Marketing to Latinos through Social Media – Transpanish

Posted On December 9, 2019By TranspanishIn Languages, Latinos, Spanish Language, Spanish Translation, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 5 4 Comments

In the early days of social media marketing, marketing strategists rarely used to target Latinos using social media or other forms of digital marketing. However, this has since changed and according to a recent article in Forbes, companies now need to be aware that on average, in the US at least, young Latinos are more likely to interact with companies on social media than the rest of the population and are very loyal to brands that use Spanish. Clearly, there is a good reason for brands to attract this growing and generally loyal target market.

According to eMarketer, while Hispanics in the US have a similar level of smartphone ownership compared to the general population, they spend 10.5 hours per week online on the devices on average compared to an average of 8.4 hours among other groups. They are also now more likely to use social networks via smartphone and are higher than average in their use of Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, while also watching more content and buying more products online than the average.

Meanwhile, another study revealed the shocking statistic that almost 50% of Hispanic millennials had used a brand hashtag or discussed a brand online compared with a figure of 17% for non-Hispanics, showing not only the huge size of the Hispanic market but also a very high level of engagement.

Facebook has also revealed that their platform is the most popular among Hispanics, with 71% of survey respondents saying that they used Facebook every day. In terms of Twitter, a study conducted in August 2018 found that Latinos make up 31% of the Twitter users in the US, only surpassed by Asians at 35%.

The Latino community is now, as can be seen, an incredibly important target market online and as eMarketer concludes, “Internet penetration among US Hispanics has mostly – though not entirely – caught up with that of the general US population, but their digital activities still stand out in several ways,” adding that “ad spending growth on US Hispanic media has outpaced that of total media in recent years and will likely do so for the foreseeable future.” [1]

So, how can marketers take advantage of Latinos’ growing presence on social media to promote their brands?

Marketers must realize that an effective social media campaign directed at the Latino segment will involve more than just a mere translation of the existing English-language campaign. Hispanics are eager to connect with content and engage in a dialog with their favorite brands, so companies should provide opportunities for consumers to interact bilingually or in their preferred language as it has been shown to be highly appreciated. In addition, they must consider how the English-language and Spanish-language pages can complement each other and create synergy, rather than just duplicating the message in another language, since many users will likely visit both pages if companies offer unique content.

Although Twitter offers a different format for customer engagement, the keys to successful corporate marketing on Twitter are to 1) jump in on existing conversations that are taking place within the Latino community to develop brand awareness and 2) get consumers to join in on the conversation about the company’s brand. Live chats on Twitter also provide sponsorship opportunities that may prove attractive to advertisers.

Are you ready to speak to your Spanish-speaking audience?

Producing great content in Spanish takes time and commitment. We can help you expand your reach and establish a connection with an audience that speaks the second most widely spoken language in the world. If you’d like to find out more about our service, visit Multilingual Social Media.

English - Spanish - Portuguese Social Media Tips

The Essentials of Multilingual Social Media – Transpanish

Posted On December 6, 2019By TranspanishIn Mulilingual Digital Marketing, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

Social media platforms are excellent tools for promoting your brand around the world. However, to truly internationally promote your brand, it’s essential that your content is suitable for your target audiences. Of course, this means having content that will resonate with and attract your audience, but it also relates to actually speaking your audience’s language. Multilingual social media can help your business access new and exciting markets that you may well have been missing out on with a monolingual social media policy. However, managing multilingual social media platforms can have its issues, so here’s what you need to consider.

Translation, Localization and Engagement

A successful social media platform is key to your brand online, and engagement is key to running a successful social media platform. Engagement is crucial in modern marketing so your approach to multilingual social media should consider it a priority. Getting real engagement from social media can be difficult and there’s no real hard and fast rule for it, but engaging and localized translations of posts will definitely help.

A poor translation is arguably worse than no translation at all, so it is important to invest in an expert translator who can help you understand how your target market thinks. This means avoiding erroneous machine translations and, instead, using content that reflects the cultural context of your audience, with relevant phrasing to show that you understand them as a customer.

Having a Consistent International Brand Identity

While it’s important that your multilingual social media strategy reflects the differences in your audience’s cultures and languages, it’s also important to make sure that your brand is consistent. This can sound almost like a paradox and it is indeed difficult if you think small picture, but to help make matters easier, you should make sure that your translator not only understands your target audience but also understands you as a brand and how you want to be presented, making sure the core essence is the same.

