Doing it properly.
WHAT GOOD TRANSLATION IS
Not word-for-word. The same meaning, naturally expressed.
WHO SHOULD DO IT
Someone who speaks the target language natively and understands your business.
USING MACHINE TRANSLATION
Acceptable as a first draft.
Not acceptable published unchecked.
WHAT GOES WRONG WITH UNCHECKED TRANSLATION
Idiom translated literally
Wrong register: too formal or too casual
Cultural references that do not transfer Technical terms translated wrongly Text that reads as obviously machine-produced
WHAT THAT COSTS
Credibility. A badly translated site signals carelessness.
Frequently worse than having no translation at all.
WHAT TO TRANSLATE FIRST
The pages that matter: what you sell, how to contact you, how to buy.
WHAT TO NEVER MACHINE-TRANSLATE UNCHECKED
Legal terms Safety information Prices and specifications Anything a customer relies on
FOR NIGERIAN LANGUAGES
Machine translation quality varies considerably. Verify with a speaker.
