Importance of Proofreading In Translation and Transcription Business

Translation has helped companies cross boundaries that seemed impossible a few years ago. This has been achieved due to the availability of localized content created after translating an original page, and making it available in native languages across different parts of the world. The importance of translation is well accepted by companies now and is not something that can be understated.

While translation has certainly enabled companies look beyond geographical confinements, the importance of proofreading, and the role it has played in the upsurge can't be ignored. A badly reviewed / proofread content can twist the intended meaning entirely, and in worst case spell doom for a business; that's why proofreading matters in most businesses, dependent on online sales.

Apart from companies involved in the translation business, importance of editing and proofreading has also been understood by transcription companies.

Why is Proofreading Important in Translation?

Translation proofreading is often the final stage of a translation process. Once a copy is translated, proofreaders painstakingly go through proofreading editing the content to spot any errors.

Though much of translations are being automated now, proofreading is one area where human intervention is required. This is because machine translations enable faster turnaround times but are not fool-proof.

Simple grammatical errors can change the entire meaning of a sentence though it may sound fine. This necessitates that a native or trained translator, proofreads the translated document and ensures that the translated content exactly matches the source document, and also makes sense to the end user.

Therefore translation companies employ separate teams of proofreaders who undertake multiple reviews of the translated document before it is considered final.

Transcription Proofreading

Transcription, especially medical transcription, is perhaps one of the most popular areas where medical industry has understood the importance and need to outsource their transcription requirements to offshore locations.

However, few consider editing and proofreading capabilities of vendors before the go. The importance of editing and proofreading in transcription is something that you need to be aware of essentially, when making the decision to outsource.

Many outsourcing providers employ large number of people, and use automated tools to create large volumes of transcribed documents in less time. They do the same to proofread the transcript; however, similar efficiency is not seen with automated proofreading.

This not only alters the meaning of sensitive documents, but also increases the cost of editing and correction at later stages. It is therefore important to employ professional proofreaders and editors who can identify and fix errors in the content, before it goes live.

Elements of Proofreading

Typically proofreading involves identification and correction of the following:

• Grammar
• Punctuation
• Spelling
• Formatting
• Typos
• Essence of Content As Per The Audience's Culture, Language and Demographics
• Visual Consistency
• Abbreviations and Expansions
• Testing Broken Website Links
• Structuring of Sentences
• Length of Text
• Identifying Inappropriate Words and Phrases
• Capitalization and Usage of Tenses

Outsource Translation Services to Flatworld for Flawless Transcripts

At Flatworld Solutions (FWS), we are not only proficient in translating and transcribing your documents to any foreign language, but also in proofreading and editing them for desired effect.

To learn how we can help with your translation and transcription needs, contact us today.