Last updated on August 12th, 2022 at 12:07 pm

How to quote a website translation project

Where to Start?

Getting your website translated can seem like an intimidating prospect, full of questions and tasks that you are not familiar with. Or it may seem like a breeze; you just hand the translation company your URL and tell them what target language you want, right?

Today we’re going to detail how the truth about quoting a website translation project is neither of those situations. It’s not so simple as sending a URL, but it doesn’t have to be tedious either. You will need to work with the translation agency to get a quote, but at the same time, they will advise you on options and recommendations to follow, and what you need to get an accurate website translation quote.

JR Language is a translation company that believes in educating current and prospective clients to make the website translation quoting process easier and smooth. Whether you need a budgetary estimate or a firm quote, we will work with you during the assessment process to produce a proposal in line with your requirements.

We aim first to understand your needs and goals, including limitations in budget and previous experience developing multilingual content to plan for a successful website translation

It takes time and effort to produce a fine multilingual website that reads and appears as if it was first written in the target language. Every business owner deserves top-tier translation services, and they can give themselves and the translation company a boost with the right preparations.

Let’s go through what the client needs and what the translators need. We’ll expose some misconceptions and replace them with good advice.

Website Translation Assessment: Questions and Answers

A website localization project takes time for evaluation and planning. After all the decisions are made, you need time for the actual creation of the multilingual site. That includes the translation of content and the implementation of that new content on the multilingual site.

It takes time evaluating the project since there are several elements to consider before your translation agency can create a quote. They will need to understand your requirements in detail and study your website to be able to offer a quote or quotes according to the options available.

Some companies come with all the parameters ready, others need to ponder the factors and options to decide on the information to quote. Some companies are in a more mature stage and have an idea of deadline, budget, and content that needs translation, others are in an exploratory mode looking for more information.

JR Language has collected the best questions and answers on making a multilingual website.

What Is the Language Market? What is Your Target Audience?

Let’s say you want your website translated into Chinese. We need to know your target country if you do not know specifically if you need translations into Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese.

It may not seem important to get so detailed when getting a website translation quote, but it is. JR Language localizes your content and suits it to the dialect and culture of your market. Different answers to this question can produce very different results and different prices since different language pairs have different costs. For example, translations from English into Spanish are less expensive than translations from English into Traditional Chinese.

The language used also makes the project more complex when it comes to fonts and time for testing. Languages like Arabic involve RTL considerations for the display of content.

What are the Deadline and Budget?

These are essential factors that the translation agency must know to quote your website translation project. It saves time and money when you have a firm idea of when you need the work completed and what you can spend. You may find that time or budgetary concerns necessitate a change of strategy or that you can afford more than you thought. There is a big difference between a single language job on a thirty-page all-text website and a website to be translated into multiple languages, plus e-commerce, videos, images, and PDF’s.

Time for completion is also important to know, since the translation company needs to have that information to plan for the teams they will need to be involved in the website translation project. If there is a time limitation that might impact the way the project will be planned and executed, that needs to be known. Also, do you need all the languages present at the same time or you are going to work in phases?

What Is the Project’s Scope? 

Consider what content and pages you want included on your translated website. Will it contain all the pages and features of the original? This can mean videos, graphics, blogs, career section, newsletters, etc. You don’t want to over or underestimate the amount of material to be translated and thus waste time and money.

There are choices to be made about how certain elements should be handled, like captions versus subtitles for video translation. This can make the translated site look very different from the original, as culture and locale exert great influence on images, video, and the general content and look of the site. Be flexible and open to evaluate options to learn more about the options and make the best decisions for your company and website.

Work with a professional and experienced translation company that will help you keep your company’s unique brand authentic wherever it goes.

What Is the Workflow for the Multilingual Website Project? 

The client and the translation company need to be sure of the other party’s expectations as well as their own. A website translation project is a multi-stage process where everyone needs to understand their role and the methods and tools they will use. Is the plan to send files between the translation agency and the client via email?  Is there a collaborative platform or content management system (CMS) involved? Which people at the client company are supposed to review the material? Who is going to handle the technical aspects of the website? There is more than the translation of content in the implementation of a multilingual site.

How Will We Handle Data?

What kind of website do you need translated? How was the website created or what CMS is going to be used to create it? Does it have e-commerce, or maybe translation for social media needs to be included? What language is the code written in html? Is it a CMS WordPress, Drupal, or Magento?

Answers to all these questions are important since they add tasks and complexity or offer solutions to the project. JR Language can accommodate different file types and code languages, but we need to know which ones the client uses and if any files should be converted to another type.

If a client only provides the URL, a translation agency can extract some information with a crawler. A crawler is software that enters a website and sifts through it for specified information. A crawler is a helpful tool for quoting a multilingual website, but if the client provides a list of files, that is ideal.

The Next Steps

As in any project of any kind, planning and anticipating activities go a long way for the successful execution of the project. Establishing a solid base for cost, responsibilities, timeline of activities, and time for completion is essential for website translation.

Use these guidelines to help your business get an accurate website translation quote. Preparing this information before approaching a translation company will also serve you well as the project progresses. You’ll establish a working rapport with the translation agency and save time, money, and effort with superior results, fine-tuned to your market, their culture, and your industry.