Acclaro - Detailed Review
Translation Tools
Acclaro - Product Overview
Acclaro Overview
Acclaro is a prominent player in the translation and localization industry, offering a range of services and tools that help businesses expand their global reach.Primary Function
Acclaro’s primary function is to provide comprehensive translation and localization services, enabling companies to adapt their content, products, and marketing campaigns for different languages and cultures. This includes managing localization initiatives from start to finish, ensuring that content is accurately translated and culturally relevant.Target Audience
Acclaro’s services are targeted at global brands and organizations looking to enter new markets or strengthen their presence in existing ones. This includes companies involved in global marketing, e-commerce, and any business that needs to communicate effectively across different languages and cultures.Key Features
Translation Project Management
Acclaro allows users to create, manage, and track translation projects without leaving their content management system (CMS), such as Contentful. This includes submitting content for translation, reviewing translations, and publishing the translated content.Support for Multiple Translation Providers
Users can work with any translation provider, including Acclaro’s own translation services. This flexibility ensures that businesses can choose the best option for their needs.Field-Level and Entry-Level Localization
Acclaro supports detailed localization at both the field and entry levels, ensuring precise control over the translation process.Cultural Adaptation and Transcreation
The company specializes in transcreation, which involves adapting marketing content to resonate with local cultures, beyond just translating the text. This includes developing language assets like style guides and glossaries to maintain brand consistency.Translation Memory (TM)
Acclaro uses translation memory to store previous translations, reducing costs and speeding up future translation projects.Global Marketing Solutions
Acclaro provides comprehensive global marketing strategies, including website localization, search engine marketing, video and social media content localization, and more. This helps brands maintain consistency and engage international audiences effectively. By leveraging these features, Acclaro helps businesses streamline their localization processes, ensure cultural relevance, and achieve successful global marketing campaigns. Acclaro - User Interface and Experience
User Interface
Intuitive Design
Order Management
Ease of Use
Streamlined Management
Collaboration Portal
Overall User Experience
AI and Automation Integration
Continuous Localization
Comprehensive Management
Acclaro - Key Features and Functionality
AI-Driven Translation Tools
Acclaro’s translation tools offer a range of features that streamline and enhance the localization process. Here are the main features and how they work:AI-Enabled Translation Workflows
Acclaro integrates AI to manage translation workflows, making the process more efficient and automated. This involves using machine translation to handle repetitive or straightforward content, while human translators focus on more complex and nuanced tasks. This hybrid approach ensures high-quality translations while reducing turnaround times and costs.Automation and Integrations
Acclaro’s platform includes various automation tools and integrations that simplify the localization process. For instance, their CMS connectors allow users to submit and receive translations directly within platforms like WordPress, Drupal, Craft CMS, and Contentful. This eliminates the need for manual copy/paste and reduces errors, enabling faster time-to-market and improved productivity.Workflow Optimization
The platform optimizes workflows by automating repetitive tasks and integrating with other systems such as Marketo for marketing campaigns and Zendesk for customer support. This ensures that translations are delivered where they are needed, within the scheduled sprints, and without the need to switch between different platforms.Translation Memory Management and Terminology
Acclaro uses translation memory management to ensure consistency across translations. This involves maintaining a database of previously translated content to avoid redundant translations and ensure that terminology is consistent. AI helps in evaluating and training machine translation engines to improve accuracy over time.Linguistic QA and Testing
To ensure the quality of translations, Acclaro conducts thorough linguistic quality assurance (QA) and testing. This includes linguistic testing to verify language accuracy, localization testing for cultural and regional appropriateness, and functional testing to guarantee product performance. AI aids in identifying potential issues and automating parts of the testing process.Human Expertise
While AI plays a significant role, Acclaro also emphasizes the importance of human expertise. Their team of in-country experts and localization professionals review and refine AI-generated translations to ensure they meet the highest quality standards. This human touch is crucial for maintaining cultural sensitivity and compliance with local regulations.API and CMS Integrations
Acclaro’s developer-friendly API and CMS integrations enable seamless communication between different systems. For example, the Acclaro Translations app for Contentful allows users to create, manage, and publish translation projects without leaving the Contentful platform. This integration supports field-level and entry-level localization, making the process more efficient and error-free.Continuous Localization
For tech and SaaS companies, Acclaro offers continuous localization solutions that align with agile development processes. This involves integrating translation services into the development cycle, ensuring that translations are ready for each product release or update. AI-driven automation helps in preparing content for translation, automating repetitive tasks, and ensuring that the final product is free of bugs and broken code.Metrics and Insights
Acclaro provides a data-driven approach to translation, offering metrics and insights to validate the ROI of their services. This helps clients in optimizing their translation strategies and making informed decisions based on performance data.Conclusion
In summary, Acclaro’s AI-driven translation tools combine automation, human expertise, and seamless integrations to deliver high-quality translations efficiently. These features not only speed up the localization process but also ensure that the translations are accurate, culturally appropriate, and ready for global markets. Acclaro - Performance and Accuracy
Performance and Accuracy
Acclaro has been involved in significant projects that highlight their capabilities in machine translation. For instance, a case study on a multilingual e-commerce project shows that Acclaro utilized state-of-the-art machine translation systems, including mBART25 and mBART50 models, to translate product titles and descriptions in multiple languages.
