A useful translation brief explains who will read your content, what they need to do, and how the finished translation will be used. You do not need a long specification. A short, precise email with the right files often gives a translator more useful context than pages of general instructions. Here is what to include when requesting English, French, or Arabic translation.

Start with the audience and purpose

“Translate into French” leaves several decisions open. Is the document for employees in Quebec, customers across Canada, or readers in France? Is it an internal reference, a public brochure, or a website form? State the destination, reader, and action you want the content to support. If the text will be read alongside another language, say so: matching section labels may matter more than they would in a standalone publication.

Send the working files and define the scope

Share editable source files when available, along with a PDF showing the intended layout. An editable file helps distinguish text from images and makes it easier to return a usable document. Identify anything embedded in charts, screenshots, headers, or footnotes. For a website, include buttons, forms, error messages, metadata, and downloadable files rather than just the main paragraphs.

  • Mark the source version and say whether it is final.
  • Identify sections that should stay in the original language.
  • Specify whether translated text must be placed into the final layout.
  • Flag any missing pages or text that is difficult to read.

Provide terminology and examples

Send an approved glossary, earlier translations you trust, product names, and a short style guide if you have them. Explain whether earlier wording is mandatory or simply a reference. Contradictory references are worth flagging before work begins. For example, a department may have changed its official name while an older brochure still uses the previous version.

Make the deadline and review process explicit

Give a delivery date, time, and time zone. Distinguish the date you need a first version from the date the material goes live. Name one person who can resolve terminology questions and consolidate feedback. If several reviewers are involved, agree on which comments take priority and how source changes will be handled after translation starts.

A brief you can copy

Use these prompts in your request, leaving unknown details open for discussion. Attach the files through an agreed transfer method; for sensitive material, ask how it should be shared before sending it.

  • Content and purpose: what is being translated, and why?
  • Languages and audience: from which language, into which language, for whom?
  • Scope and format: which files, which sections, and what delivery format?
  • References: approved terms, examples, and tone of voice.
  • Timing and approval: deadline, reviewer, and final decision-maker.

A translator can help fill the gaps. The aim is to make the important decisions visible before production begins, so the quote and the delivered work reflect the same project.