Streamlining Global Communication: Unpacking the Power of Translation Management Systems

Understanding Translation Management Systems

Your translation management system is your top tool to automate and dominate as you go through the growth process. It’s a single, centralized system to contain all elements of a translation, localization and expansion workflow, keeping you working at your highest level of accuracy and efficiency. 

This means that you can integrate all elements of translation as it pertains to the globalization and localization process into a single place, tying in features and project elements such as: 

• Translation memory services: Having repositories of pre-translated, accurate phrases saves you time and cost on duplicate translations later.

• Quality assurance you can trust: Many TMS options have tie-ins with human translation specialists and linguists, getting you higher-level content than you’d find with computer-assisted translation or full-fledged AI-translated content. 
• Centralized cloud framework for scalability: The ease of access of the translation management software lends itself to several key outcomes, including perks like scalability and efficiency. 

What can your TMS do?

We ask this because your TMS tool is only as powerful as it is understood. Working through every aspect of your translation management system helps you supercharge your localization efforts, facilitating streamlined project management pathways and greater overall productivity. 

In this article, we’re covering the additional benefits you can expect when you work with a cloud-based TMS, as well as things you should look for to help you pick the best translation management system. We’re here to help!

The Role of TMS in Business Operations

Now that you know just a few of the advantages you can gain from using a TMS in your translation process, it’s time to see where it can logistically “fit.” 

There are two main areas to consider implementing a TMS: 

• With content management systems and groups: These skilled marketers are often working to facilitate communication across multiple languages, creating assets for global outreach and marketing initiatives. 
• With executives and stakeholders considering the next right step: Any time your brand is considering business expansion and globalization, your TMS should be referenced. When you incorporate this step, you’ll be able to… 

• Proactively streamline your translation process: This can look different for everyone—however, regular analysis and check-ins can facilitate a more efficient process overall. 

• Determine your path to growth: Your TMS likely has connections to language service providers, content management systems and experts (serving fields such as user experience, translation, and more). Evaluating what you have readily available (and what is still needed) is a powerful way to determine what the next correct step looks like. 

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Advantages of Using a TMS

Here’s a quick look at just a few of the perks you can enjoy when you use translation management software for accurate translations for localization projects (and beyond!) 

• Streamlined translation workflow: When everything is flowing from a single location in real-time, you enjoy more efficient project and business management. Don’t be afraid to experiment to determine what localization workflow works for you.  

• Ensuring consistency in translation: Consistency can be difficult to maintain as you translate across different languages. Machine translation tools (like Google Translate) can only get you so far. Keeping your localization workflow and translation tasks in-house in your TMS keeps them accessible to professional translators and software developers. 

• Reducing time-to-market for international products: Translation projects go smoother with a centralized framework. Trust us—your team will thank you! 

• Enabling collaboration among global teams: Translation quality and morale both improve when teams have the chance to collaborate and connect. High-quality TMS tools enable this naturally. 

Key Considerations when Selecting a TMS

If you’re looking to expand into new markets or e-commerce niches, we recommend considering a TMS to streamline your process. Here are a few things to consider if you’re evaluating one for your tech stack.

Functionality and Features

Language translation and software localization can be tricky areas of any expansion. Choosing a translation management system that is comprehensive and built with a native tool suite will save you time, money, and frustration later on. 

You might also consider choosing a translation management tool that offers an API, as this can offer you a greater degree of customization. You’ll be able to enjoy more perks in-context of your immediate needs, offering you a menu-like layout to customize later on. 

Integration Capabilities

Translation tools aren’t often used in a vacuum. Chances are, you’re working with a pretty hefty tool suite to create, edit, translate, and polish your content. Integration capabilities are a key feature to look for in your TMS of choice, as this will dictate the ease of your flow and integration later on.

Scalability

Your business needs and demand will fluctuate over time. Investing in a tool that is highly intuitive and scalable is an investment in smoother growth later on. Your TMS should be lightweight enough to keep up with any shift in need and established enough to give your teammates a firm foundational framework they can trust—striking a decided and clear balance that serves everyone involved.

Support for Languages and Formats

Once brands begin the journey of product- or service-led growth on a global scale, it’s important to ride the momentum. Your translation management software should have enough format and language options to facilitate growth in any major region to avoid slowdowns later. 

OneSky is Your Comprehensive TMS Solution

OneSky offers comprehensive translation management solutions you can trust. Our goal is to streamline your process as much as possible, connecting you with translators across 50+ languages and dialects, as well as the tools you need to effectively manage and complete the translation step of your localization and globalization processes. 

Try our tool for free today and see how OneSky can support you.