Top 5 Mistakes When Ordering Vietnamese Translation Services That Cost You Money
Your business growth can be fueled with the help of professional Vietnamese translation services. An excellent translation is the master key that unlocks your ability to promote your product or service to a limitless number of people.
In contrast, a poor piece of translation can delay international launches, introduce expensive defects, and increase the risk of confusing, misinforming, or outright offending your customers.
So, to get a successful translation project, you first have to make appropriate movements. Many are not prepared for the order, which results in endless back and forth communication and the ire of a constant flow of translator complaints.
Below are five common mistakes that you should avoid to facilitate the translation process.
1# Sending poorly written source text to your Vietnamese translation services
Sending your source text without proofreading is a big mistake that could delay translation delivery. The more complex the text is, the more critical it is that it is reviewed thoroughly and adequately.
Proofreading will help you maintain consistency in terms, reduce typos and copy-and-paste errors, and increase readability. Remove any redundant words that aren’t for translation to speed up the process and save you money and time!
It’s even more crucial to have it proofread by a native speaker. Professional proofreaders will ensure your text is clear and fluent. Though your Vietnamese translation services could comment on typos, grammar mistakes, and other issues in the source text, it takes up valuable translation time.
Good-quality translations are rare when the source text is badly written. Thus it’s worth investing in your source text. This investment is also beneficial when you get more considerable expansion and need to add more language.
2# Not providing descriptions for your text
It is best to provide the source text ideally in complete sentences. However, that’s not always the case. So, if you’re having trouble with context, add a context description next to the sentence.
This will save you a lot of time when it comes to answering translation questions. Remember that what you think is evident may not be to translators. To give the best possible translation version for your project, your Vietnamese translation services provider needs to know in what context the word is applied.
A little comment specifying whether a single phrase should be translated as a verb or a noun would result in translation joy.
For example, the word lie has the same form of noun and verb but differs in meaning. When it is translated into Vietnamese, it has different meanings as well, namely nằm and lời nói dối
Adding a small note like that could make the translation process smoother.
3# Providing dialogue text without notes and in a random order
If your Vietnamese translation services provider needs to translate random dialogue sentences without viewing the entire discussion in context, you may receive illogical translations. The worst part is that you could only find out about it after your project has run and received outraged/negative reviews from the community.
In many projects, dialogue is a significant part. And translations must reflect them naturally. We must keep in mind that languages are different for that to happen.
For example, Vietnamese have distinct ways of addressing different people and dissimilar nuances in speech and dialogue.
A character’s age and social status will significantly impact formal and informal addressing in speech. Depending on the gender and age of the person, totally different terms will be used. Is the speaker speaking to a single individual or a group of people?
Below is a table of singular Vietnamese pronouns for your reference.
| Vietnamese Pronoun | English equivalence | English Pronoun | How to use it |
| First-person | Tôi | I | – Refer to yourself (formal) |
| Tao | – Refer to yourself with close friends (informal) | ||
| Second person | Bạn | You | – Use for a person at the same age as you or your friends. |
| Em | – Miss, girl or boy (younger than you, informal) | ||
| Anh | – Mr. (older than you) | ||
| Chị | – Miss or Mrs. in formal address | ||
| Ông | – Mr., Sir., gentleman (formal) | ||
| Bà | – Mrs., Madam, lady (formal) | ||
| Mày | – Address between close friends (to use with “tao” – first-person) | ||
| Third-person | Em ấy | He | – Boy (younger than you) |
| Anh ấy | – Mr. (Older than you or slightly younger than you in the formal address) | ||
| Ông ấy | – Mr. (a person who is older than you or of higher status) | ||
| Em ấy | She | – Girl (younger than you) | |
| Cô ấy | – Miss/Mrs. | ||
| Chị ấy | – Miss/Mrs. | ||
| Bà ấy | – Lady, Mrs, Madam (a person is older than you or of higher status) | ||
| Nó | It | – Thing in general |
4# Setting up a content length equal to the source text
When translating words from another language into Vietnamese, the length of the phrase is frequently increased. While text expansion does not affect the accuracy of the translation, it impacts the layout and style, especially for high-visual content like brochures, posters, and websites.
Take, for example, an English to Vietnamese translation. Translated Vietnamese contents are likely 30-37 percent longer than their original English. Vietnamese expressions are often much longer and more detailed than English expressions.
In addition, when it comes to using Vietnamese translation services for video subtitles, readability is a factor of great importance.
You should keep the source content in short sentences. Short lines of text take up less space on the screen, making it easier for viewers to read. According to the BBC, it’s better to set a limit of 38 characters per line and a maximum of two lines or three (in some exceptional circumstances) on the screen.
5# Thinking of localization at the last minute
Localization means a lot in the success of any expansion campaign. The complexity of the Vietnamese language and its rich culture requires foreign companies to localize their content to win the Vietnamese market.
The following is a list of Vietnamese localization nuances and locale specifics you should be made aware of:
- A long list of personal pronouns is used in Vietnamese. When speaking with your target audiences, you should consult a Vietnamese localization specialist to help you pick the proper pronouns.
- Vietnam is divided into 3 regional parts, and each part often has a different writing style. Spelling and vocabulary show significant variances.
- The Vietnamese capitalization system is complicated and should be processed carefully.
- When localizing information into Vietnamese, you should know the word expansion.
- If you want to access a large number of audiences through social media, Facebook is your go-to platform. Facebook is currently the most popular social networking site in Vietnam, with a massive user base. In reality, Vietnam was ranked seventh among the nations with the most Facebook users as of July 2019.
Leading active social media apps among internet users in Vietnam in 2021
- The Vietnamese metric system of measurement is used (meters, kilometers, kilometers per hour, and degrees Celsius).
- The date format is date-month-year.
- People in Vietnam use both 24-hour and 12-hour clocks. 24-hour notation is typically used in transportation timetables, legal documents, and television schedules, while 12-hour notation is preferred in daily dialogue.
When using a 12-hour clock, you need to add sáng (morning), trưa (noon), chiều (afternoon), tối (evening), or đêm (night) after the time. 10 p.m., for example, is 10 giờ tối.
- The family name follows the given name in a complete name format.
- An address format typically includes these elements: house number, street, ward, district, and city.
Partner with a Pro Company for your Vietnamese Translation Services
Based in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Singapore, GTE Localize has years of expertise in offering Vietnamese translation services.
We have a vast pool of Vietnamese translators, both in-house and freelance, who can handle all major Vietnamese language pairings and types of material. Thus, if you need Vietnamese translation services that are quick, high-quality, and cost-effective, go no further than GTE Localize.
When we get your order, we search our database of Vietnamese linguists for those that best fit your needs. Over the years, we have established ourselves as a reliable Vietnamese language translation partner for a wide range of clients worldwide, completing hundreds of Vietnamese translation projects.
We are here to help you with any Vietnamese translation needs you may have. For a free consultation, contact one of our localization specialists.
Download our whitepaper with helpful ideas for localizing your content into Vietnamese and other 9 Asian languages.
