5 Features Every TMS Should Have

Lucy Xu

May 8, 2018

5 min read

Deciding to localize your content is the first step towards building a global presence for your business and driving revenue from international markets. Once you’re ready to dive into the vast world of localization and translation management systems, it is important to be prepared with the right knowledge to help you assess the translation tools and methods that will best address your business needs.

Businesses that adopt a translation management system (TMS) will gain access to the technology and tools needed to maintain agile development speed, ensuring that adapted or localized versions of a website or product can launch as soon as updates are made to the source content. Unlike traditional translation workflows that rely heavily on error-prone manual processes, an automated translation process is efficient, maximizes available resources, and can be easily scaled to accommodate new languages as organizations expand into additional markets.

Today’s Translation Management Systems are all filled with tools that enable better workflows and functionality. We know it can be easy to get lost in all the translation jargon, so we’ve honed in on the five key features that your TMS investment should provide.

1. Team Management

Unlike traditional methods of translation that involve creating a spreadsheet of translatable strings, sending them for translation, getting them approved, and then making them available to developers, a localization platform makes team management easy. Anyone can be given access, from developers and project managers to translators and marketers. This allows for open discussions and more collaboration, which will help ensure everyone involved in the project remains on the same page throughout. It also increases efficiency by automating the process and eliminating the need to send translations back and forth.

2. Translation Glossary

Rework from inconsistent terminology accounts for 15 percent of translation project costs, according to some studies. Creating a comprehensive translation glossary that includes industry and company-specific terms and phrases will help reduce costs, ensure consistency throughout your content, and create a cohesive user experience.

3. Translation Memory

When translations are approved, they are captured and stored in a database with the corresponding source text. These translation units are available to translators as they work on new or similar content. As this database grows, translations become more efficient and consistent. The costs of translating are also reduced, as translation agencies typically discount the costs for fuzzy and exact matches.

4. In-Context Translations

When translating, context is important because there are countless words, across all languages, that have multiple meanings. Let’s use the word “home” in English as an example. “Home” often references where a person lives, however, on a website, the word “home” indicates the “home” or main page of the website. While the word for both these cases is “home” in English, the same cannot be said for other languages. In Spanish, the word for “home” that references the place a person lives is “hogar” while the word “home” on a website is denoted by the word “Inicio”. As the example above demonstrates, context is essential for delivering the proper messaging and intent of your original source content. To make sure your translators have the information they need to produce quality translations that engage your target audiences, you’ll want to look for a localization platform that gives you options for providing context, like attaching product or website screenshots to specific strings. Context is key to creating native experiences for your global users.

5. Automation

A localization platform can integrate with a website or application through an API or Command-line Client to automatically collect strings for translation, which are stored in a central repository that anyone working on the project can access. Reviewers and managers can easily see which strings have been translated and are ready for review, and they can also leave additional comments for translators to provide context and ensure accuracy. Once translated strings are approved, the platform automatically pushes the translated strings back to the app or website

Adding Value in a Competitive Global Market

Businesses that adopt a TMS gain access to the technology and tools needed to maintain agile development speed, ensuring that adapted or localized versions of a website or product can launch as soon as updates are made to the source content. Unlike traditional translation workflows that rely heavily on error-prone manual processes, an automated translation process is efficient, maximizes available resources, and can be easily scaled to accommodate new languages as organizations expand into additional markets.

Explore the Full #WhyTranslate and #InvestingInTMS Series

This post is part of the #WhyTranslate and #InvestinginTMS series, built you to equip with the fundamental localization knowledge that will help you evaluate and choose the right localization solution and Translation Management System for your company

Explore the full series to catch up on other posts and learn everything you need to know for translation success:

Get Answers to All Your Translation Management Questions

Now that you’ve identified the foundational features that your TMS should have, it’s time to assess which solution is the best for your company. To help you select the best translation management solution for your company, we’ve put together a simple guide to walk you through all the must-knows of selecting the ideal localization technology for your global expansion needs. Download our translation management systems evaluation guide for detailed plan for evaluating a current or future TMS.