Whatever your target languages or regional dialects, Interpro’s professional linguists can provide accurate, consistent translation, localization and interpreting for your audiences. Our expert foreign language translation services are available for virtually every modern language, with localization for specific vernaculars. We also provide translation services from any of these languages into English.

Subject Matter Experts In Every Language

We hand select our linguists from around the world based on our high standards for subject matter experts. Translators are always native speakers of the target language, residing in the culture where the language is spoken.

Translation and Localization for Your Language and Dialect

Some of the languages we work with are shown below, but we can provide expert services in many more. If you need translation or interpreting for a language that isn’t listed, just give us a call.

The post Interpro’s Supported Languages appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

The new normal has opened doors for global business. Presentations that might once have been delivered to a localized trade show audience are now streamed all over the world as webinars. People who were never able to travel to attend a seminar can now learn from – and interact with – presenters on another continent.

The benefit of this global reach is clear, but it’s not without its complications. One of the more vexing questions is how to bridge the language gap when presenting live information to an international audience. After all, global reach is meaningless if the audience doesn’t fully grasp the material.

The percentage of people who prefer learning in their native language is as high as 90 percent, even if they are multilingual. Audiences more easily absorb and engage with content delivered in their mother tongue. The challenge to companies, then, is to present webinar translations that provide value to their entire audience.

Less than optimal webinar translation options

The first solution to this challenge is the most basic. Pre-record webinars, then dub or subtitle them before streaming. This conveys accurate information, but turns the audience from active participants into passive observers. Since the webinar does not take place in real time, the audience is unable to ask questions, share insights, or interact with the speaker as well as with one another.

Another option is consecutive interpretation, which has its own drawbacks. In this model, the speaker delivers a part of the webinar while an interpreter listens and takes notes. The speaker then pauses while the interpreter repeats the information in the target language.

Consecutive interpretation allows for engagement, but it’s a cumbersome process. It at least doubles the length of the webinar, and interrupts the speaker’s natural rhythm and flow. Constant interruption and lengthy pauses during which they can’t understand what is being said are frustrating for both speaker and listener.

Webinar translation using RSI

The most effective solution is a revolutionary interpretation model called Remote Simultaneous Interpretation, or RSI. With RSI, webinar translation occurs in real time as the presenter is speaking. Unlike consecutive interpretation, audiences only hear the audio in their native tongue.

With RSI, the speaker delivers the webinar in his/her native language. The audio is streamed to a remote interpreter through a cloud-based platform designed specifically for interpretation. As the audio stream is received through a headset, the interpreter translates the material into a microphone.

The video and audio streams merge for the audience end of the webinar. The audience sees the speaker but hears the interpretation. The combination of a reliable RSI platform, a skilled interpreter, and a high-speed Internet connection makes delivery feel seamless. Its speed and efficiency have made RSI the go-to option for making webinars available in multiple languages.

How RSI platforms work

Some RSI platforms are designed to work in tandem with online meeting programs like Zoom or GoToMeeting. The event platform hosts the webinar, and the RSI tool delivers the translation via a separate browser tab or mobile app.

Other RSI tools, such as the technology deployed by Interpro, are event platforms in and of themselves. Interpro’s RSI solution supports traditional webinar functions such as screen sharing, Q&As, polling, and document sharing. This easy-to-use platform can be accessed through a computer or smart device, provides high-definition audio and video, and is protected by high-level security.

The burgeoning global economy is fueling the demand for webinar translation. To compete, event platforms are trying to integrate interpretation into their own software. Zoom, for example, now allows meeting hosts to designate up to 20 participants as interpreters.

When the Zoom host turns on the interpretation feature, the interpreters each translate on their own dedicated audio channel. Participants select the language they want to experience the webinar in. They have the option to mute the original audio or run it at a low volume behind the translation.

The Zoom feature is still in its infancy, and has several downsides. Cloud recordings record only the original audio, so audiences who wish to go back and watch a webinar again cannot hear it in their native language. Zoom interpretation cannot be used with Personal Meeting ID, and must be enabled at the time the webinar is created. Interpreters must be panelists, and cannot be hosts or participants. It also requires a more expensive Zoom license, which may not make sense for all organizations.

Zoom also introduces some challenges for the interpreters. It has no handover or relay features, so an interpreter cannot hand off the interpretation task to a backup should he/she be unable to complete the webinar. The interpreter also has a less reliable audio stream for the original material. Overlapping conversations, unmuted mics, and poor sound quality can all negatively impact the interpreter’s ability to deliver a high-quality webinar translation.

