What is the difference between translation and localization services?

In today’s world, more and more companies are entering the international market. However, there are certain barriers involved, which if not properly resolved will have a negative impact on the operations of the entire company. For this reason, more often translation and localization services are needed. But what are they?

Translation services

Accurate translation of texts from one language into another is a translation service. When transcribing content, the person performing this work focuses primarily on ensuring that the text produced is the same as the original. This is crucial, especially when it comes to transcribing important sources, where every word is important from the point of view of further consequences. These include documents such as contracts, instructions, medical information, or other technical publications. Such a translation preserves proper grammar and vocabulary, of course, but above all, it tries to make sentences as close to each other in meaning as possible.

localization services

Localization services

In the case of localization services, it is not only the content that matters, but also the intentions of the author of the text. It can be said that this service starts first with translation, but then moves on to further content development. Then, it addresses issues related to cultural, communication, or technical factors in a given country. Thus, localization deals not only with the translation of language, but also with additional aspects that affect the reception of the translated text by the target group. It may be, for example, typing dates in a different way, different sizes of graphics or transforming words that may be taboo in a given culture.