Successful events with remote simultaneous interpretation

Two years after the pandemic has entered our lives, one thing is clear: some changes in the event industry are here to stay. Shifting from on-site to virtual and, finally, to hybrid meetings urged businesses to find solutions for inclusive, convenient, and audience-tailored event experiences. 

It's no secret that multilingual setups require exceptional attention. For people to easily express themselves, interpretation is nothing less than a primary tool. Happily, remote simultaneous interpretation platforms stepped in to bridge global communication no matter the event type.  

Yet, both event organizers and interpreters have to do some homework for a seamless event with remote simultaneous interpretation. Wondering what kind of homework? We've made it clear – bear with us for tips for successful events with interpretation!

Tips for successful event interpretation 

Know your goals 

Your event would certainly have a goal. And both participants and interpreters must know it!

Is your goal to launch a product or conduct a virtual town hall? Are you holding a seminar with on-site and remote participants to train your employees? Do you want to introduce a new prototype to your manufacturers or potential investors? Or maybe you're hosting a global discussion to develop necessary legislation?

Irrespective of the purpose of your event, remember all the objectives should align with each other to prevent any multilingual event pitfalls. If the goal is clear, it will give interpreters some context and make it easier for them to prepare.

Understand your audience

Successful events are tailored to their audiences. It's crucial for meeting coordinators and event organizers to focus on the needs of the organizations or panelists and the people participating in the event.  

Start by measuring the number of people who would be attending the meeting. How many will arrive at the physical location, and how many will connect remotely? 

Think about the languages! If there are audience members with different language proficiency, it's crucial to add interpretation to your event. Here, a reliable remote simultaneous interpretation platform will do the work.

For successful event interpretation, you should aim for the easy-to-use multilingual meetings solution, including all the necessary features designed with the participants' and interpreters' needs in mind. 

Address the needs of the event type 

Each event type comes with specific needs. While in an on-site event, you'll have to take care of the physical meeting location, hybrid and online meetings will include participants, speakers, and interpreters connecting remotely.    

One thing's for sure – you'd aim to create an environment for everyone to participate, provide feedback, and interact with each other. Well, it shouldn't be that hard if real-time quality interpretation is here. 

You'll need to make sure that both on-site and remote interpreters have all the tools they need for this to happen. Are your traditional interpreting booths successfully set up in the meeting location? Are remote interpreters trained to connect online seamlessly? Are they all equipped with an intuitive interpreter console, allowing them to chat, perform handovers, and connect to required channels? 

If you're nodding while going through all these questions, you're very close to successful event interpretation. Don't worry, though, if you're unsure – remote simultaneous interpretation solutions often come with dedicated technical teams who take care of all the "what-ifs." 

Outline your event

A successful event has a clear outline that all stakeholders understand. Lack of a clear framework can affect the quality of your event, so make sure you're prepared! 

Here's a quick checklist for you to consider:

• Who are the main speakers at the event?

• Who is the host or moderator?

• What's the main topic of the event?

• Did you share all the information with the participants?

• Does the event have a seamless flow?

• How many breakout sessions will you have?

• Can participants join easily?

• How many discussions will you have?

• How can participants ask questions?

• Have you briefed the on-site or remote simultaneous interpreter?

• Has the moderator spoken to the interpreter?

• Is the interpreter familiar with the software and hardware?

• Do you have a backup plan if the moderator is unavailable?

• Can attendees interact with each other?

• How easily can they access the content before, during, and after the event?

Remember that the earlier you start your event preparation, the easier it will be for both the speakers and the audience!

Brief the interpreter

Event coordinators need to fully brief the interpreter days before the event. Organizers should put together information on the topics to be discussed, speakers, participants, and anything else that might help the interpreter.

Once the interpreters have sufficient details on the event, it will be easier to research the topic and the speakers. They might even be able to find videos of the speakers to understand their tone, intonation, and pace of delivery.

Even if the interpreter is exceptionally fluent in the language, they will have time to understand the regional dialects and nuances if they have adequate time. For example, there are multiple languages spoken in India. Suppose your new technology partner is based in Bangalore in South India instead of someone based in North India. In that case, the interpretation team will have the time to understand their accent and intonation.

Also, make sure interpreters and moderators are comfortable with the software they use. We at Interactio offer extensive training, supporting materials, and monitor the event from start to finish to guarantee a seamless event experience. 

Get a user-friendly platform

As we've mentioned, successful event interpretation depends greatly on the platform you choose. As meeting coordinators and organizers know, the best way to deliver is by seeing the event from the participants' perspective. So, the number one criteria to judge a platform should be its ease of use.  

Ease of joining

Ask yourself, how easy would it be for participants to join the event? This is especially true for hybrid events where the needs of the virtual participants may get sidelined. Do remember that the IT support teams should assist all participants in real-time.

If someone finds it difficult to join, they might miss the introductory remarks! 

Interpreter access

Event interpretation will be problematic if the remote interpreter cannot easily join the meeting. They would need to be part of the event when the moderator would be introducing the topic, speakers, and the flow of the event. 

If those not proficient in the spoken language don't get this crucial information, it won't be easy to understand the rest of the event. Event coordinators should provide alternate methods to join the virtual event to avoid this.

Multiple languages feeds

Successful event interpretation relies on the ability to get multiple languages feeds simultaneously.  

The platform you opt for should have multiple languages feeds, which the interpreter should easily access. This also makes it easy to monitor remote simultaneous interpretation, oversee video and audio channels, and even chat with participants and interpreters.

Seamless handover

Like in all events with remote simultaneous interpretation, interpreters have to be changed at predetermined intervals. In successful events, the transition of interpreters will be smooth. In platforms without dedicated functions or safety mechanisms, this can be abrupt, which will disturb the flow of the event.

Interactio offers mute and mic-off functions to enable successful event interpretation, among other takeover functions. Designed in line with feedback from interpreters, this allows for smooth microphone transitions to their booth partners.  

Dedicated support

How do you know your event interpretation is successful? One of the most apparent indicators is if your platform has easy access to technical support at all times. 

Problems can arise due to multiple reasons. In some cases, the interpreter might find the user interface challenging. Sometimes, there could be problems with chat functions or language feeds.

Having worked with businesses, organizations, and intergovernmental groups, we know the importance of readily available client support. We make it easy to access our technical team of a highly trained and experienced crew of technicians who are always here to guide you! 

In short

Successful event interpretation will elevate the experience for both speakers and their audience. No matter whether it's on-site, entirely virtual, or hybrid meetings, for event interpretation to be seamless, organizers should choose an advanced, intuitive, feature-rich, and user-friendly multilingual solution.
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