Editing and Proofreading Services
We are often surprised at how common it is to read documents that haven’t been checked before being published, distributed or uploaded. As general good practice at BLS, all of our own internal written material is reviewed by a second linguist for accuracy and style; it doesn’t matter how competent anyone might be at writing, a review by another linguist is always a crucial step.
Thanks to more than thirty years of experience in the industry, you can place your trust in BLS to provide professional editing and proofreading services for your important documents, in over 400 language pairs.
Is There a Difference between Editing and Proofreading?
The terms ‘proofreading’ and ‘editing’ are sometimes used interchangeably, but there are in fact many notable differences:
Editing
Editing mainly focuses on making changes to a document so that it is structured better, easier to read and entirely appropriate for the target audience. This will normally involve reviewing the overall structure, style, clarity, readability and style. In the case of translation, this would usually be a bilingual edit, comparing the translated document side by side with the original document.
Proofreading
Proofreading typically focuses on correcting errors in spelling, grammar, syntax, punctuation and formatting. This stage normally takes place at the end of the writing process as the final stage, and this would normally be a monolingual check of the translated document, always by a native speaker of the target language.
Why is Editing and Proofreading Important?
Accuracy — Fluency — Style — Terminology — Spelling and Punctuation
These are just some of the things to consider when editing and proofreading translated content. Errors in translation can be commercially costly, cause disastrous misunderstandings, delays and much worse – lawsuits! A simple grammatical error could change the entire meaning of a sentence. Even the very best translators in the world are human beings, and therefore prone to error. A simple mistake may have huge implications, which could easily be avoided by these additional steps. It’s right to be proud of what you do, but make sure that your written content doesn’t let you down.
Accurate and error-free documents are more likely to carry weight with your customers or target audience. BLS will ensure that your message is conveyed successfully. Only by carrying out thorough editing and proofreading processes can you be sure that your final translation meets the standards you require.
We insist that only native, trained linguists review translated documents. This ensures that the translated content is a true and accurate rendition of the source document. What’s more, fluency and style are also assessed, again something that only humans are truly equipped to do. Working with our Project Managers, our linguists painstakingly review and edit the content of the translation work we carry out for our customers.
Editing and Proofreading Services at BLS
At Business Language Services, editing and proofreading are essential components of the whole translation process. With the skill of our experienced linguists, you can be confident that we will provide a quality-focused, accurate and clear translation in which you can have full confidence.
We offer three main editing/proofreading services. Get in touch with us here if you need any help to decide which service would be most suitable for your needs.
Bilingual Editing
- Expert bilingual editing of your file by a professional linguist
- BLS Quality Assurance process
- Dedicated in-house Project Manager
Monolingual Proofreading
- Expert monolingual proofreading of your file by a professional linguist
- BLS Quality Assurance process
- Dedicated in-house Project Manager
Combined Editing/Proofreading
- Expert bilingual editing of your file by a professional linguist
- Expert monolingual proofreading of your file by a professional linguist
- BLS Quality Assurance process
- Dedicated in-house Project Manager
When we edit/proofread your document, the Project Manager in charge of your assignment will send your work to a trained linguist with knowledge and expertise in their specific language pair.
This linguist will carry out a comprehensive review using the same source and reference material that was made available to the initial translator (for documents translated by us). This review will typically involve the following:
- Undertaking an assessment of the fluency and style and, in consultation with the customer, making the necessary changes
- Checking and improving the structure, readability and clarity of the translation
- Amending spelling, grammar, punctuation and formatting mistakes
Any issues that arise during this stage are conveyed to the Project Manager, who liaises with the translator directly. It may at times be necessary for the translator and reviewer to exchange ideas, in which case the Project Manager simply facilitates this process. Only after the entire process has been completed, and the customer has had chance to review the work, will the translated content be deemed to be a true and accurate rendition of the source document.
Revision of Previously Translated Work
Business Language Services offers an editing and proofreading service for documents that have previously been translated. This is a very good way to double-check the accuracy and authenticity of the initial translation. We are also often asked, as part of the customer’s quality control management procedures, to carry out this service after a translation has been typeset or extensively formatted, or if the translated content is for a website and has been uploaded by a third-party. These quality checks ensure that no errors have appeared after the document has left the hands of the original translator, editor and proofreader.
Client Collaboration
At Business Language Services, we believe that close collaboration between the customer and our reviewer is vital; the goal is to provide the best possible final version of the document, and this may often involve important discussions about content, in addition to the implication of any stylistic or linguistic changes. Above all, we always recognise that the customer is the real expert in the field, and experience has shown us that it is always more productive when we work closely with the customer.