Hosting an event, conference, or web meeting in two (or a hundred) different languages may seem like an incredibly difficult task.

But it doesn’t have to be.

Associations and member-driven organizations are being called to do more than ever before – not just in the services they offer, but in how they communicate. For organizations with multilingual member bases, the ability to share information inclusively across languages is no longer a luxury. It’s essential.

To help member-driven organizations understand the easy and powerful it can be to host an event in multiple languages at the same time, the Interpro team recently ventured to Holiday Showcase in Chicago, IL to showcase translation and interpreting solutions.

Whether you’re planning a multi-track conference, managing a virtual member meeting, or publishing content for your community, ensuring your message is accessible in multiple languages is critical to fostering engagement, equity, and belonging. At Interpro, we’ve seen firsthand how language can either become a barrier or a bridge – and we’re here to make sure it’s always the latter.

The Language Challenges for Associations

Association leaders often wear many hats: event planner, membership coordinator, content creator, and strategic advisor. Amid all of this, multilingual communication can feel like yet another complex layer to manage.

Here are some of the most common pain points we hear from professionals in this space:

• Events that lack live interpretation, leaving non-English speakers out of the conversation
• Translated materials that feel stiff, outdated, or inconsistent across formats
• Difficulty finding reliable partners for remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI) during virtual meetings
• Internal uncertainty about when and how to localize websites, brochures, or member communications

It’s not a question of whether associations want to be inclusive – most do. The challenge is how to operationalize language inclusion without overwhelming staff or compromising quality.

Partnering for Translation & Interpreting Success

That’s where a trusted language partner comes in. At Interpro, we specialize in helping associations navigate these complexities with ease. Whether you’re preparing for your annual conference or launching a new digital platform, we help you design communication strategies that account for your entire audience – no matter what language they speak.

During the 2024 Holiday Showcase, hosted by the Association Forum, we supported three live sessions with remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI) in Spanish and captioning in English and Spanish, ensuring that every attendee had equitable access to the information shared. This wasn’t just a tech solution—it was a values-driven choice, and the impact was immediate.

Association Forum recognized the value of this inclusive experience, and so did the attendees. Our seamless coordination with interpretation teams, speaker tech support, and captioning services ensured every voice was heard, and every message was understood.

Making Membership Communications Multilingual

Beyond events, association professionals are increasingly reevaluating their core communication touchpoints. From websites and membership brochures to monthly newsletters, magazines, and governance documents, the need for culturally accurate and professionally translated materials is clear.

One standout example is our work with the Association Forum’s FORUM Magazine. Each edition features translated and localized content that reflects the Forum’s core values, presented in a way that resonates across linguistic and cultural lines. These aren’t just translations—they’re conversations tailored for every audience.

With our help, associations aren’t just translating—they’re transforming how they connect with their members.

Document Translation of Association Forum’s Core Values

When Language is Part of the Experience

While our work is rooted in precision and professionalism, we also understand the value of connection and joy in the association world. One of the most talked-about highlights from the 2024 Holiday Showcase was none other than Buddy the Elf himself—spreading cheer, candy, and yes, a few multilingual greetings.

“The best way to spread holiday cheer is interpreting loud for all to hear!”
— Buddy the Elf, honorary Interpro ambassador

Buddy’s presence reminded everyone of the power of shared experiences. At Interpro, we believe language is what makes those experiences truly shared. Whether it’s a breakout session, a digital newsletter, or an annual gala, we ensure that your messaging isn’t just delivered – it’s understood, appreciated, and acted on by everyone.

Find Your Best Friend in Language Services

We don’t just provide interpreting and translation services. We become an extension of your team. We understand how associations operate, from the planning stages of an event to the final print of a board packet. We anticipate your needs, ask the right questions, and deliver solutions that make you look good.

Whether you need:

• Interpreting for events, conferences, or virtual meetings
• Translation of membership materials like brochures, newsletters, or web content
• Real-time captioning for accessibility
• Guidance on language strategy for your DEI goals

Interpro can support you through all of it.

Host Your Next Event, Meeting, or Conference in Every Language

The future of association leadership is inclusive, multilingual, and community-driven. Let us help you get there.

Contact Interpro today to make your next event or member communication truly multilingual—and truly meaningful.

The post How Associations Can Better Communicate with Multilingual Audiences appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

In today’s increasingly diverse and inclusive world, ensuring that materials are accessible to everyone has never been more important. That’s where Section 508 steps in, providing guidelines to promote equal access for individuals with disabilities. So, grab your cup of coffee, settle in, and let’s dive into the intricate world of translation compliance. We’ll provide you with a comprehensive guide on how to ensure accessibility in translated content.

