Improving LQE, Quality Data Collection, Analysis, and Refinement with the Chillistore Language Ownership Program

Just how bad can the results from flawed or partial data analysis be? Let’s start with a history lesson.

The objective data for one of the most infamous business decisions in history was, in fact, conclusive: Back in 1985, Coca-Cola’s recently reformulated recipe was the hands-down winner of nearly 200,000 blind taste tests, beating both Pepsi and the original Coca-Cola formula.

Assured by the analysis of this objectively secured data, Coca-Cola pushed forward with a splashy and ambitious advertising campaign to introduce America to New Coke.

And it flopped.

As the executives at Coca-Cola pondered where they went wrong, they realized something: They had missed a vital piece of data collection – the cultural attachment customers had to the idea of the original Coke flavor. It had been such a part of their memories of good times and experiences that even if the new formula tasted better objectively, the “classic” flavor meant more emotionally.

Had both sets of data been collected, the analysis would have yielded a far different recommendation.

Bringing Teams Together to Collect and Analyze All the Relevant Data Points

Just as the above story illustrates, the best results come from thorough collection and analysis of all the relevant data. This is why Chillistore’s Language Ownership Program puts special emphasis on this process to yield the most insightful LQE results: Collecting and analyzing relevant data from query management systems and outlining it back in the form of actionable reports and dashboards gives you objective building blocks to continuously improve quality.

The key here is working end-to-end with you (the customer), translators, and other stakeholders to help each team see how this collaborative approach optimizes translation workflows and ensures linguistic accuracy and contextual relevance.

Once localization teams see we can quantify the quality of translation efforts they begin to see LQE not as a pass/fail step but as a tool for constant improvement.

Data Collection and Analysis: The Dynamic Duo for your LQE Program

Analysis is impossible without first collecting multifaceted data sets that take all the areas of LQE into consideration. This encompasses the source content, translation memory, glossaries, and existing style guides. As the collaboration progresses, accumulated data forms a robust foundation – a well-structured database of quality potential, if you will.

However, the true power of this partnership emerges when the collected data undergoes a battery of data analytics. Leveraging modern analytical tools, we extract relevant insights from the amassed information. In-depth data analytics is used to build dashboards for fast, easy data visualizations. These insights are translated into actionable strategies.

Emphasizing Collaboration at Every Step

We sit down with stakeholders at each stage of the project to gather the data needed for thorough LQE.

1. SME Review Yields Industry-Infused Data: Regular meetings with your Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) build a feedback pathway with the translation team so data can flow both ways. SMEs bring product usage data, feedback from end-users, and market surveys to the table to inform the goals of the translation. This symbiotic relationship yields a treasure trove of industry-specific terminology, cultural nuances, and more so that translations resonate authentically with the target audience.
2. In-Context Review Provides Market-relevant Insights: The collaboration mindset strengthens and improves context reviews as it begins with an already enriched data pool. Having a true understanding of the intended contexts through the medium, demographics, and desired emotional tone means the translated content can be evaluated against this standard to resonate with users on a deeper level.
3. Linguistic Testing and Analysis Perfects Formatting and Data Alignment: Because more information has been gathered on intent and market data, our linguistic testing is evaluating the translated content within the native environment. This ensures that not only linguistic nuances but also formatting and design align with the target language. This step seamlessly integrates design-related data collection and analysis, resulting in a visually appealing and linguistically accurate end product.
4. Final Verification and Iterative Refinement Closes the Loop on Feedback: The collaborative partnership culminates in the final verification stage where data analysis drives inspection of grammar, punctuation, and language mechanics. Any findings contribute to iterative refinement and a truly thorough LQE.

Building Responsive Feedback for a Collaborative Landscape

While it might sound complicated or purely technical, the real magic of a Language Ownership Program is human-to-human partnership. This approach captures insights from every perspective to enrich the data analysis process and build constant refinement:

• Feedback flows in various formats, enabling a dynamic and adaptive approach to translation.
• Reports and dashboards generated from data analysis serve as guiding documents during discussions.
• Feedback is structured through the Client’s systems, facilitating direct input on specific segments.

