Translation agencies are the guardians of the communication lines between clients and translators. They ensure ideal coordination of everyone‘s wishes and needs. Keep reading to find out about the advantages of working with a translation agency for clients and translators!

 

Translation agencies are coordinators between translators and clients. For that very reason, they are often criticized: They are seen as unnecessary middlemen who profit from translators’ work without offering anything themselves. While there are certainly some agencies for whom that is the case, a good agency has a lot to offer and provides many advantages:

 

Quality assurance

The additional link in the translating chain ensures increased quality assurance. Of course, translators check their work before they deliver. However, no one is immune from the occasional error, meaning that sometimes a translation needs some correcting. This is where agencies come in: They fix mistakes and deliver an impeccable product to the client.

 

Protection for translators

The mediating role of agencies also means that translators are better protected since they do not work directly with the client. Should – for any reason – the client not be completely satisfied, the complaint goes to the agency and not directly to the translator.

 

Improved communication

With a translation agency, special requests can be coordinated in a way which is best for both the client and the translator. This way, the client can inform the agency of their wishes and the agency can make the translator’s life easier by preparing the working file accordingly and offering additional source material.

 

Increased capacity

Particularly large offers are only possible with agencies. They have the ability to split the work and then make sure everything is up to snuff before the translation is delivered. Translators are thus spared the burden of negotiating more feasible deadlines. When it comes to recurring topics, an agency also has access to a large pool of material from previous translations which can be provided to new translators.

 

Working with an agency can be advantageous for freelancers and for clients. However, it is important that agencies work competently and ethically. That means:

 

Fair pay

A good agency makes sure that freelance translators are paid fairly. Word prices must be such that no translator is forced to take on excessive workloads just to make ends meet. Translating requires a great deal of skill and expertise and should be acknowledged correspondingly.

 

Clear points of contact for clients and translators

For translation orders, it is important that clients and translators have access to clear answers and trusted points of contact. A client should always rest assured that their requests are heard and understood. Additionally, they must always be able to count on a good communication partner throughout the translation process. The same is true for translators. They, too, must know who to turn to if they have questions. A good translation can only be guaranteed if all communication channels work optimally.

 

Topical and linguistic expertise

The team at a translation agency must itself have the ability to understand and solve translation-related issues. One way of ensuring that this is the case is hiring people at agencies who are translators as well as project managers. This allows the agency to properly assess situations and evaluate quality as well as to jump into emergency action should it be required.

 

GlobalSprachTeam is a translation agency that offers quality with a personal touch. We are proud of our longstanding relationships with our clients and translators which allow us to always provide high-quality translations.

(O.M., 2021)

 

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