It makes sense to use a tool designed for the job. Forcing a meeting platform to act as an RSI tool is like driving nails with a wrench: it gets the job done, but not as easily or as well as a hammer would.

With the availability of high-quality RSI platforms, there is no compelling reason to deliver a webinar translation through a platform not designed for it.

Think beyond vocabulary

Delivering a high-quality multilingual webinar involves something besides the right technology. It needs the right interpreter. An interpreter with expertise in the subject matter will deliver the most accurate webinar translation. For best results, provide your interpreter in advance with as much reference material as possible.

In addition to live interpretation, supporting materials covered in the webinar – such as handouts or PowerPoint slides – should be localized to give users the best experience. Localizing goes beyond word-for-word translation. It takes into account cultural nuances and context. It eliminates the confusion that may be caused by unintentional use of colloquialisms or idioms.

For example, an English-speaking Interpro client wanted to market a seminar to affiliates in France. The English marketing materials said the seminar would make something “easy as pie,” resulting in a “recipe for success.”

The idiom “easy as pie” doesn’t exist in French. Translating the material as-is would have made it nonsensical. Interpro worked with its French team and the client to develop French marketing materials with the slogan, “easy as saying hello.” This got the message across to a French-speaking audience.

Ideally, localization should begin before the webinar is even streamed. During the webinar planning stage, translation experts should be consulted to ensure both the content and visual elements will be understood. Signs, symbols, and colors often vary in meaning across cultures. Using inappropriate visuals to support your content could elicit reactions ranging from amused to offended.

Bringing it together

In conclusion, teaching, meeting, and interacting with global audiences in an online format will only become more commonplace. It’s critical that organizations who are taking the lead in the global economy be prepared in order to ensure that their content is understood the way they intend it to be through Webinar Translation.

The post One Webinar, Many Languages: Delivering Real-Time Webinar Translation appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.

But more than simply allowing us to overcome distance challenges, technology is helping to make language barriers a thing of the past. In today’s world of international businesses, clear and accurate communication across languages has never been more important. Allowing people to speak, read, and hear information in their mother tongue engages audiences and ensures that information is correctly understood.

More and more, businesses are offering multilingual content, products, and more to customers and to their own employees located around the world. One of the many important services that assist these organizations in getting their message across is webinar interpretation.

What is webinar interpretation?

Webinars and similar online collaborative conferencing allow people to join in on meetings and seminars, regardless of location. This form of digital communication is extremely popular because it allows companies to reach large audiences quickly, easily, and at a relatively low cost. Unfortunately, because webinars are live events, companies don’t have the luxury of time to dub or create subtitles in different languages for their international audiences. This can be a problem for companies needing to communicate with employees and customers speaking different languages.

Webinar interpretation, in the form of Remote Simultaneous Interpretation (RSI), offers a solution to this problem. Remote Simultaneous Interpretation is a service that can translate your webinar presentations and conference events to whatever languages your audience desires in real time.

How is Remote Simultaneous Interpretation different than other types of interpretation?

You may be familiar with other methods of interpretation that are used for webinars and online conferencing, namely, consecutive interpretation. To better understand Remote Simultaneous Interpretation and the benefits it offers, let’s take a look at an alternative webinar interpretation method.

Consecutive Interpretation

As the name suggests, with consecutive interpretation, translation happens consecutively to the initial delivery. A speaker will divide his/her presentation into multiple segments and pause after a section is delivered. The interpreter, who takes notes while the speaker is talking, will then proceed to relay the same material into the target language. Once the interpreter is finished, the speaker will continue until the next pause. This process continues until the speaker’s presentation is over.

The biggest downside to consecutive interpretation is that it takes time – and a lot of it. Because the speaker has to stop and allow the interpreter to translate everything that was just said, it can take up to twice the amount of time. The rhythm of the presentation is interrupted, and audiences have to listen to the presentation in both languages.

While this type of interpretation may work for short periods in small intimate settings, it is not the best solution for translating longer seminars and presentations to larger audiences.

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation is similar to traditional on-site simultaneous interpretation, but it uses technology to its advantage to allow interpreters to do their job from virtually any location. This eliminates the need for on-site interpreters working in sound booths.

This means that you can hold a webinar in Location A, have it seen and heard in a different language in Location B, while the interpreter providing the translation is sitting in Location C — all at the same time.

