To some, the title of the blog, in itself, may sound a bit silly. Given the fact that we are living in an age where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is taking roots, one may ask why one needs human translators when software can do a better, quicker job.
On the face of it, the statement may look valid. But when one considers the reality of translation, one finds that it is a relatively complex job even for the most advanced AI available today.
Translating text from one language to another is more than just replacing words. A perfect translation should take care of style, flow, tone, and tenor all at the same time. A software, no matter how advanced, follows a series of codes and rules, which makes it prone to make glaring mistakes in the final output.
Hence, when it comes to a flawless translated piece, nothing matches the work done by professional human translators. However, since human translation is costly and has a limitation when it comes to speed, it cannot be used for all the requirements indiscriminately.
This blog discusses 3 scenarios wherein getting text translated through humans makes more sense
1. Text That Can Make or Break a Deal!
A website generally has over 100 pages. It can be a good idea to get a site translated through software as it’s quicker and cheaper. However, one should be very careful while making this decision about some of the most important pages.
For example, your Home Page, PPC Ad landing page, About Us page and other pages, which are of key importance to your business, it is always best to get the job done professionally. This is because any embarrassing mistakes in them may prompt the user to hit the close button.
2. Text That Requires Expertise
Software is ideal to translate text that is generic. When it comes to translating content that is specific to fields like law, medicine, banking etc., it would not be appropriate to opt for machine translation. This is because each field has its own jargon and terminology, and software is very unlikely to be able to translate these terms and sentences correctly.
3. Text That Is Culturally/Religiously Sensitive
The biggest limitation of software is that it cannot make judgment calls, or make decisions based on actual readers. Many times, translating or representing certain terms inaccurately becomes a contentious issue among people who do not share same the culture or tradition.
In such a case, hiring professional human translators is a better option as they can mold the text, keeping in view the religious or cultural sensitivities of the audience.
To sum it up, human translation, despite being costly and slow, still remains indispensable for the translation industry. Looking at the advancement in technology vis-a-vis the complexity in translation, it is safe to say that human translation is not going to become obsolete any time soon.
A perfect combination of software and human translation is the need of the hour. At Bablic, you get both at the most reasonable price.
Bablic, besides providing a simple and quick website translation service, has an impressive network of over 100,000 native speakers and expert translators for all languages.