Key topics covered in this article:

• Translation Language Requirements for Section 508 vs ADA Compliance
• Section 508 Compliance for Translation and Localization Services
• Reduce Language Barriers with POUR (Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, Robust)
• Translation Compliance Best Practices for Common Accessibility Challenges
• Tools and Resources for Ensuring Section 508 Accessibility

Translation Language Requirements for Section 508 vs ADA Compliance

The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and Section 508 compliance both aim to ensure accessibility and non-discrimination, but neither have specific requirements for providing translated materials for non-English-speaking individuals.

However, the ADA and Section 508 are like our accessibility superheroes, with the goal of ensuring everyone can access information regardless of ability. It’s not just about websites and docs meeting a few requirements; it’s about the bigger goal of ensuring equal opportunity access to important information. Depending on your organization’s industry and audience, there can be other governing bodies or regulations for your organization that require your translated materials to meet ADA or Section 508 requirements.

According to this article on Section 508 vs ADA compliance:

The ADA is a civil rights law ensuring equal access for people with disabilities across various public and private sectors. An ADA compliant translation is used specifically to ensure that an individual can still access information despite a communication disability that affects their ability to comprehend, detect, or apply language and speech. This includes vision, hearing, or speech disabilities.

Section 508 mandates that federal agencies make their web-based and digital information accessible to individuals with disabilities. It also applies to organizations that receive federal funding or are involved in federal contracts.

To Summarize: Accessibility after translation for Section 508 or ADA compliance might not be required directly by these bodies, but may be required for your organization or if your goal is to ensure information access without language barriers for people with disabilities.

We always recommend working with your legal counsel and your compliance team to set a standard for your organization’s language requirements. While the ADA and Section 508 are the cornerstones for accessibility in the United States, there are many more diverse laws and guidelines globally. Language requirements for multilingual content can vary based on your industry, global audience’s location, government requirements, and more.

We also believe that as digital tools such as websites, digital documents, and AI translation technologies continue to develop, these compliance requirements will grow and become more strict to include requirements for organizations with multilingual audiences.

The rest of this article will mostly focus on Section 508 compliance because it has direct requirements for information to be accessible to people with disabilities specifically for websites, online content, and digital documents. Whereas the ADA ensures broader everyday business practices are accessible to the general public, including those with disabilities.

As language professionals, we ensure your materials are accessible even after translation. This guarantees that your translated content meets Section 508 requirements as determined by your organization and legal counsel, ensuring compliance in every language.

Section 508 Compliance for Translation and Localization Services

So, why does Section 508 compliance matter for translated content? Imagine trying to access crucial information in a language you don’t understand and then throwing in a disability on top of that—talk about a tough situation, right?

Did you know that on average, 13.2 million people in the US have at least one disability that Section 508 is meant to assist? When thinking about localizing your digital content, factoring Section 508 compliance into the equation means you could be reaching 20% more of your target audience than you might have missed otherwise.

Therefore, we recommend your localized digital content, website, or mobile applications in other languages meet Section 508 compliance by being accessible to users of all levels of ability.

Reduce Language Barriers with POUR (Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, Robust)

Now, let’s talk about the four principles of accessibility, also known as POUR: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Think of it like building a sturdy bridge that connects people with disabilities to vital information.

Here’s what each principle means:

• Perceivable: Make sure all users can perceive the information, regardless of their senses. For example, providing alt text for images ensures that screen readers can convey the information to users who are visually impaired.
• Operable: Ensure that the content is easy to navigate and interact with, especially for those with motor disabilities. This might involve providing keyboard shortcuts or making interactive elements accessible.
• Understandable: Keep the content clear and easy to understand, especially for users with cognitive limitations. This could mean using plain language, avoiding jargon, and providing explanations for complex concepts.
• Robust: Ensure the content remains accessible as technology advances, working well with assistive technologies. Regular testing and updates can help ensure that translated materials remain accessible over time.

Translation Compliance Best Practices for Common Accessibility Challenges

Translating content while keeping it accessible can sometimes feel like solving a Rubik’s Cube – challenging, but totally doable if you know the right moves to make!

An example of a common challenge is providing text alternatives for images and multimedia content. This is super important for individuals who rely on screen readers to access information.

Another common challenge is language and cultural differences, which can make translating content challenging. Recognizing these cultural differences during translation is crucial for creating accessible translations.

Let’s cover some top-notch best practices for ensuring Section 508 compliance in translated materials.

