Translations: Humans vs. machines

Recently, people have asked me about online automatic translation programs, such as those offered by Google or Bing. Are they good, or good enough, when trying to produce materials for a Spanish-speaking audience?

It would be easy for me to just answer, “No. Computers aren’t ready to replace humans in this area.” But let’s allow these automatic translation programs to speak for themselves.

We could take an English document or website and translate it with one of these programs into Spanish but that wouldn’t be very edifying for people who aren’t fluent in Spanish.

But what would happen if we did the opposite, taking text in Spanish and translating it into English?

I did my small and unscientific experiment with a news story from Noticieros Televisa, a well-known newscast from Mexico. The story was about Delta Airlines buying stakes of Aeromexico.

The headline is translated by Google this way: “Delta Air Lines acquire shares of Aeromexico,” which makes sense, although it probably wouldn’t be the preferred choice of a news editor. But Bing translates it more à la Yoda from Star Wars: “It will acquire Delta Air Lines shares of Aeroméxico.”

Both programs do a relatively decent job of translating the first paragraph of the story. But the second paragraph becomes more interesting.

The original story in Spanish says that the merger of both companies will generate between 800 and 1,000 new jobs. But the Google translation says that the merger will generate 800,000 new jobs! And Bing’s translation doesn’t make much sense, saying it “will generate between 800-thousand jobs.”

Another common slipup by these programs is last names. The translation to Spanish of the recent appointment of two Denver cabinet members is a good example.

The two appointees are Adrienne Benavidez and Scott Field. Benavidez will serve as Manager of General Services, but the Google translation added a new task to her title, manager of general services and of “field Scott.” Based on the translation, Field lent his first and last name to Benavidez’s title.

Some websites include an alert disclosing that the online translations won’t be accurate, acknowledging that is common to find imperfections in the translation. As you can see from our little experiment, services such these, although noble and offered with good intentions, provide only a halfway service.

When it comes to translations, not to mention transcreations, the human touch makes all the difference.

Are one in five Coloradans missing your message?

Be honest. Is your organization really communicating effectively with Hispanics?

We get it. You may not have the resources on staff, or you already have too much on your plate. But if you aren’t trying, that could present a big problem. Here’s why:


Message sent does not equal message received.
More than one in five Coloradans are Hispanic, according to the latest U.S. Census figures. And more than three-quarters of Denver Hispanics speak at least some Spanish at home, Nielsen reports.

How are you communicating to a fifth of our population? If it’s not in Spanish, a sizeable percentage of the audience may not even get the message, let alone take some action based on it.

Lost in translation.
And don’t think for a second that translation solves the problem. Abraham Morales, SE2’s newest hire (and our first on-staff multicultural expert), has something to say about that: “Standard translation misses the nuance and meanings of words. To have a message that truly suits your intent and resonates with this audience, you need to transcreate.”

Transcreation basically means customizing your communications for each target audience. Transcreation ensures that the communication matches its intended audience in every aspect: the message, style, images, emotions and its cultural context. If you aren’t transcreating, you aren’t effectively communicating with your target audience.

“Communication works for those who work at it.” (John Powell)
Chances are you’ve been on the receiving end of communications produced in mangled English by non-native speakers who are clearly out of their element. Now imagine the shoe is on the foot – your communications are being twisted and battered as they are converted into Spanish (and, worst of all, you don’t even know it).

Abraham hails from Mexico (the vast majority of Hispanics in Colorado trace their roots back to that nation) and he knows the language and culture like only a native can. He’s worked in communications on both sides of the border, spending the last decade in Colorado. Learn more about Abraham. Have questions about how and where to start the transcreation process? Contact him directly at Abraham@publicpersuasion.com or 303-892-9100 ext.29.

Website of the Month, compliments of SE2

The world of online communications is hard to keep up with. Just 15 years ago, few organizations had websites, let alone email lists. But today, many of our clients come to us for help in the online realm. Should we be tweeting? Do we really need a blog? What’s the next big social media trend?

Regardless of how fledgling or robust your online communications strategy is, one thing is certain: your organization needs a great website. Websites should serve as the hub of all the other online activity that you engage in. Even if your company was an early adopter and one of the few organizations with a website 15 years ago, there’s a good chance that you have since rebuilt it at least twice.

In the fall of 2009, Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC) came to us with the idea to create an online toolkit to help Colorado employers meet their employees’ child care needs. After considering their goals, budget and timeline, we recommended working with SiteKreator, a web-based company that builds sites based on templates to save time and money. SE2 managed the website development process, engaged a designer to develop a unique brand (logo, color palette) for the toolkit, and collaborated with EPIC to develop the content.

This month, SiteKreator is featuring the EPIC Employer Toolkit as its website of the month. SiteKreator can be a good option for clients when site functionality can adapt to a template so that resources are freed up to hire a graphic designer to customize the look and feel. We recently used SiteKreator again to create an online annual report for a client that previously printed a large hard copy report. The online version is more interactive, visually appealing and-- most importantly--user friendly. For EPIC, the result is the best of both worlds: we were able to build a functional and easy -to-use site that doesn’t compromise on visual appeal. Check it out!

A Decade!

Amy Guttmann, SE2's creative director, has just hit her ten year milestone at our firm!

A decade of dedication, innovation, amusement, success and evolution. Amy has been a part of the team since the beginning and has played a key role in our firm’s growth and success. To celebrate this huge milestone, we asked employees, vendors, and friends to share their favorite memories from Amy’s ten years at SE2. Enjoy!