Reflecting Your Brand with a Bilingual Social Media Manager

Social media management isn’t just related to posting content, it’s ultimately about engaging with your followers. As such, it’s important to have multilingual staff who can naturally respond to comments or complaints, be it on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. For instance, if you have a Spanish Facebook account, it’s imperative that you have a Spanish native speaker as a social media manager who can interact with your followers to ensure engagement is natural, making sure that you understand your followers better and that they are more likely to use your services. If you don’t have staff who can readily respond in their various native languages, then you will likely be very slow to respond to your followers, thus harming your engagement.

Having Separate Accounts for Different Languages

While your company may be multilingual, not all of your followers will be. Posting content in, say, Portuguese on your English Twitter will likely alienate your followers and harm engagement. Make sure to have different accounts for each language on each platform and keep them separate to improve engagement and reduce confusion.

Localizing Hashtags

Hashtags are wonderful tools that act as a form of free promotion and they can be very helpful if used correctly. They also vary from language to language so make sure to research the correct hashtags and use them in the correct respective languages for the most relevant outreach and engagement.

Of course, having interesting content is also key but without good multilingual social media management, you risk missing out on key engagement.

Are you ready to speak to your multilingual audience?

Producing great content in another language takes time and commitment. We can help you expand your reach and establish a connection with an audience that speaks Spanish or Portuguese. If you’d like to find out more about our service, visit Multilingual Social Media.

The Rise of Spanish as a Second Language

Posted On September 19, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 2 No Comments

With 21 countries listing Spanish as an official language, and with it being a de facto language on nearly every continent, there’s a good reason to learn it. With 577 million speakers around the world, Spanish is the second most spoken language on earth, after Mandarin, and this figure is only set to increase. Not only is this due to a general rising global population, with the population of many Spanish speaking countries and communities set to rise, but also due to an increasing number of people studying Spanish.

While the English language is still the world’s most studied language by far, Spanish is a contender along with French and Mandarin for the second-most widely studied language with 21.8 million learners in 107 countries according to the Cervantes Institute. Most of these learners are in the US (8 million), Brazil (6 million) and France (2.5 million), with significant interest in countries like Italy, Côte d’Ivoire, Germany and the UK. This increase in learners has led to an interest in who exactly these close to 22 million people are and why they have chosen to learn Spanish. Obviously, the decision to learn a second language is often a personal choice and as such, there are many different reasons for learning Spanish depending on the general characteristics of countries.

Take the UK for example, where there are 519,000 Spanish learners. While the UK has traditionally favored French and German as second languages to study at school, there has been an increased preference for Spanish, in part likely due to a desire to communicate and interact with people while visiting or moving to the UK’s preferred holiday destination: Spain. While there is no doubt that many in the UK study Spanish for holiday reasons, it is also recognized as many as being a very important language for the future, according to the British Council.

The importance of Spanish as a global language in terms of employment, business and diplomacy also contributes to its popularity in many countries as Spanish is widely spoken and as such highly popular among certain professional circles. Similar patterns can also be seen throughout Europe in countries like Germany and Ireland, with a mix of cultural, tourist and business interests factoring into the equation. It is also interesting to note that Spanish is generally regarded as being an easy language to learn for English speakers, which may partially explain its prominence.

The US, with 8 million Spanish learners, has the largest number of Spanish learners on the planet. With over 40 million Spanish speakers and major communities of Mexicans, Cubans, Colombians and Puerto Ricans, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, with 88% of primary schools with language programs teaching Spanish. Massive parts of the US, including California, New Mexico and Arizona, were all also once under Mexican control and as such, there is a large Hispanophone influence on such states. This population of Spanish speakers is only predicted to increase and by 2060, it’s predicted that the US will be the second most Spanish-speaking country in the world after Mexico.

However, as in many other countries, the similar aspects of tourism (in this case primarily to Mexico), being a global language of importance to business and diplomacy and perceived ease all also affect the number of Spanish learners in the US. Considering the demographics of the US, there are also many Spanish learners who may want to better understand their compatriots in their native language or even learn the language that was spoken by their ancestors, with some in the growing Hispanic community having lost their language.