While the other methods of interpretation set out to accomplish the same objective as RSI, they are not without drawbacks and limitations. Remote Simultaneous Interpretation offers solutions to these issues and provides a number of additional advantages.

How does Remote Simultaneous Interpretation work?

Remote Simultaneous Interpretation can be broken down into three simple steps:

1. The speaker delivers their presentation. The person speaking gives their presentation, speech, etc., as would be delivered to a monolingual audience. Both the audio and images are streamed to a remote interpreter through a technology platform designed specifically for RSI.
2. The remote interpreter translates. As the speaker speaks, the interpreter translates the material into the target language, speaking into a microphone while listening. The translation is streamed to a cloud-based RSI platform.
3. The audience receives the webinar in their language. Webinar attendees watch the speaker and hear the webinar in their desired language from the RSI platform.

This may sound like a lot going on, but the process is simultaneous. Thanks to technology and high-speed internet, the initial delivery, interpretation, and reception occur almost as if the audience were listening to the webinar live in their native tongue.

What are the benefits of webinar interpretation?

Working with professional, native-speaking interpreters will enable your audience to clearly understand the message with its intended context, no matter the language. Interpreters are paired by subject matter expertise, so even the most complex information can be accurately conveyed across languages and cultures.

Aside from the benefits that come with being able to share webinars across multiple languages, RSI-based webinar interpretation comes with a number of advantages.

• Reduced costs: Bringing interpreters to an event can be costly due to expenses associated with travel, lodging, and other considerations. With Remote Simultaneous Interpretation, interpreters work anywhere via their internet connection, so they are not needed in person. You’ll also cut back on rental expenses for specialized sound booths and other necessary equipment.
• Simplification: Planning becomes easier when you don’t have to worry about coordinating the physical arrival of multiple people. Quick and easy planning is especially beneficial when conferences and meetings are scheduled or modified at the last minute.
• Flexibility: RSI offers a great deal of flexibility for organizations. It is accessible anytime and anywhere — all that is needed is a high-speed internet connection. Ramp-up time is short, so interpretation assignments can be changed and rearranged easily, no matter the size of the audience.
• Farther reaching: Especially compared to the limitations of consecutive interpretation, RSI allows for the webinar to reach more audiences. Instead of just one or two languages being offered, a single webinar can be translated into several different languages simultaneously. RSI services are also accessible in previously hard-to-reach locations. The possibilities are endless!
• Scalability: Whether your audience consists of 15 or 500 participants, you are covered. Today’s RSI platforms can typically accommodate up to 3,000 users per language.
• Quality: Though an interpreter may be located hundreds or thousands of miles away, audio quality is not sacrificed thanks to state-of-the-art RSI technology. Translation-wise, the best of the best interpreters can be sourced due to the remote location advantage. This means that you’ll get the best talent out there, not just what’s geographically closest.

Key to the success of your event is working with an experienced Project Manager who will know and respect the specific needs of your particular project. They understand the most important details and know what needs to happen in order to make your webinar a success. They serve as a point of contact between the interpreters and your organization, saving you time and effort.

How to Assure a Great Webinar Interpretation Experience

Like most things involving technology, there are a few tips to keep in mind that will assure you and your audience have a successful RSI-based webinar interpretation experience:

• Assure that there is access to high-speed internet: Both your interpreter and audience will rely on the webinar being streamed to them. Poor internet quality can lead to skipping audio and lagging video, which may result in gaps in the translation.
• Utilize an acoustic-friendly room: Set yourself up for success by setting your room up with audio in mind. Check the room acoustics and eliminate any distracting background noises. Echoes or loud hums can make it difficult for your interpreter and audience to hear what is being said.
• Run through a pre-show test: Speakers aren’t the only ones who need to prepare for a webinar presentation. Just to double-check that everything is working properly, do a quick run-through before the webinar takes place. You don’t want your speaker to begin, only to realize that there’s a dead microphone battery that throws a wrench in things.
• Familiarize yourself and others with the platform and controls: As part of the pre-show test, you should also familiarize yourself, and those who will be speaking during the webinar, with any necessary controls like on/off, mute, and record switches.
• Give speakers tips on maintaining audio quality: It never hurts to remind your speakers and moderators to be cautious of noises that may detract from audio quality, such as shuffling papers or loud typing.

Following these suggestions, and working with an experienced provider of RSI-based interpretation services, are critical to ensuring the success of your webinar interpretation.

The post The Ultimate Guide to Webinar Interpretation: Best Practices and Tips appeared first on Interpro Translation Solutions.