Language Service Industry

• According to a study, globalization and language services are among the fastest-growing sectors globally. People are using foreign languages more and more, in their personal lives and at work, which has led to an increase in demand for language translation services. The language service industry is applicable in all "aspects of economic and social life." Language service is essential when it comes to translating notarized documents, driver's licenses, technical documents, conference transcripts, and even in negotiations.
• According to research, the language service industry grew at an annual rate of 5.52% in 2017. In 2016, the global language service industry was valued at $40 billion according to Common Sense Advisory report. In 2020, the market size was estimated to reach $45 billion, growing at a CAGR of 6.5 – 7.5% from 2018.

Digital Marketing Industry

• To achieve international success, content created must adapt diversity in order to reach members of various cultures. Content localization, according to demographic, cultural, and economic differences, enables one to communicate with the international communities. The digital marketing industry has benefited from the localization of content and translations.
• Good quality digital marketing content localization service helps increase brand awareness, create shares in the global market, develops client loyalty, and offers a unique marketing strategy.
• Some companies use freelancers to provide email translation services, which helps companies to reach their target market through email marketing. The localized content is sent to emails as campaigns in local professional language. Some organizations localize corporate websites and activate search engine optimization to attract potential clients to their businesses.
• As a way of digital marketing, firms create a dialogue with followers on social media by localizing the content they post. Some freelancers in the gig economy transcreate campaign messaging and advertising to attract cultural appeal in local markets.

Transportation-Based Service

• The gig economy generates over $204 billion gross volume. The transportation-based services account for 58% of the $204 billion gross volume, according to research by MasterCard. The size of gig economy workspace is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17% to attain a gross volume of $455 billion by the year 2023.
• The success of the gig economy in the transportation-based sector is attributed to the translated application being used on digital platforms, like Uber, Doordash, Lyft, Careem. These apps have been localized to suit the needs of the diverse geographies. Digital platforms need a freelance driver to complete a request to use the content localized on the app. The services include carpooling, ride-sharing, goods delivery, and restaurant delivery.

Translation

• Translation is the process of encoding data from one language to another., transposing text in various languages. The gig economy started with translation service before other virtual freelancing started. The global market for translation was $47.3 billion in 2015, a 40% increase from 2012.
• There is an increase in demand for professional translation services. Translation is done from English languages to high demand languages like German, French, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Korea, and Japanese. According to IBIS World report, translation services were expected to reach $37 billion in 2018.
• The revenue for the Translation Services industry is expected to reduce in 2020, due to the weak downstream, and is expected to grow back up in 2021. The translation services market was valued at $39.61 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow to $46.21 billion by 2027 at a CAGR of 2.1%, between 2020 – 2027.

• The key players of the translation industry include Transperfect, Lingotex, Semantix, and Yamagata Corporation, as indicated in the image below.

 

Source

According to Grand View Research, the global machine translation market is projected to reach $983.3 million by 2022.

Localization

• Localization is the process of adapting content to a new target market, and it involves adding/changing words, measurements e.t.c to help the local readers, and not translating word for word. The content/information is altered to fit specific cultures or characteristics of another geography.
• Language localization involves adapting the content of localized services, products, and applications for local consumption. Language localization is different from language translation, as localization considers traditions, modern slang, cultural differences, and market trends.
• Localization's main aim is to eliminate perception and language sensitivity, to capture targeted markets effectively. Localization of multimedia content comprises translating, subtitles, dubbing, video production, creating voice-overs, and graphics processing.

Transcreation

• Transcreation is the process of rewriting content in another language and changing the content to adapt to the cultural difference. The high demand for localized content has contributed to the rapid growth of the transcreation industry.
• Global brands establish media marketing strategy through transcreation, for global distribution of good quality content.
• Transcreation is applied to creating "highly creative marketing and advertising" content. Transcreation is used in taglines, digital banners, straplines, advertising, and all digital promotional activities to achieve multicultural goals.
• Transcreation comes from translation and re-creation, combining interpretation and translation, which requires creativity and localization. The transcreation concept is focused on reconciling the emotional, cultural, motivational, and subjective structures of a message that has similar content to the target language.

Increase in Voice-Based Content Localization

• There is an increase in demand for voice-based content localization, due to the rapid growth in the entertainment sector, for example, the gaming services.
• According to Digi-Capital Research, the gaming services is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.9% to 2021. Games need to be localized to achieve global status and ensure client satisfaction for users of all cultures. In the past, most companies could not re-create localized content in various languages.
• Voice search is gaining popularity, and companies are observing a demand for "multilingual voice recognition." Google has already incorporated multilingual voice search in their systems and applications.

Video Translation

• According to a study, Facebook users watch 85% of Facebook videos on mute. This trend has made subtitles and voice-over translation vital in videos and movies, and the trend is set to continue.
• The demand for customized content is growing, inspiring companies to tailor their localized content in line with the client's interests and needs.

Crowdsourcing

• Crowdsourcing is a trend used in the content localization freelance economy, that is cost-effective and accurate. A company engages active freelancers and invites them to help translate applications and websites. The crowdsourcing trend has grown rapidly in 2020 as compared to past years.
• The disadvantage of crowdsourcing is time-consuming. The quality of localization might not be of quality, hence not recommended for professional work but necessary when a company wants to engage local communities for projects.

Internal Digitization

• Initially, language service providers (LSPs) were to only convert one language to another, but now they are onto digital transformation. The digital transformation comprises adopting technology, optimizing the customer experience, and "bringing data online." For example, the global marketing industry needs to localize and translate videos by providing subtitles, dubbing, and captioning to reach a bigger audience.
• E-learning is a growing trend that is aimed to provide global links to students and employees online.
• A majority of freelancing application developers are now making their apps available in many languages possible, while game developers are localizing their content in AR and VR to reach the global target market. Game creators now have to capture local cultures to "help convey emotion", body language, and intent to the users.

