing with text that is owned by Coca-Cola. But that’s your problem, not ChatGPT’s.

Does ChatGPT localize translations?

Short answer: it tries its best, but ChatGPT’s best isn’t always right.

Instant translators (like ChatGPT or Google Translate) have always struggled with the many ways to translate an idea or phrase. This flexibility is one of the complexities of human language that machines don’t quite understand

Just because a machine translation tool has provided what it thinks is the best translation doesn’t mean it’s right.

The new generation of tech is more likely to understand that “raining cats and dogs” should translate to “raining heavily” and not “calicos and cockapoos are falling from the sky.” But it still has its limits.

Shortly after ChatGPT made its buzzy debut, Lain Murray, professor of machine learning at the University of Edinburgh, tested its ability to translate a particular Chinese phrase.

The simple sentence is Murray’s version of an unbreakable riddle – he has tested it on every commercial machine translator, each one has gotten it wrong. ChatGPT was no different, except the cheeky app tried to convince Murray that either a) he was wrong or b) the problem was with the source material.

A team of researchers at Tencent AI Lab might have a reason for why the chatbot struggled. They found that the more similar the source and target languages are, the more accurately ChatGPT can translate. It’s pretty confident translating German into English,  but using a lot more guesswork to translate English to Chinese.

In Murray’s riddle, the machine mistranslated a character that means an action never takes place and used a character that implied it sometimes takes place.

This seems minor in an academic sense. But what if the material being translated is an employee safety manual, legal statute, or medical textbook?

Minor discrepancies can lead to major issues.

Can ChatGPT replace translators?

Not in the near future. We’ve established that AI software like ChatGPT and Bard have a hard time translating accurately and have no idea if they’re being offensive or not. Are there any other issues?

Well, since you asked...

Most AI has to be fed data to produce an answer. But how do you know if the data is good? Accurate? Recent? Complete?

You don’t.

Because the data feeding ChatGPT is cut off at a specific date, the AI can’t consider recent events that could make references appear tone-deaf or insensitive. Since languages change with time and culture, this will be problematic as AI ages.

When we asked ChatGPT if it was good at translating languages, the tool admitted its shortcomings. In the machine’s words, “translations may require human review and correction.”

To summarize the challenges of using any AI like ChatGPT for translation:

• Accuracy: ChatGPT may not produce accurate translations, especially for complex or technical content.
• Context: ChatGPT may misunderstand the prompt, style, or tone and not consider cultural or language sensitivities because AI can’t detect cultural nuances.
• Confidentiality: ChatGPT may not protect private information
• Bias: Like all machine learning models, ChatGPT can be biased and offensive in its translations.
• Limited language support: ChatGPT can’t translate every language.
• Limited technical ability: Chat GPT is not as advances as other professional translation tools on the market
• Text only support: ChatGPT can’t provide translations based on an images, videos, or audio files.

Using ChatGPT as your only translator isn’t a good idea.

Does ChatGPT have a place in the translation workflow?

Only as long as it isn’t your only step in the translation workflow. You can use ChatGPT in your translation workflow if it's surrounded by additional steps for:

• Grammatical and spelling proofreading
• Localization for cultural nuances
• Formatting (it’s easier to format Spanish, but have you ever tried to format Arabic?)

ChatGPT could perform these same tasks as other machine translation tools:

• Assist translators in providing even better, faster, and more efficient translations of spoken or written text.
• Reduce the time and cost of translation services, allowing translators to work more efficiently and deliver translations faster without sacrificing quality.
• Make translation services more affordable and accessible, especially for small businesses and individuals.

ChatGPT could be used as a helpful tool for translating simple, low-consequence messages like:

• internal emails;
• customer service chats;
• communications when traveling in foreign countries;
• translating foreign documents into English for information and analytical purposes only.

So whatever you use for, we’ll leave you with this quote from ChatGPT:

Because only one thing can grasp the ever-changing meanings and contexts of culture language: the human brain.