Considering its position as a global language, Spanish was ranked as the fourth most powerful language in 2016 and this looks only set to increase. With increasing online importance as the second most widely used language on Facebook and Twitter and the third most used language online, added to the Spanish-speaking cultural powerhouses of countries like Spain, Mexico and Argentina, and increasingly the US too, Spanish seems to be a language of the future and a language well worth studying for so many reasons.

With all this in mind, Spanish is an obvious language to study and engage in for cultural, business and personal reasons, as well as a clear favorite language for study among English speakers who don’t need to learn the current international lingua franca.

How Should Translators Approach Content Too Complex for Its Intended Audience?

Posted On April 30, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanglish, Spanish Language, Spanish Translation, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ 1 Comment

Language can be hard at the best of times, but paradoxically at the times when communication is the most important, all meaning can be lost in jargon for the average reader. This is a common phenomenon in fields like the civil service, finance and health care, all of which affect every person on the planet. However, they often involve highly complex terms and concepts that will leave many of those who rely upon these services scratching their heads, having a detrimental impact on their lives.

This problem is exacerbated by language issues, possibly caused by learning difficulties, a lower level of education or not being a native speaker of a language. This matter of needing to bear your audience in mind is a familiar issue for many translators, with this being a topic that affects all languages.

A recent study for the American College of Radiology analyzed 134 Spanish-language imaging-related patient education articles from Radiologyinfo.org and found that while most adults read at an eighth or ninth-grade reading level, and organizations like the American Medical Association advise materials to be at a maximum of a sixth-grade reading level, the average article was written at a 12^th– grade reading level. This is common in other medical specialties.

This complexity has very real and potentially very dangerous consequences, depending on the audience. A lack of understanding of personal health materials is associated with an increase in both hospitalization length and frequency, an increased rate of complications and higher health care costs, made all the worse in the case of the aforementioned study by US Hispanics having the lowest health literacy among all racial groups in the USA, with even the AMA’s reading recommendations likely being out of reach of many.

So, what should medical translators do in these sorts of instances? Should a Spanish translation intended for those who have lower reading levels reflect the reality? Or should it mirror the complex language in the original source document? This question is ultimately one of a matter of document intention and audience. If a document has highly complex language and involves very technical terms for an expert audience, then simplifying the language may not only lead to a loss of content, but it could also be interpreted as offensive. However, it is both a writer and translator’s job to bear the audience in mind and the solution to this issue lies in a dialogue between the two.

If a translator is working on a Spanish translation for a clinic or health care institution and knows full well that the document is for public consumption and that the language is too complex, then the translator should raise this issue with the client. Then, they can work with them to put things into as plain language as possible while maintaining the message behind the document that is so crucial to the wellbeing of the audience. While a medical translator may know the “correct” translation of a technical term in such instances, it is worth considering a simplification or the use of dialect words (such as Spanglish terms among US Hispanics) if it conveys the message in a clearer manner. The goal of this translation is to speak to its audience and to do this successfully with a hospital document for the average patient, keeping the original complex language may actually hinder the goal.

While this is indeed a topic for hospitals and the writers of public medical documents to consider, as there is still clearly an issue with clarity in their original language, translators should avoid copying source document mistakes, confusing audiences and risking hazardous outcomes. To do this, a dialogue between hospitals and translators is key – both have to know their audience and content and help each other to do so, helping them to successfully provide documents from which patients can actually benefit.

Future of the Spanish Language Debated in Córdoba: Rival Congresses on the Spanish Language

Posted On March 26, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ No Comments

From the 27^th to the 30^th of March 2019, the Argentinian city of Córdoba will see academics, writers and language enthusiasts flock to it for the 8th International Congress of the Spanish Language (VIII Congreso Internacional de la Lengua Española, CILE). Some 250 writers, academics, experts and professionals from all over the world are coming to the city for discussions centered around the theme “Latin America and the future of the Spanish language: Culture and education, technology and business”, debating the future of the language in Latin America and its use and challenges in a changing world.

However, the prestigious CILE, backed by renowned Spanish institutions like the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) and the Cervantes Institute, isn’t in Córdoba alone. From the 26^th to the 29^th of March, something of a counter congress is being held by the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities at the National University of Córdoba, arguing that language is a human right and its development in Latin America doesn’t need the royal backing of Spain or its approval on the “correct” use and course of the language.

