Google Translate. Is it Good for your business?

Would you believe that IKEA once had a children’s desk called a Fartfull? Or that they had a dining table called a Lyckhem. As crazy as it seems to Americans it did happen. But why would you have products with such obvious and inappropriate synonyms? The answer is simple – they did not check the translation between Swedish and English.

So, if a major, multi-national company struggled with the language barrier, how would an automated computer program work for your company? Mistakes like this can be the biggest fault with using Google Translate for your business.

Now, I am not telling you that using the service is always a wrong choice. Far from it. If you find an interesting blog in another language, go at it. Translate it, so you can learn, laugh, and enjoy the benefits of our interconnected world.

However, if you are a company looking to market your services in other parts of the world, then Google Translate is something you want to avoid like the plague.

Google Translate – Where to Use and Where Not to Use

Where to Use Google Translate

1. When you want to engage with a foreign audience and find out what they said about your industry and/or product then Google Translate is a great way to understand the basics of the message.

Someone wrote something about your product in Spanish? You want to know what they said, to get a feel for what a more international audience thinks of your services? That is where Google Translate can help.

2. Have you ever wanted to read an interesting blog post written in another language? Then this is another good case for Google Translate use.

Why Not To Use Google Translate

1. Everyone likes free, but the problem with free is that it is not always better. As Richards Brooks stated, “Don’t rely on a free service to do this (you wouldn’t for almost anything else in your business).”
2. Errors – One of the biggest dangers of Google Translate is that it is not as accurate as human translator

Translating words is one thing, but to translate phrases and idioms, and cultural context is a whole other story. No computer can do it all. Let’s take the phrase “Eat, drink and be merry (for tomorrow we die).”

The true translation is “A beber y a tragar, que el mundo se va a acabar.”

However, Google Translate offers the following: “Comer, beber y ser feliz (porque mañana moriremos).”

Google Translation

Translation is a difficult task. No computer can replicate all the subtleties of translating a complex message from one language to another yet. As you have seen from the examples above, computers make mistakes. The challenge for a business is that these mistakes can cost a lot of money (and your reputation!). Instead of saving money you may lose clients over potential mishaps.

Instead, you want to look into developing the skills and team necessary to positively display your brand in different cultures.

via:http://bloggersmakemoney.com/google-translate-good-business/