Whether you’re looking to globalise a product or you simply need important documents translated ready for an overseas contract or agreement, accurate translation is a key part of a global business. There are plenty of translation agency UK companies out there ready and raring to provide their expertise and support to businesses both small and large, but could in-house translation prove more beneficial? Here, we’re taking a look at both options to help you decide for yourself.
Translation Agency
Translation agencies are designed to provide translation services to businesses looking to globalise their business or who might simply need documents or packaging accurately translated for any reason. They often hire a team of experienced linguists, who each hold local knowledge for a host of different countries, but is the cost really worth it?
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Advantages
As mentioned before, by opting for an agency, you will be given access to a whole host of experts ready to provide their knowledge to your projects. Translation is more than just changing each word individually – in fact, more often than not, direct translations can appear clunky or even unreadable to other languages. For this reason, opting for a company with a wide variety of expertise can give you peace of mind that the translations are going to be accurate.
What’s more, agencies can offer a much higher level of scalability. While the translation of a single document might be manageable in-house, for businesses looking for bulk orders might benefit more from the resources available at an agency. From a huge number of linguists on hand, to the project management tools available to ensure that the entire order is done fully and in good time, most deadlines can be easily met.
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Disadvantages
By sending your translations out of your business, you will have to factor in a lack of full control. Your time management will be at the mercy of the translation company, so it ultimately depends on the company you choose as to how reliable they will be. Communication has to be extensive, so you’ll need to take the time out to ensure you choose the right company to suit your business. Price will also have to factor in, as some smaller businesses may not be able to budget for a high scalability through an agency.
In-House
In-house translation essentially requires either hiring in a translator directly, or putting together an entire team to cover what needs to be translated. However, this also has its advantages and disadvantages, including:
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Advantages
By opting for an in-house translation team, you can guarantee that they will understand your company and the overall branding that you need to portray. They’ll hold a deeper knowledge of what your company does, what they want to stand for and how to portray precisely that in another language, so that your every label or document reflects precisely what you need. While there are agencies available that will take the time to liaise with you in order to ensure this, it’s also worth considering that companies with complicated branding may feel more comfortable keeping things in house.
What’s more, the only costs will be a monthly salary. You won’t have to pay out for the services as and when you need them and for the most part, this can work out a lot cheaper than opting for an agency, but it does hold more risks.
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Disadvantages
While an in-house translator may understand more about your company, an agency could hold wider access to a vast range of different linguists from across the globe. Your content will not only be translated with the locality in mind, but will also be translated by someone who may fluently speak the language, possibly even as their first language. For this reason, the information is likely to be portrayed far more clearly and accurately to your brand.
In-House translators could have a limit on how many languages they know and if you were to expand your business further, you may need to hire additional staff at an additional cost. With an agency, this would usually be covered under the same cost, or for a smaller additional fee.
Whether you opt for in-house or agency translation ultimately depends on what you want from your translation. If you’re looking to translate a single language on a budget, an in-house translator could be beneficial, but for high volumes, multiple language and peace of mind of quality, an agency can certainly provide it all. What will you choose?