Mastering terminology management: how a well-crafted glossary can transform your business

Whether you’re dealing with human or machine translation or writing the original content, a well-constructed glossary guarantees that your brand’s voice remains clear and consistent, reducing the risk of costly miscommunication.

This blog will cover the best practices for terminology management and highlight the benefits of maintaining a well-structured glossary.

What are the best practices for effective terminology management?

You may be familiar with examples of words that take on entirely different meanings depending on the context. For instance, “volume” could refer to the sound level in audio engineering or the amount of space an object occupies in physics.

Even within the same domain, terminology can vary greatly. Take the word “protocol” in the medical field: in the context of clinical trials, it refers to a detailed plan outlining the objectives and methodology of a study, whereas, in a hospital setting, “protocol” refers to a standardised procedure for treating specific medical conditions.

These variations highlight the critical need for precise terminology management to avoid confusion and maintain clarity across or within specialised fields and projects.

Standardising terms across all areas of your business is important to achieve consistent terminology use. Consistent naming conventions and clear, concise definitions help prevent ambiguity. Including usage examples provides context, making it easier to use terms correctly.

The contribution of subject matter experts (SMEs) in this process should not be underestimated. Terminology should evolve naturally from your work and content, reflecting the language your teams and industry already use.

When terminology is enforced without any real connection to your day-to-day work, it often feels artificial and can discourage its adoption. By engaging SMEs, you ensure the terminology is relevant, accurate, and more likely to be readily accepted.

Specialised terminology management software can further streamline this process. These tools help you maintain a clean and well-structured terminology database, support version control, and make the termbase accessible to all relevant parties, including employees, external writers, translators, or editors.

Additionally, integrating these tools with other content creation and translation systems can create seamless workflows, ensuring consistent translation of terms across all languages. This approach boosts efficiency and supports the consistency and quality of communication across different mediums.

How will a glossary benefit your business?

One of the main advantages of glossary creation and terminology management is maintaining consistency in your messaging and establishing uniformity across all languages.

Furthermore, a glossary optimises the translation process by allowing translators to find the correct terms. This results in faster completion times and lower costs, as the reduced ambiguity minimizes the back-and-forth between employees, content creators, and translation agencies, with everyone having access to the same database of terms.

Consistent terminology also strengthens your brand identity, making it easier for customers to recognise and trust your messaging across different languages.

A well-kept termbase is not limited to translation – it plays a crucial role in enhancing other organisational tasks. Here are some key areas that significantly benefit from having a robust glossary:

• Terminology in human translation
  A glossary is a reference for human translators, guiding them to use the correct terms consistently throughout the translation process. This reduces the risk of errors and ensures that the translated content accurately reflects the original meaning and tone, especially when multiple translators are involved in a project.
  
• Glossary for machine translation
  Modern machine translation supports different ways of terminology integration – from enforcement during the training phase to implementation of a glossary at the generation step. Machine translation engines like DeepL benefit significantly from glossary injection. Implementing even a small list of pre-defined terms allows an MT system to generate translations that better align with your corporate wording and language requirements. In turn, this saves time during the post-editing stage.
  
• Consistent terminology in the source text
  A glossary helps ensure that the content in the original language is consistent, even before translation begins. By standardising the terms used throughout your source text, you create a solid foundation that makes subsequent translations more accurate and cohesive.
  
• Clean translation memory
  Consistent terminology directly impacts the resulting translation memory (TM) quality. A clean TM guarantees that future translations are faster and more accurate, as translators can trust the TM to provide reliable suggestions. This article details how you can profit from your translation memory in the long run.
  
• Corporate wording in transcription and subtitling
  In transcription and subtitling, especially when using speech-to-text software, a glossary helps accurately capture and consistently apply specialised terminology. Implementing a glossary of key terms may prove very helpful in producing subtitles and transcripts that faithfully reflect the original spoken content.

Why should you choose SwissGlobal for your business’s terminology management?

At SwissGlobal, our translation and terminology management services are designed to help you achieve your goals. We work closely with you to develop and maintain a glossary that reflects your brand’s unique needs, ensuring consistent communication across all platforms. Ready to elevate your communication strategy? Contact us today, and we’ll help you design the termbase that best suits your needs.