A General Discussion of the Translation and Localization Cost Drivers
By Judith Soloduk

The cost of the localization process can be distracting—even blinding, if not justified with detailed explanation. This is because the customization of products and communications for global markets is still a relatively new practice. Localization costs are dependent upon two constraints: the desired turnaround time and the level of quality that a client is willing to afford in that amount of time. Decision makers will inevitably experience this paradigm and witness the deeper, and sometimes hidden, costs associated with localization. Depending on the nature of the project (documentation, Web, software, etc.), the baseline cost drivers of a localization process generally include: translation, publishing, engineering, and project management.

Localization Cost Drivers Project Setup Hourly or flat rate Translation Per Word Glossary Hourly and/or Per Word Engineering Per Hour Desktop Publishing Hourly and/or Per Page Graphics Hourly and/or Per Graphic Output Hourly and/or Per Page Project Management Hourly and/or % of Total Cost

Project Management Cost Drivers
Regardless of the success of a localization effort, project management has always been the most disputed — and under-recognized cost driver. Generally 10-15% of the total localization costs, project management is the intangible force that empowers a profitable and dynamic client-vendor relationship. Project managers schedule projects, assign technical and linguistic resources, communicate with clients about project-related issues, and manage the entire project progress and budget. An experienced project management system can successfully control the incurrence of additional costs associated with changes in the scope of work, the linguistic resources, and changing deadlines. Project management is perhaps the most accurate qualitative differentiator of a localization vendor.

Translation Cost Drivers
Translation costs generally include the combined translation, editing, and proofreading of the source text into the target language. Depending on the nature of the subject matter and the availability of linguistic specialists, translation costs are incurred at a per-word rate or by the page. It is an industry standard to base these costs on the word count of the source text. This provides an apples-to-apples price comparison against any vendor, and eliminates unnecessarily "padded" translations and word count discrepancies associated with different languages. Note: The cost per word rate for software translation is generally about 20-30% higher than documentation and online content as software content is usually more technical and it simply takes more time to translate software content.

Glossary Cost Drivers
A multilingual glossary is a language tool that ensures consistent translation of the same terms throughout the life and hierarchy of a document, project, and product. Sometimes discounted as an extra cost, multilingual glossaries are arguably a cornerstone to achieving high-quality localization. They lower long-term costs and expedite turnaround times. Glossaries include translations of terms that are specific to the product, company, and industry. They may include, but are not limited to, acronyms, abbreviations, and even phrases that are not intended for translation. The costs associated with updating this project asset is generally an hourly cost with an appended per-word translation cost. Depending on the strategic objectives of the client, it may be of interest to invest in a long-term glossary management solution that will afford greater scalability and content management.

Engineering Cost Drivers
In localization, there are engineering costs associated with both the language translation and the technical environment of the projects. Depending on the project scope and long-term objectives, localization engineering costs are generally incurred during:

1. Preparation of source materials for localization (internationalization)
2. Extraction of text for translation
3. Leveraging of repeated translations
4. Return of translated text to desired outputs, and
5. Testing of proper functionality of the new language and product environments

Engineering costs can range from $50 - $300 per hour depending on the complexity of the task and the respective engineering expertise performing the task. For example, a relatively simple software project may require the resizing of dialog boxes, the verification of hot keys and compiling of the software. The potential costs associated with this effort would depend on the number of dialogs and the necessary setup, verification, and QA schedules. As more languages and locales are added to this mix, the number of operating systems and the spectrum of resolutions the client is targeting can easily compound the cost of this example. A reputable vendor should always provide a clear proposal that itemizes the sometimes convoluted and overly technical process.

Localization engineering can be a strategic cost that substantially reduces the long-term costs associated with translation and localization. Initially, the preparation of source materials for new languages may include a discovery and resolution process associated with the internationalization. Common examples of this include technical issues arising from double-byte dependent environments, user interfaces that are not externalized from code, and source material unable of supporting multiple locales.

Regardless of the media environment, engineers can also develop translation memory databases from already translated text by searching for matches at the source level. Translation memories (TM) are collections of multilingual entries used by language technologies to leverage previously translated text. The localization engineer generates matches based on a scoring system that expresses a percentage of similarity. If the terminology used in a new document is very similar to the terminology used in previous documents, an exact match may occur. If the terminology is similar but not exact, a fuzzy match may occur. Leveraging previous translations increases consistency of terminology in all translations and can reduce turnaround time and cost.

Desktop Publishing Cost Drivers
Language service providers generally perform the majority of the multilingual desktop publishing tasks as they have already invested into the target-language publishing tools and established an expertise in each unique environment. Whether converting files to a new format (e.g. PageMaker to FrameMaker), adjusting formatting that pertains to the regional conventions of the target locale, or outputting print-ready files, multilingual desktop publishing costs are generally incurred by the hour or by the page. Localization publishers commonly complement the skills of localization engineers as they strategically develop internationalized templates, and utilize quality processes to minimize repetitious tasks and related costs.

Technical documentation, marketing materials, Web sites and software generally have graphical assets that require localization. Graphics often create additional challenges to the localization process, generating additional costs and extended turnaround times. Problems with source graphics will generally multiply by the number of languages intended for localization.

For a detailed discussion, view the Webinar presentation: Successful Documentation Localization Management. Part of ENLASO's educational Webinar series, this one-hour Webinar explores fundamental documentation localization management concepts that improve processes, costs, and performance associated with multilingual global projects.

Project Updates and Change Management Costs
It is natural for the scope of a localization project to change after the project begins. However, updates to any component following the hand-off of the source materials may result in additional costs and schedule time. Effective communication channels, padded schedules and established drop-dead dates can mitigate these costs. Once a project begins, a seemingly simple request can magnify costs, especially as the resources associated involve thousands of files and dozens of languages. Change orders are the result of such project updates. They can severely penalize the original budget, but can generally be avoided with effective product development plans and schedules.

Conclusion
To understand the costs associated with a localization project is to in fact, understand a quality localization process. Responsibly claiming such a contextual understanding, I believe one should at the very least experience a localization hand-off process of source materials to a vendor. Without witnessing the myriad of project assets, cultural details, and specialized resources, a manager will struggle to have confidence when faced with selecting a long-term vendor or even justifying short-term decisions to executive management. Quality localization is not simply a "cost" in the development cycle of a global product, but rather a symphony of specialized language resources and technologies that empower global success.

ENLASO's Localization Services
For more information on how ENLASO can assist you with all of your localization needs, please contact Judith Soloduk at jsoloduk@translate.com or 703 444 4274 or Chris Raulf at craulf@translate.com or 303 516 0857 x103.