This structured approach to language ownership guarantees feedback is grounded in the very data that drives the translation process.

And we would, of course, love to put Chillistore Language Ownership Program to work for you.

Connecting Teams and Creating End-to-end Quality With The Chillistore Language Ownership Program

Quick Survey: Which do you take better care of, the rental car you got at the airport on your last trip, or the car you own at home?

Whatever your personal answer, a quick conversation with a rental agent or fleet maintenance manager of any rental company will yield a host of stories of the kind of abuse a poor rental car can experience.

This little example shows one of those simple truisms: when people take ownership, they take greater care and responsibility for what they have entrusted them with. And it’s this truism that has guided the development of our Language Ownership Program.

With language ownership, we work with localization service buyers, LQA service providers, and translation service providers to create a smart ecosystem that improves quality while also streamlining the content creation process. And by taking a stake in the outcome of your project and working  side-by-side with your team we can build the concept of quality ownership into every step of the process. As extended members of your team our reviewers take ownership from start to finish, making sure that the right people are involved on your side for accountability and streamlined decision-making.

4 Steps to Ownership – 1 High-quality Result

Because our reviewers work directly with each team in the process to add our expertise in language and quality of translation, we can bridge gaps between project managers and linguistics experts to reduce pain points and make the entire process more fluid. Put simply, at Chillistore we never see quality as a simple pass/fail checklist, but as an end-to-end process of continuous improvement.

1. Engaged in-country Experts Bridge the Gaps To LQA

A strategic level view of your business is essential. But so too is getting into the hearts and minds of your customers at the local level. And while that sounds like a worthy goal, the reality is, no one person can be an expert in every market. That’s where we come in.

We first put in the work to really understand your business goals, brand positioning, and linguistic needs. Then we bring in our in-country experts who become an extension of your own team and add the local-level perspective and expertise that ensure success.

Our reviewers are linguists familiar with the language and culture of local markets and also experts in your industry. That dual expertise facilitates information and knowledge sharing, bridges the gap with your translators and allows knowledge sharing on a continuous basis that progressivly improves quality.

To put it more simply, it’s like having a local “fixer”, guiding your team through the intricacies of the culture towards a true quality outcome.

2. Guaranteeing Cultural Appropriateness and Inclusive Language That Hits The Mark

It’s a given that each culture has its own sensitivities, customs and nuances – and that it’s best to not run afoul of them.

Having so many different cultural experts on the Chillistore team means we can spot the cultural cautions others miss – and we can consult multiple experts to foster collaboration on even the most contentious issues from gender neutral language to fully representing all the communities you are trying to reach in a given culture.

Diversity and inclusivity are essential for reaching a wider audience. By tapping our team of cross-cultural pros, and reviewing your content with a critical eye we can make sure your translated message isn’t just heard, but really resonates with your target audience.

3. Powerful Data Analytics and Reporting Drive Quality

Understanding your business goals and the cultural nuances gives us the start of a quality cycle. But being able to quantify the quality of translation efforts is what makes the Language Ownership Program so powerful. Collecting and analyzing relevant data from query management systems and reporting it back in the form of actionable reports and dashboards gives you objective building blocks to improve quality over time.

To generate these reports, we analyze scorecards, check error types, measure results against your KPIs, and check details for each task (whether linked to product, language or service provider).

The data collected and analyzed is the base for truly objective quality recommendations that can be implemented into smart workflows.

4. Continuous Improvement: Closing the Loop to Keep the Cycle Going

Armed with the analytics above,  the entire translation process can be optimized for constant improvement. By leveraging our community management and collaboration skills we help create a culture of ongoing improvement and innovation, where every localization stakeholder is committed to achieving the defined quality goals.

Or, to put it more simply: A process where everyone feels ownership.

Looking To Build More Ownership in your Localization Efforts? Drop Us A line!

In our 10 years in the LQA industry we have seen first hand the value bridging gaps between translators, reviewers, and stakeholders can bring.

We’d love to help you build quality throughout the full lifecycle of your content for better customer experience and growth in your target markets.