I was working on a proposal for a possible customer. They needed a document translated, of course. Or that is what they said they needed (I will change languages to protect the innocent!).
 
A phrase in the original material spoke, using a normal English expression, about a certain location having a "down home" feeling.
 
In other words, that location made people feel "at home" and comfortable, not like a guest or a stranger.
 
A beautiful picture!
 
That phrase was given to a translator and the result was basically: this location gives you an "under the house" feeling.
 
Well, maybe you like crawling in the dust next to spiders under a house, but I am not sure that is what they wanted their audience to imagine!
 
As a translation, it was actually "correct": the words matched up pretty well. The dictionary was happy.
 
But the message was lost.
 
Translation is not the work of a technician. Translation is best understood as communication, and as an art, the art of a craftsman.
 
We like to think of Interlogia as more than a translation company. It is more like an artists' guild where master craftsmen and apprentices and artisans are commissioned to produce inspiring and living works of art for their patrons: for you, and for your audience and customers. 
 
So, you don't need anything translated. You need your message turned into art!

You have a limited budget, you need work done, and you need it done as efficiently as possible. So naturally, one of your first questions when looking for a translation company is likely to be "What do you charge"?
 
That is a fair, reasonable, and intelligent question. And you deserve an answer.
 
The simple answer is that, depending on the complexity of a project, Interlogia might charge anywhere from 8 to 20 cents per word (using US dollars). Perhaps more.
 
If you have done your homework you know that there are plenty of other companies to talk to who are likely to charge you less.
 
The fact is that sometimes work that costs less will turn out to cost you more. Let's compare some of the costs of what seems like cheaper work:
 
The cost of your time
 
In most cases, if you pay less for the translation you will end up paying a lot more in the precious time it will take you and your staff to edit, correct, and personalize the document you just paid for.
 
And time is money. 
  
The cost of your reputation
 
You are busy, and your staff is busy. You probably outsourced the translation work because you just don't have the time to check and edit the way you know should be done. So you trust that to someone else
 
And then you find that your customers have a product from you that is less than your standards say it should be. And, of course, they are passing the word along. You get fewer referrals. People don’t seek you out. Your reputation starts to suffer.
 
And your reputation is money. 
 
 The cost of a lost customer
 
You pay a bit less. The work gets done. You do your best to be sure it is right. You send it off. You get paid.
 
But you never hear from that client again. They don’t answer your calls or reply to your emails. You had a one time job, but no repeat work. You know what it takes to get that one new job, and how crucial it is to your business to keep a customer coming back for more work, more orders, more sales.
 
Building a business around a strategy of every job being a new sale is a losing effort. If every new customer becomes a one-time client, then in effect, you are losing as many clients as you are gaining.
 
And a lost customer is money.
 
So less is more, and more can be less
You are probably already thinking of other costs in addition to these three.
 
So, yes, there can be a high cost for low cost translation. But sometimes paying more, if you spend it in the right place, will cost you less.

I am often asked why we named our company Interlogia. Today before I started writing I did a Google search for the word “interlogia” and, not surprisingly, no definition shows up. However I was very happy to see that one of our job posts did!
 
What does “interlogia” mean, and why name a company this? Interlogia is the combination of Inter and Logia.
 
The prefix "inter" means among or between. We often use "inter" in front of a word to indicate some kind of a connection between things. Perhaps the most common example would be "international" to indicate between or among nations.
 
Logia means sayings or words. 
 
So, inter + logia = words between or among us. 
 
One way to understand translation is that it is a way of making sure that the "words among us" don't just fall flat on the ground or get misunderstood. Translation is the way we make sure that the words we use when we move your message from one language to another are words that:
 
+ inform the mind to think what you were thinking
 
+ and ignite the imagination to see what you were seeing
 
+ inspire the will to take action: to buy your product, or read your book, or click through your website, or use your training material.
 
That is why Interlogia is here. To help you get your words into the minds and imaginations and hearts of your audiences and customers so that they can respond to you and to your products and to your services. Then you and your customers and clients will be able to share “words among” yourselves. You will communicate!