General Insights

• The gig economy workspace has steadily observed growth as the workforce evolves with technology. Freelancing gigs began to take shape in 2008, after the recession when the job market was weak. Advancement in technology has since transformed the industry for independent work.
• The gig economy workspace provides freelancers with flexible working hours, supplemental income, and opportunities to try new industries of expertise. The freelancers get to choose what projects to work on, their own schedule, and the amount of work to be done.
• The gig economy industry has helped companies save resources with regard to the training of staff, benefits, and office space. Employers are now able to contract experts in specialized projects, who may have been too expensive to maintain on permanent terms of employment. The gig economy comprises all professionals, including part-time hires, project-based workers, independent contractors, and temporary hires.

Hospitality & Tourism Industry

• Translation has become a vital element in the hospitality and tourism vertical, as more people are traveling abroad. Geographies that need to attract global visitors use multiple languages to communicate to the target market. Countries require professional and qualified language services to convince international tourists to visit again.
• Localization is adopted to help travel and tourism companies create a lasting experience for their clients — professional content localization to prevent communication errors, misunderstandings, and inadequate translation in the content.
• Translation services and localization is used in the interpretation of travel documents, brochures, contracts, leaflets, and legal documents in the industry to different languages, offering the international clients an optimized customer experience.
• The gig economy has enabled people to rent out their facilities, including boats, homes, cars, and apartments, among other things. The platforms/websites/applications used to connect the users are localized and translated into languages and integrated with the local cultures to gain attention from local and new markets. Airbnb had approximately 4 million freelance listings as of November 2019.

Healthcare Industry

• Healthcare applications are being localized and translated to enable healthcare providers and caregivers to connect with patients who "pay per visit."
• Translation in the field of medicine has become essential in modern medicine. Both the pharma industry and health service providers are expected to adapt to audiences globally.
• Localization of content enables patients to receive accurate data about their health from their doctors and caregivers, regardless of their native language. Since more people are living as ex-pats while traveling, the healthcare industry looks to maintain high-quality standards in translation and localization.
• Translators in the medical industry work with reports, manuals, medical records, and prescription information; hence, the localization has to be error-free as any inaccuracy can risk a patient's lives.

Entertainment and Digital Media Sector

• Companies have started integrating video content on their websites and social media campaigns, and are moving to localize the video content as well. Videos are now being recreated using local talent and not just being translated or dubbed. This move by the companies is meant to provide a more authentic content consumer experience.
• Multimedia platforms like videos must be localized for the international market to ensure the videos are in line with the culture and regulations of the target audience. Multimedia localization employs local media specialists, editors, and translators to ensure seamless production of content.
• Multimedia localization in the gig economy comprises voice-over recording and syncing, video production, subtitles, animations, translation, graphic processing, and "testing and quality assurance."

E-Learning

• Localization of e-learning involves modifying the content offered on the e-learning platforms to adapt to the preference and needs of users in specific geographies. Translation is the common form of e-learning localization. However, the service providers of e-learning are considering to include cultural diversity and local regulations.
• Clients can use e-learning localization services to expand their platforms to other geographical areas, ensuring that it adapts to the local culture, regulations, and language. E-learning localization can be expanded and be utilized to translate educational material and replace graphics and images to depict culturally relevant situations.
• Content localization in e-learning platforms is essential as it makes the platform usable by learners from different native backgrounds. Some e-learning content localization features can be expanded to attract potential clients.
• Translators have become vital in the global training industry as the need to deliver education in multiple languages increases. The gig economy workspace has freelancers who are scientists, educators, researchers, and trainers who can be hired to localize content professionally.
• The professionals in the content localization gig economy can be utilized to translate textbooks, admission forms, e-courses, exams, and school records, among other things.
• E-learning is a potential area of expansion considering that the Covid-19 pandemic has forced institutions to adopt e-learning mode of delivery in teaching.

Finance and Banking

• The finance and banking sector is an industry that could benefit from content localization service to achieve globalization. Financial institutions and banking systems need to localize their content, marketing data, and offers to target markets to "achieve international success." By doing this, the banks will reach local markets all over the world.
• The banking industry is experiencing an increase in competition; hence, it needs to employ content localization service from gig economy space to localize service and consolidate global positions. The professional gig economy translation industry grows with the finance industry. The financial firms require accurate translations to communicate with international customers.
• There is a need for securities exchange, banks, funding institutions, and insurance companies to communicate their marketing messaging objectively "to stay competitive." 
• The finance and banking sector is a potential area for the content localization gig economy to expand to as it relies on translators to optimize and attract new clients from other geographies.

IT Industry

• The information technology industry has benefited from the gig economy workspace, in general, with regard to editing, graphic design, and programming. However, there is a growing need for content localization in software translation and website localization.
• In addition to localizing websites, organizations have started to consider optimizing services on mobile devices for easy accessibility by users. Mobile translation is becoming key in the translation industry.
• Some IT companies have developed mobile translation applications that offer "high-quality live-human translation services, to be used for business negotiations and overseas travels." Some applications in the IT industry can use the GPS system on the mobile to connect the users to nearby translators.
• Technology innovations occur every day, and technological needs for users in various geographies change with technology. IT is a potential area for gig economy expansion because machine learning and artificial intelligence are being developed for localization. Freelancers have the opportunity to develop AI systems that will help better customer experience.