The presence of the two congresses not only raises key questions facing the Spanish language, but also society in general and how these changes are reflected in society. This CILE, promoted by the government of Argentina as well as the RAE, ASALE and Cervantes Institute, promises a discussion on the Latin American future of Spanish, the rise of digital technology, the economic value of Spanish, the challenges of cultural industries, linguistic tourism, translation, linguistic fusion, teaching the Spanish language and literature, and the importance of clear legal language, among many other topics. Among the guests present will be the writer María Teresa Andruetto, Nobel prize winner Mario Vargas Llosa, King Felipe VI of Spain and Mauricio Macri, the President of Argentina.

The royal aspect of the CILE and the somewhat authoritarian approaches of the RAE and the Cervantes Institute to the Spanish language, such as stipulating the use of official Castilian forms to be considered “native”, have been interpreted as a little patronizing, and in this spirit the I Encuentro Internacional: Derechos Lingüísticos como Derechos Humanos en Latinoamérica (First International Conference: Language Rights as Human Rights in Latin America) is being held by the National University of Córdoba to argue that the use of the language is a human right, not something to be controlled by Spain with Spain’s approval on defining the language. Spanish should be inclusive of the international nature of the language, varying enormously from place to place. It isn’t just dialects that many believe the likes of CILE overlook in their approach, but also the polemical gender issue in the Spanish language and gender neutrality in a gendered language, such as using the gender-neutral ‘e’ instead of the feminine ‘a’ and masculine ‘o’.

It is around this topic of inclusivity that the interesting issue of censorship also arises: should a language be changed to prevent offence? Should offensive words be removed to make Spanish more inclusive? In essence, the next few days will be filled with debate on issues that affect language and how they mirror issues we see in a rapidly changing society, such as staying up to date in the language, inclusivity and by that token discrimination and to whom does the Spanish language belong if not its half a billion speakers around the world.

VIII Congreso Internacional de la Lengua Española – Program and Activities.

I Encuentro Internacional: Derechos Lingüísticos como Derechos Humanos en Latinoamérica – Program and Activities.

Translating Genericized Trademarks

Posted On March 21, 2019By TranspanishIn Languages, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

Language is constantly changing and adapting to suit its environment. One noticeable example of this is in brand names for new technologies or products becoming used as a generic name for any similar product whether they were produced by the brand or not. From trampoline to cellophane, words that were once specific brand names have entered everyday language to refer to general products, a process that continues today with the likes of the term photoshopping and googling. However, the introduction of these terms is not universal to all languages and can provide potential problems for translators, not to mention lawyers and marketers. This article highlights several notable examples of brand names that have been generalized and how to approach translating these so-called genericized trademarks.

Notable Generic Trademarks

Dig a little into the subject and there’s a surprisingly large number of words that have made their way into common use that were once brand names. These include Velcro, which is trademarked by Velcro Companies and refers to, instead, the “hook-and-loop fastener” system – a term that is almost never used in common speech to refer to the system.

Similar examples include:

A Zimmer frame to refer to a walking frame (with the Zimmer frame specifically belonging to Zimmer Holdings).
A Taser to refer to an electroshock weapon instead of one created by Taser International. It is, in fact, an acronym for a fictional weapon: Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle. This has created the verbs ‘to tase’ and ‘to taser’.
A Hoover to refer to a vacuum cleaner instead of one created by Hoover Company. This has also become a verb synonymous with ‘to vacuum’.
Rizla instead of tobacco rolling papers, with Imperial Brands’ Rizla papers being the world’s most successful rolling paper brand.
Coke can be often used to refer to all Cola in the UK, not just Coca Cola, while in some parts of the southern US, Coke is the generic term for all soda.
PowerPoint to refer to all slide shows or presentation programs, instead of exclusively the slide show presentation program developed by Microsoft.
A Zeppelin to refer to rigid airships (with Luftschiffbau Zeppelin being a leading German airship company founded by Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin).
Photoshop to refer to all photo manipulation instead of the program by Adobe. It is commonly used as a verb ‘to photoshop’ or ‘to shop’ to mean digital photographic manipulation.

Potential Problems for Translators

For understandable reasons, companies often fight hard to prevent their brand from becoming a generic term. The Velcro legal team has even created a music video complaining about the use of the generic term Velcro. Some companies have been more successful in the prevention of their brands becoming generic terms, such as Nintendo who spread the use of “video game console” instead of a “Nintendo”, which now sounds antiquated and out of touch.