Key Metrics
- BLEU Scores: The project achieved impressive BLEU scores, which are a measure of translation quality. For example, the BLEU scores for product titles and descriptions using the mBART25 model were consistently high, and they improved further with the mBART50 model. This indicates a high level of accuracy in translation.
- Domain-Specific Training: The models were fine-tuned on domain-specific data, which significantly improved the translation quality. This approach ensures that the translations are contextually relevant and accurate for the e-commerce sector.
- Quality Estimation and Feedback: The project incorporated quality estimation models, POS tagging, Named Entity Recognition (NER), and domain classifiers to evaluate the quality of bilingual pairs. Additionally, feedback from linguistic specialists was integrated to ensure the best possible output.
Limitations and Areas for Improvement
Despite the strong performance, there are some areas where Acclaro could improve:
- Cost and Pricing Transparency: One of the significant criticisms is the lack of transparency in pricing. Customers have reported high costs, such as $0.17 per word, without clear justification or discounts for first-time customers. This lack of transparency can be a deterrent for potential clients.
- Editing and Revision: There have been complaints about the quality of editing and the refusal to revise translations without additional payment. This suggests that while the initial translations may be adequate, they might benefit from polishing, and the company’s policy on revisions could be more customer-friendly.
- Timeliness and Communication: Some clients have experienced delays in project completion and unprofessional communication regarding these delays. Ensuring timely delivery and clear communication can improve client satisfaction.
Engagement and Factual Accuracy
Acclaro’s engagement with clients and their focus on factual accuracy are evident in their use of advanced AI models and the involvement of linguistic specialists. However, the need for better customer service, transparent pricing, and a more flexible revision policy is clear.
In summary, Acclaro demonstrates strong performance and accuracy in AI-driven translation, particularly in domain-specific contexts. However, they need to address issues related to pricing transparency, editing quality, and client communication to enhance their overall service.
Acclaro - Pricing and Plans
The Pricing Structure for Acclaro’s Translation Tools
Translation Services Through My Acclaro
- Service-Based Pricing: Acclaro charges for the translation services requested through the My Acclaro portal. There is no upfront licensing fee for using the portal or its API; instead, costs are incurred based on the services requested.
Integration with Other Platforms
- Contentful Integration: For users of Contentful, Acclaro offers a free app called Translations by Acclaro. This integration allows for streamlined translation processes without additional licensing fees. However, the actual translation services will still be billed based on usage.
Specific Product Pricing
- Translations Plugin for Craft:
- This plugin is available for Craft 2 or 3 and costs $999. It renews annually at $399 and includes updates for the purchased version. There is also a support plan available for $1999, which includes assistance with installation, configuration, and other support needs.
Academic and Special Licenses
While the primary focus is on commercial translation services, it’s worth noting that Acclaro does offer special pricing for academic purposes, but this is more relevant to their DFSS (Design for Six Sigma) software rather than their translation tools:
- For example, academic licenses for Acclaro DFSS are available at a discounted rate of $495 for professors and graduate students.
Features and Plans
- Automation and API Access: The My Acclaro portal provides API access and an interactive test console, allowing users to automate their translation workflows. This includes features like order and file status summaries, and the ability to manage the entire translation process through API requests.
- No Tiered Plans: There is no explicit tiered pricing structure for Acclaro’s translation services. Instead, users are charged based on the services they use.
