In different areas and industries, companies have long depended on translation services in ensuring smooth and fluent communications. Organizations with a global perspective also rely on the services offered by translation providers when it comes to translating product descriptions and manuals, glossaries, legal records, and other important documents.

Translation agencies normally work with translators and language experts who specialize in a specific field to address the needs of their clients in the technical, legal, and financial industries. Armed with specific knowledge in their industry and a profound understanding of their designated languages, these professionals are able to translate a wide range of texts accurately.

Companies that provide translation services currently experience a growing demand for the translation of texts from the medical and healthcare industry. Some of the services that agencies provide include client-specific translations for scientific journal articles, clinical trials, and drug registration documentation. Some companies even offer free, HIPAA-compliant development and maintenance of TMs (Translation Memories) and glossaries.

Another field that greatly benefits from the multilingual support that translation companies provide is the legal industry. Due to the sensitive nature of many court cases, it is imperative that law firms seek the assistance of only the most established, federal court-certified legal translators and interpreters. Only these individuals are qualified to produce accurate translations of legal hearings, drafts, and summaries, and provide services such as in-person legal interpretations for discovery, trials, and depositions.

The Internet and technology sectors also find much value in translation services. New applications, software, and manuals need to be localized to ensure that they are available in the target country’s language and are able to take cultural nuances into account. This way, clients can be sure that their highly technical documents and materials such as help files, websites, software components, manuals, and resource files can be accurately translated according to their specific needs.

Aside from these three major industries, translation services also play a great role in fields such as finance, insurance, chemistry, human resources, engineering, and education. Regardless of the industry that translation companies cater to, it is important to seek the services of those with translators and interpreters who have native fluency in the target language and expertise in the industry they specialize in. This way, clients are able to benefit from the highest level of combined language and industry experience, and use texts and materials that are guaranteed to possess the consistency, continuity, and accuracy of their message.

Technical translation services are crucial for companies aiming to penetrate a foreign market. Companies can spend a considerable amount of time and resources developing high quality documentation to ensure the usability of their products and a good customer experience, yet poorly translated documentation puts all that hard work at risk.

Translating technical documentation goes beyond simply converting words from one language to another. Aside from the actual linguistic challenge of translating technical data, there are also various cultural and social nuances that can directly affect the content being translated. Images, graphics and other non-textual content in a document are taken into consideration. This is because imagery and even colors that are appropriate for some cultures may be offensive or have negative connotations for others.

While choosing individual translators can be cost effective for smaller projects or basic projects, they often do not have the kind of resources and industry experience necessary to achieve the accuracy needed for large scale, multi-lingual localization projects. Technical documentation also follows specific standards which can affect the language and appearance of the document in its final form, which individual or in-house translators might not have the experience to handle. This is where professional technical translation service companies have a distinct advantage.

Working with professional technical translators that specialize in their particular field and are native speakers of the target language gives companies the assurance that aside from the technical accuracy of the translations, they will be able to avoid the pitfalls of inaccurately translated documents.

You’re getting acquainted with the social networking scene. Maybe you’ve signed up for accounts on LinkedIn, FriendFeed or BrightFuse. You may have even made a few friends on Facebook or started following people on Twitter. “But,” you ask, as so many do, “what’s the point in all of this? How can I use social networking and its numerous sites – with new ones popping up every day – to promote my business? Is it really worth my time?”

Since I began networking online, I’ve connected with several colleagues I may have never met otherwise. I live in the Midwest, and I now communicate regularly with building industry professionals across the country. Sure, it’s possible that we would eventually cross paths at a conference, trade show or workshop, but social networking provides additional media for meeting and sharing ideas. It’s a way to learn from other designers, builders, and real estate professionals, sharing information across the industry. It’s also a convenient method for keeping in contact with clients and informing them of the work you are doing, while positioning yourself as an expert in your niche of the building industry.

If you’ve only dipped your toe in the sea of social networking sites, or if you want to take full advantage of the accounts you’ve opened and increase your exposure, let’s get started:

Draw up your plan.
We’re in the building industry. We know that if we don’t have a blueprint to follow, things can go wrong quickly. So plan your “course of attack” to determine how you will participate in all of the social networking conversations going on out there. The first thing you’ll most likely discover: you don’t have enough time or energy to participate in every conversation. Choose the sites you can devote real, quality attention to.

Decide the image you want to project. Who is your target audience: your clients or others working in your field? Visit the various networking sites, and you’ll find that there are many of our building industry friends sharing information. Do you see conversations in which you can participate? If not, you can start discussions and draw others in. Remember, one of the main goals of social media is to build relationships.

What will I say?
Introduce yourself, sharing business and personal information. Personal information? Honestly, nobody really cares about your business unless you can help with a problem they’re having. But, generally, people love to get personal tidbits. (Come on, you know you glance at those tabloids in the checkout line at the grocery store.)

You’ll want to start by building your profile on every site on which you participate. Forget the chronological resumes. Start with an “elevator speech.” If you only had a couple of minutes to tell someone about your business, how would you describe it – succinctly? Make it intriguing, and include a bit about how you can make a potential client’s life easier. You want to draw people onto your site, your blog or your networking page. Sprinkle in a few personal notes: hobbies, kids, pets, funny habits. Give your audience something to relate to, but be selective and don’t be gauche – it’s still business.

Don’t forget to add a picture. What would it be like to attend a live networking event and everyone wore a mask? We’re networking here and we want to see the person with whom we’re communicating.

Now, develop your blueprint for success, and tweak those profiles. Part two will continue with “Don’t be a wallflower, but don’t wave around the business card, either.” Also, watch for separate articles devoted to the sites on which I’m most active: Twitter, Google Blogger, LinkedIn, Facebook and Ning, as well as other social media sites.