No matter the project size, language, or deadline, Sinosphere‘s expert team  keeps your translations accurate. Professionals will find a foreign language partner in Sinosphere Information Technology.

Are you looking for more translation tips? Join 5,000+ professionals that receive the best translation tips straight to your inbox!

Subscribe

Other Related Articles

7 Simple Steps To Prepare For Document Translation

8 Tips for Writing with a Multilingual & Cross-Cultural Audience in Mind

Leaving Italy

I pretty much lived in the same town since I was 13 years old. A town where you know everyone and everyone knows you or someone in your family.

They went to school with your cousin, worked with your uncle, or live on the same street as your grandma. Little town, little world. 12 thousand people, 3 churches, 6 pizzerias, and 5 ice-cream shops – including the best of the area. I still go every time I’m in Italy.

Licorice ice cream is my favorite. I cannot find it in other countries! (We ended up started making it at home.)

But there is also the part that I do not miss that much: nothing changes.

Maybe a store closes and a new one open, but that’s it. No new buildings, apart from housing. When a big bookstore opened just outside the town limits everyone was so excited. That is another place I still go for shopping every time I can.

And now I find that town a little tight. Beautiful sceneries from the Prosecco hills and from our historic river Piave, but tight. I miss the people of course – it’s what I miss the most. And that is why I keep going back as often as possible.

Beginnings in England

I left Italy for the first time to live and work in England when I was 22 years old. It was a short stay of only 4 months, but I learned more about different cultures and languages there than during my time in Italy. While living with some family friends for a few months, I got a job at a nearby kebab joint. It was unbelievable how much my life had changed. I went from a small town of 12,000 people to riding my second-hand bicycle to work in a city of more than 1 million people.

Meeting new people was fascinating – they came from countries I have never visited. Even if I spent only a few minutes with someone from a new culture, it was obvious how different their culture and language was from mine.

I was introduced to new foods and flavors I was tasting for the first time. I have never had “gammon” before, which is a simple traditional dish. Or a real Indian curry. Then at 22 I went to an Indian restaurant for the first time – and I loved it!

That’s where it all started. My hunger grew from foreign cuisines to the cultures themselves. England was just the beginning.

Next Stop - Finland

After a short return home to Italy, I found myself in Finland in an internship required by my university. Upon completion of the internship, I returned to Italy – but my husband and I packed our car and moved 1500 miles to Helsinki, Finland.

As the capital of Finland, and an average temperature of 30-40°F, Helsinki was an entirely different experience itself.  Again, I did things I could have never done back in my town, like walking on a very deep-frozen lake at -22°F, and spending time in a traditional-smoke sauna in a forest.

Eating straight from out of the smoker the most fresh and tasty salmon I have ever tasted. They have some “weird” food for an Italian to try, like reindeer, elk, Karelian pasties, or Kalakukko, a traditional food made from fish baked inside a loaf of bread. Some of which I tried, but some I couldn’t.

I did not enjoy the intense cold, but the snow made the scenery so clean and beautiful that I will never forget my time in Finland.

Something Different: Germany

Once again, we were ready to leave the cold of Finland and head to Germany. Here I enjoyed the tradition of summer Sunday BBQs, the Christmas markets, and the vast wild nature Germany still has.

But my biggest lesson in Germany? Do not judge.

Coming from Italy, the land of high fashion and appearances, it was in my DNA to judge based on looks and first impressions – but not in Germany. Germans don’t care as much about your clothes or the kind of car you drive. I found myself freed of the negativity of judgment, and it completely changed my perspective on life.

A Dream Come True: The United States of America

Once again, I had the chance to fulfill a dream of mine: moving to the United States. This time it was for the long term. My husband and I packed our bags a final time in 2016 and landed in Dallas, TX, for 5 years, and then one last move to Charleston, SC, and we have been here ever since.

In Texas I had to very quickly tune up my hearing because it was hard to understand the Texas accent. Still, I hadn’t mastered that completely after 5 years. But we enjoyed the long summer and the short winter. Texas had us taste the best BBQ we ever had. What I regret a little, is that we haven’t seen a lot of it. We went to the gulf coast and saw the main cities, but still, there is so much we haven’t seen. After all, it is the second largest State of the USA, after Alaska.