With this in mind, some brands may become incorporated as genericized trademarks in some languages while others may not. There is also the issue of culture and which products have been marketed more successfully in an area. For example, the generic untrademarked term “ramen” is used in the US to refer to instant noodles, while this is often referred to using the genericized trademark “Pot Noodle” in the UK, so even in the same language complications can arise as to what is being referenced. These issues can complicate translations for translators who are unaware of what is actually meant by the trademark, leading to possible misunderstandings and mistranslations. For instance, in Mongolia, the term “Canon” is used to refer to photocopying, named after the brand, but if this term were to be translated literally into English due to an insufficient level of cultural knowledge on the part of the translator, there could be problems in regard to whether they are specifically referring to the brand.

How to Translate Genericized Trademarks

As with most translation issues, there are a few strategies that can be used depending on the translator’s aim. If the cultural context is important or perhaps if there is no equivalent term in the target language, an explanation may be necessary. However, often times these terms are just used without people being aware that they are referring to a specific brand. In these instances, the brand name becomes a synonym rather than a new term, so Hoover – now essentially a synonym for vacuum cleaner in English – should be substituted with the non-trademark name vacuum cleaner when translating into another language.

In short, generic trademarks are an issue to be aware of when translating and care should be taken considering both the context and the intention of the piece. When possible, for clarity’s sake, translators may want to consider avoiding their use unless it sounds unnatural to do so.

Understanding Translation Memories

Posted On January 28, 2019By TranspanishIn Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 1 Comment

Dig a little into the world of translation and it won’t take long until you come across translation memories (TM) and computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools. These should not be confused with automatic machine translation tools like Google Translate; these are tools to aid human translation and can help translators in their work, reducing their rate and taking less time, helping clients receive their translations faster and at a cheaper rate.

What is a Translation Memory (TM)?

A translation memory is a database that contains translation segments, such as sentences or paragraphs, that have been previously translated. They contain the source text and the target text in pairs known as translation units and are often used with CAT tools for large projects where text can be repeated. These memories are developed as a translator or team of translators translate, or they can be created by a client to aid the translator.

In cases where there are large quantities of text with near identical copy, such as product listings, these can be used to quickly apply translations in multiple instances thus allowing the translator to provide a discount for fuzzy matches (matches that may be less than 100% perfect). When needed, the translator reviews each 100% match segment and makes sure that the matches are correct while taking the context into account.

How can they be used?

While translation memories and CAT tools can be useful in all sorts of translations, they are best applied in cases of repetitive, technical text with specialized language – think a product manual rather than a novel. The translator or client creates a translation memory, providing translations of segments of the source text parallel to the target text, thus making large projects much quicker.

According to SDL Trados, a giant in the world of CAT tool software, recurring phrases and statements can make up more than 40% of copy for texts including websites, sales tools, product documentation and more – that’s a huge percentage and so it’s no surprise that appropriate use of CAT tools and translation memories can lead to quicker turnaround and potential discounts.

What are the benefits of using a CAT tool?

Translation memories and CAT tools have myriad benefits, first and foremost being the reduction in workload for translators. This means that translation costs can be far lower for texts where there is a large amount of identical copy, with many companies offering discounts to reflect this repeated content. Another benefit is the quicker turnaround, with the software remembering the translated material and identifying where the same segment is later used in text.

The accelerated process also means that translation style is more likely to be consistent throughout so a phrase that could be translated multiple ways is only translated in one consistent way throughout. The software also ensures that every part of the text is translated, while also maintaining consistency among multiple translators in their style if it’s a particularly large project.

In short, translation memories and CAT tools can make translations cheaper with budgets adjusted for their use, not to mention making translations more consistent and quicker, helping both the translator and their client to get the best out of the technology.

Translating Slang and Cultural References

Posted On January 7, 2019By TranspanishIn Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 1 Comment

A fascinating challenge when working on a translation is the issue of how to approach translating slang words and phrases as well as unique cultural references. The translation of such cultural references is an issue that can lead to various misunderstandings of not just intention but also of different cultures. In a similar way, slang also poses a potential problem as it is not only closely linked to dialect but also certain places, times and specific cultural references. With the delicate nature of these linguistic features, the often-subtle intricacies in source texts can be easily mistranslated, losing important information.

