According to this article in the LA Times today, today’s translation and interpreting market is about more than just speaking two languages — increasingly, it is about speaking two languages and possessing expertise in a particular subject area. This results in high-demand niches like « German to English waste management » or « Russian to Farsi nuclear engineering » or even « French to English B to B marketing » (that…ahem…would be my niche).  According to the article:

« …it’s not enough to simply speak another language [...] There is a wealth of knowledge and background you need in your area of specialty, » said Dahlberg, who speaks French as well as German and English and found her niche while working for a publishing house in Germany that dealt in environmental and waste-management documents.

« Translation is far more than words, » said Hartmann, who specializes in translating German patents. It requires him to understand not only the context of words and phrases, but also the technical and legal issues involved… »

So, what does this mean for translation buyers? The short answer is « beware. »

The long answer is the person who translates your marketing collateral may not be the best person for your product inserts or user guides and vice versa. If you buy translation services from a translation agency, make sure you get that point cleared up, prefereably in writing. If you work directly with professional translators, ask for their references and ask them to prove that they have experience with your kind of document and your industry by showing you published samples in the relevant language pairs (that’s the niche). Then get a second opinion on those samples from someone trusted within your organization (or an outside partner) in the country concerned.