Best Practices for Accessible Translations

1. Clearly define accessibility requirements: Accessibility covers a broad range of topics. It is not enough to say “I need the PDF to be accessible”. Sharing detailed requirements such as “ensure schematic markup is applied after translation” allows a language provider to ensure the requirement is understood, translated, and included in linguistic QA review cycles.
2. Collaborate with accessibility experts: Your compliance and legal counsel should be involved early in the translation process to identify and tackle potential accessibility issues. For example, involve them in the design phase to ensure that content structure and layout are conducive to accessibility.
3. Use accessible file formats: Think-tagged PDFs or HTML formats that support assistive technologies. Ensure that documents are properly structured and include metadata for improved navigation.
4. Keep language clear and simple: Say goodbye to jargon and complicated sentences. Keep it plain and straightforward to make sure everyone can understand. Providing explanations or definitions for specialized terminology can also help improve clarity.
5. Ensure translated web content is screen reader-friendly: Test, test, and test some more to ensure compatibility and proper reading order. Oh, and don’t forget to use descriptive alt text for images! Providing skip navigation links and landmarks can also facilitate navigation for screen reader users.
6. Include subtitles or transcripts: Make sure to include subtitles or transcripts for all those videos you’re translating. It’s like adding subtitles to a foreign movie – essential for those who need it! Be sure to synchronize subtitles properly and format them for easy readability.
7. Choose plain language and localize as necessary: Tailor your content to fit cultural and linguistic preferences while keeping it crystal clear. Consider individuals with cognitive disabilities or different language backgrounds and be mindful of cultural sensitivities and regional language differences. Providing accurate and culturally appropriate translations can improve accessibility for diverse audiences.
8. Verify compatibility with assistive technologies: Make sure your translated content plays nicely with assistive technologies used by individuals with motor impairments. Test, tweak, and test again until everything works like a charm. Providing keyboard shortcuts and ensuring interactive elements are accessible via keyboard navigation can enhance accessibility for users with motor disabilities.

Tools and Resources for Ensuring Section 508 Accessibility

Alright, let’s talk about tools and resources.

Explore a variety of accessibility testing tools and guidelines to identify and tackle accessibility issues like a pro. Follow government checklists as part of the localization process to ensure your digital content ticks all the Section 508 boxes. You can learn more about Section 508 and digital accessibility from the Environmental Protection Agency’s resources at this link.

And don’t forget to brush up on key accessibility guidelines and standards, like WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), to ensure your translated materials are top-notch.

In summary, prioritizing Section 508 compliance in translations isn’t just about breaking language barriers—it’s about breaking down barriers to information for everyone. By understanding the importance of Section 508 accessibility, embracing best practices, and staying up to date with emerging technologies, we can ensure everyone has a seat at the table.

Ready to make your translated materials accessible?

At Interpro, we’re here to help translate your materials to meet Section 508 standards. We understand the importance of accessibility and believe in the power of language to connect people.

Next Steps:

1. It’s essential that you work closely with your internal teams to determine what Section 508 standards your translated content needs to meet.
2. Schedule a complimentary localization consultation with our team. We’ll create a game plan with you to ensure that our translation process matches your accessibility requirements in the target language(s).

Together, we can create a world where everyone, regardless of language or ability, can access important information without barriers.

The post Section 508 and ADA Translation Compliance: A Guide to Accessibility appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

Rise does, nevertheless, support eLearning translation. You can export all the written content of your course into an XLIFF file, translate it, and import it back into the course with all formatting intact.

How you translate your Rise 360 course is an important consideration. While automated translation tools have come a long way, the nuances of language make using them for something as complex as an online course a roll of the dice. Idioms like “take a rain check” or “leave on a cliffhanger” confound them, and a phrase that makes perfect sense in one part of the world can be downright offensive in another.

Why is Rise translation so important?

One of the biggest benefits of eLearning is how easy lessons are to remember. But that diminishes when online learners are presented with material in a foreign language. Having to mentally translate the information as it’s presented reduces their ability to absorb and fully comprehend it.

Providing eLearning courses in multiple languages also allows you to reach more people. If you distribute online courses to a diverse group of learners with varying native languages, take a look at your LMS (Learning Management System) analytics. It should come as no surprise to see greater engagement among learners whose primary language matches the language of the eLearning course.

Ninety percent of people prefer learning in their native language. Think of the millions of opportunities you could be missing by not offering courses in the languages learners want.

What does the Rise translation workflow look like?

Many course developers choose Rise because it is easy to use. Fortunately, Rise translation is also a pretty straightforward process.