How one approaches translating cultural references depends on the intention of the piece being translated. Is the maintenance of the cultural context in which the text was written important or is providing an equivalent feeling more important? A good example of maintaining cultural context is literature, be it fiction or non-fiction, where preserving the cultural references as they are in the original is often the best approach. The assumption here is that the reader in the target language has less knowledge about the culture associated with the language from which the text has been translated.

Therefore, if there’s a cultural reference that may cause confusion to the translated text’s audience, it is worth considering providing an explanation, either naturally in the text or via a footnote. This is exactly what happened with the Chinese translation of the Twilight series, where the footnotes explaining the facets of American life unfamiliar to Chinese audiences made it a bestseller. This approach can also be used with slang to preserve the cultural color that is often important to texts.

However, there are other instances where conveying an emotion to provide an equivalent emotional impact should be the aim of a translation. This is particularly the case with metaphors and other occasions when the focus is on feeling rather than informational content. Biblical translations provide several good examples of this. Consider the translation of the phrase “Lamb of God”, which includes several cultural references. Among them, the existence of an animal known as a lamb, the association of lambs and sacrificial slaughter, the idea of a lamb being a useful animal worthy of respect and the knowledge that lambs can be killed for their meat and wool. Instead of providing a lengthy footnote in Biblical translations for cultures that had a different concept or no concept at all of a lamb, an equivalent is instead often used. The phrase is therefore translated as Pig of God among parts of the Pacific islands and the Seal of God in Inuit.

Slang can also be maintained, explained or substituted with an equivalent, but doing so can often be difficult due to how much slang varies depending on age, location, context and other factors. Care should be taken if finding an equivalent word to make sure that it truly matches. Consider you’re working on a translation of a text set in an unspecified location in the 1980s that uses a slang word like “dude”. You could then find an equivalent phrase associated with the 1980s in the target language that captures the equivalent meaning. However, if the text takes place in a specific location where the culture may be important, it may be better to use the term and then explain it. A lot of care is needed as the smallest error could risk changing the feeling that is associated with a piece.

When translating slang and cultural references, translators need to decide on their approach considering the focus and audience of the text itself. Not only can this be dangerous territory for translators, but it’s also one of the most enjoyable aspects of translation that shows it’s an art form that goes beyond understanding the source and target languages.

Spanish Is the Second Most Widely Spoken Language in the World

Posted On December 7, 2018By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 1 Comment

According to the latest annual report from the Spanish language institute, the Instituto Cervantes, more than 577 million people around the world speak Spanish, some 7.6% of the global population. By 2050, the Spanish speaking population is expected to increase to 756 million, an increase of 0.1%. This makes it the second most widely spoken native language on the planet, just after Mandarin Chinese.

This group of over half a billion people consists of the native speakers, second language speakers and foreign learners. Out of these, 480 million speak Spanish as their mother tongue while almost 22 million people across 107 countries around the world are learning the language. This figure regarding the use of foreign learners is expected to be approximately 25% larger as it does not account for private study.

The yearbook, which began operation in 1998, analyzes the current position of the Spanish language and its projections for the future. Its figures help the Instituto Cervantes to make decisions on issues such as opening new centers, prioritizing academic work or cultural dissemination, or promoting Spanish in international forums.

In the online world, Spanish is the third most widely used language after English and Chinese, comprising 8.1% of all online communication. It is also the third most widely learned foreign language, also after English and Chinese, with a particularly high level of popularity in the Anglophone world. In the United States, it is the most popular foreign language to study while it is perceived as the most important language to study for the future in the United Kingdom. France, Sweden and Denmark also demonstrate a keen interest in studying Spanish as a foreign language.

In terms of the sciences, despite the continued dominance of the English language, Spanish remains important and its use in global science has increased constantly since 1996, largely focusing on social sciences, medical sciences, and the arts and humanities.

With respect to film production, Spain, Argentina and Mexico are three Spanish-speaking countries that are among the top fifteen 15 in the world. Spain is also the third largest exporter of books and is among the leading book publishers, along with Argentina. Spanish is the third most popular language in which magazines are published, although it is far below English and French.

The director of the Instituto Cervantes, Luis García Montero, also noted when presenting the report that “the GDP generated of all Spanish-speaking countries (6.9% of world GDP) is higher than that generated by all countries whose official language is French”.

how can freelance translators work less hours and produce more.

