How to Find a Good and Cost-Saving Indonesian Translation Agency?

When planning and implementing your localization strategy in the Indonesian market, one of the first challenges you encounter is how and where to find an Indonesian translation agency that offers high-quality translations at the most value-for-money rates.

As a side note, we strongly advise you not to choose whichever Indonesian translation company that gives you the lowest price because you receive what you pay for. For important documents such as marketing materials, legal contracts, or business documents, you should only work with a decent Indonesian translation agency that offers a reasonable price for the quality of services they provide.

In today’s post, we will show you some useful tips to find the right Indonesian translation agency for your translation projects.

Do Your Research

We have one good news and one bad news for you. The good news is there are thousands of Indonesian translation agencies out there for you to choose from. Just by typing “Best Indonesian translation agency” on Google, you will see millions of results within a second.

But it is also the problem. Since there are too many choices, it will be a real headache for you to make a choice. Our tip is to search for the list of best Indonesian translation agencies from trusted review companies pages. Two sites we recommend is Clutch.co and GoodFirms. You can use the filter to find more relevant results.

Asking your networks for a recommendation is also a good method. You can try starting a post on LinkedIn or Facebook, asking if anyone in your connection has worked with a good Indonesian translation company. As the demand for global business expansion has grown quickly in recent years, the chance that a colleague or friend of yours who has previously worked with a translation agency is high. Even if they cannot recommend a good one, they may advise you to avoid a particular agency with which they had a bad experience.

Make A Shortlist Of The Most Potential Candidates

This process will take quite some time. However, if done properly, you can easily find the most suitable Indonesian translation partner later on. Here are some criteria you should set when evaluating and shortlisting your potential candidates:

• • Translation Company Portfolio – For Indonesian translation projects, it is ideal that you work with a translation agency that is based in Indonesia. This is because they have the advantage of understanding the Indonesian language, market, business style, and offer the best rate as they don’t have to outsource your projects to other local companies. You should carefully check their portfolio to see if they have experience handling content in your fields and ask for case studies if possible.
  • The Number of Language Pairs They Offer – Some local agencies may only be familiar with one or two language pairs related to the Indonesian language. You need to check if they offer the language pairs you require. Otherwise, you might need to contact a regional or global translation agency.
  • Types of Services They Offer – Most Indonesian translation agency offers basic translation services, including translation, editing, and proofreading. However, some types of content that are highly visual should be undergone another step called Desktop Publishing (DTP). Your suitable translation partner should be able to handle all the services you need.

After this step, you should have a shortlist of some potential candidates. The number should be around 5 to 7.

Compare Your Candidates Ability

Now that you have the list of the most potential Indonesian translation agencies, you should compare their competencies and choose the best 3 to proceed with the next step. You should compare their:

• • Rate – Almost all company promises to provide you with the best Indonesian translation services at the cheapest or most affordable rates. Don’t be too quick to believe that. What you should look for is not the lowest rate, but the one that provides the best value for money, i.e. a rate that is within your budget and proportionate to the expected quality.
  • Reviews and testimonials – In addition to reading testimonials from their clients, you should also pay attention to the reviews of their translators who have worked with these companies. A good translation partner is one who not only serves their customers well but also treats their translators well (e.g. always pay a reasonable rate and on time). You can read translator reviews on ProZ.
  • Customer service – Pay close attention to the responses of your candidates when mailing them. Do they provide you with clear and informative answers to all of your questions? Are they communicative?
  • Certification – You should consider translation agencies that have ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System or/and ISO 17100:2015 Translation Services Requirements. Their translators should be those who have received proper language and translation training (e.g., a Bachelor’s Degree in Translation or ATA Certification).

Ask For A Test

The best way to evaluate your Indonesian translation candidates is to ask them to do a test. In general, translation agencies agree to do a small test of up to 300 words for free. In case you want them to do a longer test, you should pay them to show your respect for their time and effort. The content of the test should be relevant to the actual project.

Through the test, you can evaluate different aspects of your candidates, including their ability to handle your projects, their working styles, and their working attitudes. What’s more, through the test, your candidates can understand better your expectations and requirements for the actual Indonesian translation projects.

The Indonesian translation candidate that has the best test results, along with a proportionate rate, is the translation partner you should work with.

Wrap Up

Many businesses are hesitant to outsource their Indonesian translation projects to professional translation agencies due to the concern for costs. You cannot expect your bilingual employees to perform admirably on both your translations and their regular duties. Thus, hire a professional translator and let them do their thing. We hope that by following our guidelines, you will find a great Indonesian translation company for your upcoming projects.

GTE Localize, based in Indonesia, is a professional ISO ISO 9001:2015 certified Indonesian translation agency that will assist you in completing successful Indonesian translation projects that are worth every dollar you pay. To make this promise a reality, we collaborate with a network of native Indonesian linguists who are well-versed in the Indonesian language, culture, and customers.

Contact Us today to schedule a one-on-one consultation with one of our Indonesian localization experts.