In summary, Acclaro’s translation tools are primarily billed based on the services requested, with no upfront licensing fees for using the portal or API. Integrations with platforms like Contentful are available at no additional cost for the integration itself, but translation services will still incur charges. Specific plugins, like the one for Craft, have their own pricing models.
Acclaro - Integration and Compatibility
Acclaro’s Translation Tools and Services
Acclaro’s translation tools and services are designed to integrate seamlessly with a variety of platforms and tools, making the translation process efficient and streamlined.
Content Management Systems (CMS)
Acclaro offers robust integrations with popular CMS platforms such as WordPress, Drupal, Craft CMS, and Contentful. These integrations allow users to submit and receive translations directly within their preferred CMS, eliminating the need for manual copy and paste workflows.
- For Contentful users, the Acclaro Translations app enables editors to create, manage, and publish translation projects without leaving the Contentful dashboard. This includes support for Export/Import and the ability to work with any translation provider.
- Drupal and WordPress integrations are also supported, with tools like the Drupal TMGMT module and the WPML plugin for WordPress, making it easy to manage multilingual content.
File Sharing and Collaboration Tools
Acclaro’s platform integrates with file sharing services such as Box, Dropbox, and Zendesk. This allows for secure and convenient content transfers, enabling users to upload files using a drag-and-drop interface or through built-in connectors.
Marketing Automation
For marketing campaigns, Acclaro integrates with Marketo, streamlining the translation workflow for multilingual marketing materials. This integration helps reduce tedious tasks and avoids the need to switch between platforms, ensuring timely delivery of translated content.
Customer Support
The integration with Zendesk enhances the international customer experience by managing multilingual content efficiently. This connector helps in saving time and focusing on customer needs by optimizing workflows.
Developer-Friendly API
Acclaro provides a developer-friendly API that facilitates custom integrations and continuous localization programs. This is particularly useful in agile development environments where streamlined processes for faster turnaround times are crucial.
Global Compatibility
Acclaro works in over 125 languages and has a global presence, making it a versatile solution for companies looking to expand their reach across different cultures and regions. This global capability ensures that the translation services can be adapted to various markets and audiences.
Conclusion
In summary, Acclaro’s integration capabilities are extensive, covering a wide range of CMS platforms, file sharing services, marketing automation tools, and customer support systems. This ensures that users can manage their translation needs efficiently and securely, without the hassle of manual processes.
Acclaro - Customer Support and Resources
Customer Support Options
Premium Support Services
For customers who need a more interactive and responsive support experience, Acclaro provides premium support services by subscription. This includes enhanced technical support, collaboration, and responsiveness. If the product cannot be made to work within 30 days of purchase, a refund for the premium support plan can be requested.
Live Agent Support
Acclaro offers live agent support via chat or over-the-phone (OTP) interpretation, ensuring that customers can receive immediate assistance in their native language. This is particularly useful for customer support content and cases.
Global Contact
Customers can reach out to Acclaro through various contact channels, including phone numbers for North America and worldwide, as well as email. This global presence ensures support is available across different time zones.
Additional Resources
Translation Project Management
The Acclaro Translations application, integrated with platforms like Contentful, allows users to create, manage, and track translation projects efficiently. This includes features like field-level and entry-level localization support, intuitive review and approval workflows, and the ability to work with any translation provider.
AI-Driven Localization
Acclaro utilizes AI and automation to speed up and simplify localization processes. This includes preparing content for translation, automating repetitive tasks, and integrating AI translation where appropriate. However, they also emphasize the importance of human oversight to ensure the final product meets high quality standards.
Industry-Specific Solutions
Acclaro provides specialized localization solutions for various industries such as HRTech, FinTech, and TravelTech. These solutions are tailored to meet the specific needs of each industry, including cultural sensitivity, compliance with local regulations, and rigorous testing to ensure the product is user-friendly and intuitive.
General Support and Information
Contact and Discovery
For any questions or to learn more about Acclaro’s translation services, customers can contact the sales team directly via email or phone. This initial contact often leads to a discovery call to understand the client’s localization needs and propose the best next steps.
By leveraging these support options and resources, Acclaro ensures that customers can efficiently manage their translation and localization needs, receive timely support, and benefit from advanced AI-driven solutions.
Acclaro - Pros and Cons
Advantages
Speed and Efficiency
Acclaro integrates AI and automation to speed up the localization process, allowing for quick turnaround times and efficient handling of large volumes of content. This is particularly beneficial for tech and SaaS companies where time to market is critical.