Freelance Translators: Be More Productive by Working Less

Posted On November 23, 2018By TranspanishIn Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 1 2 Comments

What do Charles Darwin, Ernest Hemingway and Gabriel García Márquez all have in common? They worked fewer than five hours a day. These geniuses weren’t lazy, they were efficient.

Being a freelance translator with a flexible schedule and all that “freedom” sounds like a dream job but when you actually dive into freelancing, you realize that it’s a challenging career path. You need to stay organized without being fooled by the flexible hours and the apparent free time that freelancers enjoy.

As strange as it may seem, the answer to an increase in productivity isn’t working long hours. Scientific research shows that people who work 35 hours per week are half as productive as those working 20 hours per week. And this isn’t just true for freelancers, companies are starting to reduce employee work hours and, in the near future, the 40-hour workweek will probably be a thing of the past.

One study from the UK even shows that the average employee works about three hours per day and spends the rest of their time on the internet, eating, socializing, or searching for new jobs.

Why will working fewer hours increase your productivity?

Have you ever wondered why you can accomplish more when your time is limited? The answer is that when you have a whole day to finish a job, you tend to just procrastinate or work slowly.

Deep Work versus Shallow Work

This is a concept taken from Cal Newport’s book Deep Work.

Shallow Work is the easiest work to do though it isn’t the most productive. It involves those tasks that can be accomplished while being distracted, like writing emails, participating in online discussions and other routine responsibilities. While these tasks are important, you should try to avoid investing too much time in them as doing so will reduce your ability to perform what Newport calls Deep Work.

Deep Work includes tasks that require a lot of energy and concentration. They push cognitive skills to their limit and should be performed free from distractions. If you’re a freelance translator, Deep Work not only clearly relates to translating and proofreading but it is also needed in finding new clients, searching for new jobs and conducting any additional marketing efforts.

Fixed-schedule productivity

We live in a world that’s full of distractions and there’s nothing better for beating distraction than sticking to a plan. If you don’t have a schedule, it’s highly likely that you’ll go through the day jumping from task to task without accomplishing what you had planned. Don’t let chaos dominate your working life!

The best way of staying focused is to have strict periods of time scheduled for your work. This can be accomplished by planning your day in advance and setting goals and deadlines.

One way of doing this is segmenting your day and assigning how much time you’re going to dedicate to each activity. Once you have a strict plan, you’ll be amazed by how you can adapt your day to cope with unplanned activities. Say a client requests an urgent translation to be delivered within two hours, once you finish the translation you’ll have a clear idea of what you need to accomplish next. There are even browser extensions that can help you to keep track of time.

Find the right place to work

Determining the best place to work is an entirely personal decision.

Some people like working in a noisy environment and others need total silence to keep focused. Some people rely on a quiet home office while others prefer co-working spaces.

Whatever you choose, you need to be honest with yourself: the place should be free of distractions. It isn’t worth going to that coffee shop around the corner that serves the best cappuccino if it’s a place where you find yourself getting easily distracted.

You could even have multiple spaces depending on what you need to accomplish. You could always apply for new jobs in a café while working in a very quiet environment for your actual translation work.

Before you start working, make sure that you have everything you need with you: notepads, pens, dictionaries, highlighters, and even your snacks, a bottle of water or a coffee. When doing your translations, have your glossaries and reference websites and documents open on your computer.

Be unavailable

There hasn’t been a time in history when people have been more reachable than today. This constant contact is like poison for concentration.

It’s essential that you keep a distance from social media when doing Deep Work. An exception to this rule is if you use your social media accounts for your work but you should also include your “social media time” in your schedule. Always carefully consider what the benefits are of being connected to Facebook, LinkedIn or whatever channel you use.

The same is true with WhatsApp; silence all groups and even that friend of yours who sends you a message every ten minutes. You should also tell your family that they should only contact you in the case of an emergency during your working hours.

Schedule your distraction time

There’s nothing wrong with allocating time for being distracted and it can even help you be more focused on your job.

Give yourself a block of time when distractions are allowed. This includes replying to your WhatsApp messages, browsing the web and your social media accounts, whatever takes your mind off work.

Keep in mind that if the objective is to work less while accomplishing more, you shouldn’t allow yourself too much time for your “distraction time”.

While the tips above may seem quite strict, think of all the free time you’ll have if you improve your focus and develop Deep Work habits.

Getting started can be hard but even if you only adopt some of the recommended habits, you’ll definitely boost your productivity.

Tips for Translators