A linguist, or a group of linguists, can easily set up a company and operate as a translation agency. But translating at professional levels is not just about finding professional and specialized linguists in different sectors, but also about creating and managing projects, taking care of their finishing and delivery and assisting customers in post-sales, whatever problems arise.
Structure and organization make the difference, and experience in managing both linguists and foreign clients is not something that can be achieved in a short time.
Companies of a certain caliber that operate internationally can only rely on agencies like LingoYou for their translation and localization needs.
Some numbers on the linguistic sector
When people look for translation companies, obviously, they want the best. But best can mean different things to different people, depending on what they’re really looking for.
There are thousands of translation service providers in the world. We are talking about translation agencies, freelance translators or more or less structured companies, with more or less experience. How to orient yourself in the vast world of linguistic services which, according to estimates, has a turnover of more than 49 billion euros every year?
Short guide to find the perfect translation agency for you
If you have moderate language skills, you might think about dealing with the translation of simple tasks yourself, such as forwarding an email or translating a very short text. However, if you are here, it is because the work ahead of you is too difficult or too time-consuming for you to do it alone. If you’re looking for a reliable translator, let’s first start by understanding what options are available to you.
Here is an overview of the different types of translation service providers operating in the market so that you can make an informed decision that can work for you.
- Amateur translators
- Automatic translation
- Freelance professional translators
- Translation agencies
Amateur translators
- Strengths: Their fees are generally low
- Weak points: the quality of the translation is often not adequate
- Target group of customers: those looking for a minimal budget solutionEven large companies sometimes do not realize the importance of accurate translations and do not believe that the services of a professional translator are a good investment. They could entrust translation tasks, for example, to an office manager or a secretary with some command of the required foreign language. It is important to understand in such situations that translation is a complex process that requires certain specific skills in addition to knowledge of foreign words, grammar and industry-specific terms. A good translation requires at least a general understanding of the topic and in-depth knowledge of the economic, cultural and legal context of the country in question. While your office manager can handle day-to-day translations for internal needs, don’t expect a professional result.
Automatic translation
- Strengths: Output is free and available at a moment’s notice
- Weak points: lack of stylistic elegance and approximate rendering of meaning from one language to another
- Target group of customers: those who want to quickly get a general idea of what a text is about. Considering the current ever-increasing use of machine translation engines, the time is approaching when machine translation will be able to come close to the quality offered by human translators in certain situations. Major machine translation engines such as Google, Yandex, Microsoft and PROMT already use neural networks, and the quality of machine translations has improved significantly in recent years.
However, computers are not yet capable of completely replacing humans, and such translation tools should be used with caution and with some reservations. This approach to translation is quite successful when used for the right purposes, such as translating an operating manual or getting an idea of the content presented in a professional article.
Freelance professional translators
- Pros: You can get good value for money
- Weaknesses: You will have to independently choose and check the service provider that suits your purposes
- Target group of clients: those who want to be in control at all timesWorking directly with the translator by bypassing an intermediary such as a translation agency is certainly beneficial for both the client and the translator. Nowadays, there are many possibilities to search for in-demand service providers: freelance service marketplaces, translation communities and web portals, virtual message boards, even word-of-mouth recommendations.
Although the market is more than full of offers of translation services, finding a real professional can be complicated: you are exposed to the risk that an experienced translator with a huge portfolio might just be a start-up offerer fresh out of university. Furthermore, you will have to control all organizational aspects such as meeting deadlines, organizing quality assurance measures and handling complaints. If your expectations are high, expect to work hard to reach your goal.
Translation agencies
- Strengths: Fast delivery, broad coverage in terms of languages and specialist areas
- Weak points: The risk of dealing with an agency in bad faith
- Target customer group: Those who value their time and efforts
If you are not keen to invest your resources in finding a suitable freelance translator, it may be useful to hire a translation agency that can help with translations from virtually any language and on any topic, taking care of all organizational and communication aspects with your translators. The main challenge is finding a reliable agency.
A good-looking website, an impressive list of great clients, and a well-publicized name don’t necessarily equate to adequate quality; conversely, a little-known agency with a modest website can be very responsible and reliable.
It would certainly be helpful to thoroughly research all available information about your potential contractor before hiring a particular translation agency. There are many online discussions in professional communities where translators share their experience of working with different agencies and even maintain client blacklists. If the agency frequently delays the payment of translators’ fees, offers below-average rates, or violates its fee payment obligations, experienced professionals will refrain from cooperating with them, and therefore your translation will most likely end up with a novice translator .
LingoYou, experience and quality for impeccable translations
Are you looking for a reliable agency? You got it. LingoYou is the agency that puts quality first. Unlike other agencies, we carry out a scrupulous selection of our translator collaborators, so as to ensure that they have not only the most adequate linguistic skills, but also the most up-to-date skills in the sector of your interest. We work only with the best and put ourselves at the service of those who want the best.
Marketing Team LingoYou
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