But our home now is in Charleston, SC. A very different location that Dallas, TX. 150.000 people against the 1.2 Mil.

Surrounded by water (marshes, rivers, ocean), with a beautiful historic downtown, it’s a much more livable place for our family and us.

There is a lot of fresh fish here, but this is still the south, and “unfortunately,” it’s fried 99% of the time and I think sometimes it’s a shame they fried so much of that fresh tasty fish; but this a cultural tradition that goes back hundreds of years and started as an African American tradition, so it is not just “fried fish”. 

Charleston still has a lot to teach me, and I can’t wait to keep broadening my horizons.

- Arianna Martin
Project Manager

Get more content like this and subscribe to our newsletter! 

Subscribe Now

Other Related Articles

8 Tips for Writing with a Multilingual Audience in Mind

Website Localization for International Success

How to Translate InDesign Documents Quickly and Accurately

We decided that, after almost twenty-eight years, it was time to update the corporate mission statement which has guided us from 1995 until this year:
 

Assist our clients in increasing revenue, market share, and user satisfaction by providing the highest quality translation and interpretation services in the industry.
 

With much consideration, care, and input from the entire Sinosphere team, our new mission statement is:
 

We create stronger relationships through language, and relationships create a better world. Sinosphere connects people of different cultures worldwide through language while creating long-term partnerships that bridge cultures and remove language barriers.
 

Our updated mission reflects a more altruistic approach to our business activities: eliminating language barriers in order to improve the world we live in. This also reinforces our core objective of creating relationships to help our clients achieve their goals by delivering quality language services.

I'm excited and proud to share this new mission statement as an essential step in Sinosphere's rebrand initiative.

We have consistently increased our investments in people, technology, and processes in order to ensure that total client satisfaction continues to be top of mind. And we will continue to improve your experience with Sinosphere this year with better delivery, an elevated brand experience, and a new website.

Speaking of which...

P.S. - A redesigned sinosphereinc.com is coming soon!

Our current website has served us well, but to align the new mission statement and new Sinosphere brand we are building, we will be unveiling a completely redesigned Sinosphere website this year. We look forward to providing a better user experience and giving you a chance to test drive it.

Our Investment in People

The most critical investment we are making this year is the expansion of our team of language professionals. Our dedicated, caring, and talented team forms the nucleus for providing the highest quality translations and the best possible client service.

• Emalyn Caballero – Project Assistant
• Erich Fang – Sales Support Representative
• Arianna Martin – Project Manager
• Stephanie Felt – Project Assistant
• Philip Pittsford – Director of Sales
• Anthony Mattucci – Director of Delivery
• Cambria Morrow – Project Manager

Each employee on our team brings a unique set of skills and experiences, and all have been hired to help us achieve our ultimate goal of delivering total client satisfaction. We look forward to the contributions each of them will make to Sinosphere.

Sinosphere is Proud of Our ISO Certifications

In 2020, Sinosphere began the process toward achieving two ISO certifications that ownership deemed strategic to long-term success:

• 9001:2015:              Quality Management Systems
• 17100:2015:            Translation Services

We were awarded both certifications in June 2021 and undergo annual surveillance audits to ensure continuous compliance with the standards. We view our ISO certifications as mission-critical, and maintaining them is a point of pride for our organization.

 Achieving and maintaining our ISO certifications requires a continuous investment in money, time, and commitment. However, we feel strongly that the ROI is being able to deliver on our promise of quality, service, and total client satisfaction.

The beginning of each year is a time to identify upcoming goals. In accordance with our updated mission, we remain dedicated to creating stronger relationships in order to create a better world. For each of us.

Here's to a happy, healthy and successful 2023!

Sincerely,

Ralph Strozza, CEO
Sinosphere Information Technology

P.S. - If you missed it, check out the Sinospherespectives update from September 2022.