Briefing your translators

If you haven’t worked with a translator before, it can be hard to know what information they might need from you. You don’t want to overload them with irrelevant information. But you don’t want to miss any crucial details, either. How do you strike the right balance?

This is where a translation brief template can be useful, both for you and your translator. The more information you can give at the start of the project, the more closely your translation will align with your expectations.

Our blog post on writing an effective translation brief offers some great tips. But if you’re a busy professional, you can save time by downloading our translation brief template (linked below). It covers all the essential details that your translator will need:

Your contact details

For those mid-project questions that might crop up. And for that all-important translation delivery. You might want to include information about your preferred communication method, too. Or the best time of the day to reach you.

The language(s) involved

This might sound obvious, but you can save some back and forth by confirming which language versions you need. Our template lists some of the more popular languages. But there’s space for you to specify other languages, and any country variants.

Your file formats

Did you know that not all file formats lend themselves well to translation? No need to worry – most computer-assisted translation tools support a huge range of file types. It just helps to know what you need upfront.

The number of files you’re sending

Save yourself a headache further down the line by specifying how many files you’re sending. Nobody wants to find out at the eleventh hour that a file got lost in transit.

The purpose of your text

Translators will decide on the right approach to translate your text based on the content type and your target audience.

Reference material

Include any glossaries or style guides that you’d like the translator to follow along with the translation brief. Point out any relevant websites or other reference material, too.

Our translation brief template makes it easy for you to share all the right information with your translator. Click on the image below to download your copy. No email address needed!

Found this template helpful? Email it to us at post@planetlanguages.com for your no-obligation quote.