Comprehensive Services
Acclaro offers a wide range of services, including software localization, product documentation translation, customer support content translation, and live agent support. They also provide linguistic testing, functional testing, and UI testing to ensure the final product is of high quality.
Agile Processes
Acclaro’s teams are agile and fit seamlessly into existing development processes. They use best practices and industry-leading technology to ensure smooth and successful global product releases.
Cultural and Technical Expertise
Acclaro has a global team of in-country experts with experience in various domains, including HRTech, FinTech, and TravelTech. They ensure that the translations are culturally appropriate and compliant with local regulations.
AI-Enhanced Localization
Acclaro leverages AI to prepare content for translation, automate repetitive tasks, and improve workflow efficiency. However, they also emphasize the importance of human oversight to ensure the final product meets the highest quality standards.
Integration Capabilities
Acclaro offers API connections, CMS integrations, and helpdesk integrations to automate frequent handoffs and streamline the localization process.
Disadvantages
Quality Limitations
While AI-driven translation can be efficient, it may not always capture the nuances and subtleties of language, particularly with idioms, colloquial language, or technical terms. Human oversight is often necessary to ensure accuracy and cultural appropriateness.
Data Security Concerns
Using AI translation tools can raise concerns about data privacy and security, especially when dealing with sensitive or confidential information. Acclaro’s services, while secure, must be carefully considered in contexts where data security is paramount.
Need for Human Oversight
While AI can handle a significant portion of the translation work, certain domains like law or medicine may require human experts to ensure precision and accuracy. This can add an extra layer of cost and time to the process.
Consistency in Brand Voice
AI translation may struggle to maintain a consistent brand voice across different translations, which can be a challenge for companies that value brand consistency.
By weighing these advantages and disadvantages, businesses can make informed decisions about whether Acclaro’s AI-driven translation services align with their needs and priorities.
Acclaro - Comparison with Competitors
Comparison of Acclaro with Other AI-Driven Translation Tools
Acclaro
- Integrated Localization: Acclaro offers a comprehensive localization service that includes not just translation, but also engineering, QA testing, and cultural adaptation. This is particularly beneficial for tech and SaaS companies needing to localize software, apps, and other technological products across 125 languages.
- AI and Human Touch: Acclaro combines AI and automation to speed up localization processes, such as preparing content for translation and automating repetitive tasks, while also ensuring a human touch for quality assurance.
- Specialized Solutions: Acclaro provides specialized localization services for specific industries like HRTech, FinTech, and TravelTech, ensuring cultural sensitivity and compliance with local regulations.
- Comprehensive Testing: They offer a range of testing services including linguistic, localization, internationalization, functional, UI, and regression testing to ensure the final product is error-free and user-friendly.
- Agile Processes and API Connections: Acclaro integrates seamlessly with development cycles and offers API connections to automate frequent handoffs, making it suitable for companies with agile development processes.
DeepL
- Accuracy and Tone: DeepL is known for its high accuracy and ability to switch between formal and informal tones. However, it supports only 30 languages, which is limited compared to Acclaro.
- Cost-Effective: DeepL is cost-effective, with plans starting at $8.74 monthly, but it has limited integration options with other software and workflows.
- Formatting Retention: DeepL maintains the original document’s layout, minimizing post-translation adjustments.
Smartling
- Hybrid Approach: Smartling uses a hybrid approach combining AI with human expertise, leveraging large language models (LLMs) for nuanced translations. It offers advanced workflow automation and automatic quality control, reducing translation workload by up to 90%.
- Project Automation: Smartling supports automated project management for complex, multi-language projects, but initial setup and training may be required.
- Custom Pricing: Pricing is custom and requires a demo and quote from Smartling.
Taia
- AI-Assisted and Human-Perfected: Taia uses a combination of AI-assisted and human-perfected translations. It supports 97 languages but has slow turnaround times and no integrations with CMS or repositories.
- Instant Rate Estimates: Taia provides instant rate estimates, and it supports long-term projects, but it lacks generative AI capabilities and the option to add a glossary or style guide.
Google Translate
- Extensive Language Support: Google Translate supports over 100 languages and offers diverse input options (text, images, speech). However, it may overlook subtle cultural nuances and lacks specialized business features.
- Free and Versatile: Google Translate is free for general use and offers a simple user experience, but it lacks integrations and generative AI capabilities.
