Translation: why use freelance or agency professionals?

Translation of business documents: why use a professional translator?

If you need to translate specific documents for your company in order to send them to an English, Spanish or French contact, unless you are bilingual, your first instinct will certainly be to go to an online translation tool. Although an online translator can help you, it is not the best choice for the translation of your documents as it will probably have terms specific to your field. This is why using a professional translator will help you gain quality and time.

What does the job of translator involve?

The job of a translator/interpreter is a very demanding job, because its purpose is to connect people who do not speak the same language. Thus, the translator must ensure that his or her interpretations respect the content and form of the original. In the business world, it can be very common to need to translate a document so that it can be understood and used by people who speak a different language, hence the importance of the specialized translator's job.

To become a translator-interpreter, a 5-year study course is necessary. It is possible to obtain a master's degree at a university or a specialized school, such as ESIT or ISIT.

Translation can be applied to all fields. It is a very broad profession divided into several sectors of activity. For example, there are :

• Literary translators: they work on the translation of a work intended for publication (novels, practical guides, cookbooks, etc.) for publishing or the press.
• Revising translators: they check a translation against the original text and improve the style of a translated text.
• Audiovisual translators: they specialize in subtitling and dubbing films for cinema or television, and in preparing radio broadcasts.
• Technical translators: they specialize in a particular field and master its vocabulary (medical, legal, electronics, multimedia, etc.). They have a double curriculum (specialized training and translator training).
• Legal expert translators: they translate documents intended for use in court, and may act as interpreter at hearings or investigations, appointed by the judicial authority.
• Post-editor translators: they correct and revise texts automatically translated by translation software.
• Localization translators: they specialize in adapting interfaces for users from other countries and cultures (games, websites, DVDs, etc.) in the web, multimedia or IT fields.
• Terminology translators: they specialize in researching and gathering English equivalents of foreign terms in technical fields (aeronautics, medical, etc.).

Each translator has his or her own speciality and will thus have the advantage of finding the right words according to the service you are looking for.

A professional for tailored translations

In Switzerland, we still come into contact with non-English speaking people in the workplace.

In the business world, everyone has their own specificity, and it is to this extent that the translator brings a real and precise added value thanks to his knowledge, his training and his culture. While anyone can translate a document using an online tool, no one can replace the translator, his or her human dimension and linguistic skills, which will adapt to your requests and guarantee qualitative and personalized results. Translation is a real challenge if you want to develop, so it is important that you take communication with non-English speakers seriously. To this extent, using an interpreter represents a considerable time saving.

When you contact a consultant for your translation project, he or she will ask you many questions about your needs in order to better understand them and propose the most appropriate solution. Your translation project is an essential link in the success of your expansion, which is why it is important to ensure that it goes smoothly.

The choice is yours. For the translation of your documents, you can call upon freelance translators as well as translators within an agency. Interpreters will work with you on a daily basis to ensure that your translation meets your initial requirements: budget, deadline, writing style... You can also choose a translator based on his or her extra-professional skills, so that they are aligned with your company's field: technology, politics, advertising, commerce, marketing, finance... A specialized translator will be able to transcribe your documents into another language, while knowing exactly what he or she is talking about.