1. It all starts with your course. Create your complete course, including visuals and multimedia elements, in your primary language.
2. Next, duplicate your course and export the duplicate’s content to an XLIFF file. XLIFF is an XML-based file format that standardizes the exchange of information between tools.
3. A professional translator will translate the content of the XLIFF, save it in the same format, and send it back to you. You import the translated XLIFF into your duplicate course, and Rise does the rest.
4. To protect the quality of your eLearning course, it’s important to use a Rise translation partner that specializes in localization and to provide your translator with the original course as well as the XLIFF file.

A partner who specializes in localization will know when a phrase should be adjusted into a regional dialect to make it understandable to the intended audience. A good translation provider will also review the visuals in your course to make sure they are culturally appropriate.

How do you engage learners?

The best eLearning courses keep learners engaged with interactive elements. These complex, layered elements are far easier to translate if the translator is able to see them in action. That provides context for each layer and how they fit together to move the course along.

After translation comes validation – making sure the translation is accurate once the course is published. Again, this goes beyond just the words. You’ll want to choose a translation partner experienced in working with Rise to make sure the details you carefully planned in English still work. Publishing settings will match the English (i.e., SCORM).

For example, many languages cause translations to expand or contract. Let’s say a text box on one slide of your course is sized just right to house the word “science.” But in German, “science” is “Naturwissenschaft” – more than twice as many letters need to fit into the same text box.

Designers involved in your Rise translation project will be able to catch such issues and address them, so your course is accurate no matter the language.

Localized text changes impact timing. Slides with more text need more reading time, videos might require subtitles, and audio needs re-recording. All visuals must be timed accordingly.

A Rise translation partner who offers voiceover services will ensure spoken material, even if it uses technical language, is clear and unambiguous. Voiceovers are best recorded in a studio environment by native speakers who understand how tone, pace, and inflection can affect the meaning of content. An engineer will then adjust the timings in the course to ensure the audio and visuals are in sync.

Quality courses aren’t just about the content. The details of how the content is presented make a tremendous impact on the user’s experience and what that experience leads them to think about your company.

The future of learning is now

In 2019, Research and Markets predicted the eLearning industry would be worth about $325 billion by 2025 – almost three times what it was worth in 2015. And that was before COVID-19 sent our lives online. The pandemic condensed a decade of digital transformation into a matter of two years.

Online learning is no longer the future of training and education, it is the present. Savvy businesses are making the most of it by creating digital courses to train their workforce and educate their clients.

Rise 360 is a great tool for creating these courses. It’s easy to use, even for people with little to no course-building experience. The ready-made templates pull courses together fast, and its media optimization and fully responsive design keep your assets functional and high quality.

To fully maximize your investment in eLearning, don’t limit your Rise course to a single language. As of January 2020, only about a quarter of online content was in English. There are 854 million Internet users in China, 149 million users in Brazil, and 118 million users in Japan. Rise translation unlocks millions of opportunities for your course to reach people in the language they know – and learn in – best.

The post Rise Translation: Easier and More Important Than You Think appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

There’s more to virtual gatherings and interpretation than meets the eye. We’re here to break down the importance of web meetings, what RSI is and how it works, and what the future of online events might look like.

Why are eMeetings essential for businesses?

Web meetings encompass more than just one-on-one video calls. In the modern-day business landscape, web meetings or “eMeetings” are utilized for a variety of purposes including eLearning, team or organization-wide conferences, presentations, webinars, and seminars.

What was once considered a nice-to-have option in the workplace is quickly evolving into a necessity for businesses around the globe. Companies cannot overlook the benefits of web meetings, including:

Efficiency

Virtual meetings save businesses money associated with planning in-person gatherings. Forgoing travel and related expenses can save thousands of dollars over the course of just one year. Additionally, in-person meetings require a great deal of time. Remote meetings, on the other hand, can be quick and to the point, resulting in increased productivity.

Scalability

Coordinating in-person training for 5 employees in one office isn’t difficult, but the situation changes drastically when it’s 500 employees across several offices around the globe. Web meetings, on the other hand, can be implemented as easily for 1,000 participants as it can for 10, anywhere in the world, and at the touch of a button.

Flexibility

The possibilities with web meetings are endless. As long as members have an internet connection, they have the ability to participate. Sometimes the unexpected throws a wrench in plans, as the world learned this year with the coronavirus pandemic. Virtual events are, for the most part, unaffected by these obstacles. Even if things don’t go according to plan, canceling online meetings and events is not nearly as inconvenient as canceling in-person ones.