Crowdin
- Community and Professional Translations: Crowdin allows you to invite your own translation team or work with professional translation agencies. It supports over 30 file formats and offers features like glossary, translation memory, and QA checks.
- Integrations: Crowdin integrates with various tools like GitHub, Google Play, and Android Studio, making it suitable for managing translations within existing workflows.
Unique Features of Acclaro
- Acclaro’s strength lies in its comprehensive and integrated approach to localization, which includes technical, linguistic, and cultural expertise. This makes it particularly suitable for complex software and technology localization projects.
- The combination of AI-driven efficiency and human quality assurance ensures high-quality translations that are both accurate and culturally appropriate.
Potential Alternatives
- For companies looking for a more cost-effective solution with high accuracy but limited language support, DeepL might be a good alternative.
- Smartling could be a better fit for those needing advanced automation and hybrid translation approaches, especially for complex projects.
- Taia is suitable for companies that require AI-assisted translations with the option for human perfection, although it lacks integrations and has slower turnaround times.
- Google Translate is ideal for basic, non-critical translations due to its extensive language support and free usage.
- Crowdin is a good option for those who need to manage translations within their existing development workflows and prefer a community-driven or professional translation approach.
Acclaro - Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What services does Acclaro offer for software and technology companies?
Acclaro provides a comprehensive range of services for software and technology companies, including complete, continuous software localization solutions from engineering through QA testing in over 125 languages. This includes product documentation translation, customer support content translation, live agent support via chat or phone, and agile translation processes that sync with product development. They also offer API connections to automate frequent handoffs and string ID-based matching for versioning and maintenance.Q: How does Acclaro use AI in its localization processes?
Acclaro leverages AI and automation to speed up and simplify localization. This involves preparing content for translation, making workflows more efficient, automating repetitive tasks, and using AI for translation when appropriate. However, they also emphasize the importance of the human touch to ensure the final product is of the highest quality.Q: What industries does Acclaro specialize in for localization services?
Acclaro specializes in several industries, including HRTech, FinTech, and TravelTech. For HRTech, they ensure cultural sensitivity and compliance with local regulations. For FinTech, they focus on precise translations to maintain user trust and functionality. For TravelTech, they help companies expand their market reach and enhance customer satisfaction through streamlined localization processes.Q: How does Acclaro ensure the quality of localized products?
Acclaro ensures the quality of localized products through comprehensive testing services. This includes linguistic testing for language accuracy, localization testing for cultural and regional appropriateness, internationalization testing, functional testing, and UI, globalization, automation, and regression testing to guarantee product performance and intuitive user experiences.Q: What is the impact of the merger between Jonckers and Acclaro?
The merger between Jonckers and Acclaro creates a new localization powerhouse that combines industry-pioneering AI-powered translation software with leading tech-enabled localization and cultural adaptation services. This merger expands the service offering, geographic reach, and R&D capabilities, enabling clients to go to market faster in more languages and at the same budget. The combined group will continue to operate under both brands and leverage their joint experience in technology localization.Q: How does Acclaro integrate with other platforms and tools?
Acclaro integrates with various platforms to streamline the translation process. For example, Contentful users can manage the entire translation process without leaving the Contentful dashboard using the Translations by Acclaro app. This integration eliminates manual workflows and allows for further automation through Acclaro’s API.Q: What kind of support does Acclaro offer for customer interactions?
Acclaro provides live agent support via chat or over-the-phone (OTP) interpretation to help clients manage customer interactions in multiple languages. This ensures that customer support content is translated accurately and that customers can receive assistance in their preferred language.Q: How does Acclaro handle cultural and regional appropriateness in localization?
Acclaro places a strong emphasis on cultural and regional appropriateness. Their team of experts ensures that the localized product is aligned with local cultural expectations and complies with local regulations. This is particularly important in sensitive fields like human resources and financial services.Q: What is the scope of languages supported by Acclaro?
Acclaro supports localization in over 125 languages and more than 300 language pairs. This extensive language coverage helps clients expand their global reach and engage with diverse international audiences effectively.Q: How does Acclaro align its localization processes with the client’s development cycle?
Acclaro integrates its localization processes into the client’s development cycle to ensure smooth and timely product releases. Their agile translation processes sync with the client’s product development, enabling fast and efficient localization that keeps up with the client’s speed.