However, if you aren’t providing virtual resources to all members of your company due to language barriers, many will miss out on these benefits. Remote Simultaneous Interpretation is a solution to this problem.

What is Remote Simultaneous Interpretation (RSI)?

With Remote Simultaneous Interpretation, audio is translated by remote interpreters in real-time. Unlike traditional consecutive interpretation methods, RSI does not interrupt the speech in progress, preserving the natural flow of the presentation.

Additionally, when utilizing Interpro’s professional linguists in tandem with an optimized RSI platform, two-way interaction is possible, no matter the language of the speakers.

To better illustrate this, imagine a presenter leading an online seminar in English. Her remote audience is composed of English, French, and Spanish speakers. Though she is delivering her presentation in English, the French and Spanish speakers will hear it immediately in their respective languages only. Furthermore, if anyone has a question, they can ask it in their native language. The English-speaking presenter will hear the question in English.

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation allows you to:

• facilitate eMeetings with up to 32 languages simultaneously
• host up to 3,000 attendees per language
• access meetings through your computer or smart device
• plan for interpretation services with greater flexibility thanks to short ramp-up times

Why Interpretation Is Key for Businesses

Interpretation does more for a business than allow them to reach more members of the organization. It is a crucial step in breaking down linguistic barriers and actively promoting language equity. The end result? No member of your organization will be at a disadvantage due to the language they speak, affording them every opportunity to succeed.

Offering multilingual sessions for foreign language speakers makes learning accessible to all, creating an environment where everyone feels welcome. Remote Simultaneous Interpretation is key to building a diverse and inclusive organization.

How does Remote Simultaneous Interpretation work?

Thirty-two languages and 3,000 users sounds like a complex proposition! Thankfully, when using a professional translation company and the right platform, it is a seamless experience.

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation for multilingual web meetings can be broken down in  three simple steps:

1. First, the presenter speaks in his/her native language as if talking to a group of people who also speaks that language. The presentation is streamed within the cloud-based RSI platform.
2. There’s no need for the speaker to pause for interpretation to occur. The interpreter, who wears headphones, is listening to the speaker and simultaneously interpreting into a microphone. The translation is streamed back to the RSI platform.
3. From the same platform, the audience receives the interpretation in its desired language. The result is a video stream that makes the audience feel as if they are actually listening to a speaker of their native language.

If an audience member has a question or wishes to respond, the same process will take place, only vice versa. Keep in mind that even though we have broken the process down into three separate steps for descriptive purposes, it occurs almost instantaneously.

Using the Optimum Platform for Interpretation

Platforms like Zoom and Google Teams are great for monolingual communication, but fall short when multiple languages are involved. In order for interpretation to take place on these platforms, multiple technologies, none of which was built for each other, may need to be deployed at the same time. The bottom line is that these services are not designed for multilingual interpretation, making the process cumbersome and ineffective at times.

Platforms which were not designed with multi-language meetings in mind should be avoided when hosting eMeetings with a linguistically diverse audience. A web-based RSI platform allows audiences to listen in on meetings, webinars, and presentations in real-time and to communicate back in their native language.

Other benefits of using a specialized platform like Interpro’s solution include:

• high-definition audio and video
• user-friendly easy navigation
• features such as polling, voting, document distribution, and Q&A capabilities
• screen sharing
• high-level security

Conventional video conferencing platforms simply don’t include these features across multiple languages simultaneously.

The Future of Online Live Events

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered the way companies communicate and conduct business, and these changes are most likely here to stay for the foreseeable future. Social distancing guidelines have prohibited large gatherings of people, effectively halting live meetings and events across the globe.

An article from EventMB, a leader in resources for the event industry, examined the future of in-person events. Planning large gatherings will be nearly impossible due to the precautions that need to be taken, making virtual meetings the only viable option. Prominent companies such as Facebook and Microsoft are leading the way in postponing conferences and large meetings until Summer 2021. Others have already taken this a step farther. Twitter made news when their CEO announced that all employees can work from home forever.

Marketing experts are seeing positive results with digital experiences and events, noting increased ROI and higher attendance rates than their in-person counterparts. Making sure these online events and meetings are accessible to all is more important now than ever. Though separated by physical distance, technology such as RSI can help people collaborate and work together, regardless of language.

Conclusion

eMeetings have rapidly evolved into a critical element for business communication in today’s world, and organizations must take steps to effectively reach the widest possible audience. Remote Simultaneous Interpretation seamlessly enables multilingual communication, allowing people to collaborate in the language they understand best and are most comfortable using.

The post Reach a Global Audience with Remote Simultaneous Interpretation appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.