Translation Agency vs. In-House Translation

As businesses expand their reach beyond their home countries, communication becomes increasingly important. One of the biggest challenges faced by companies is overcoming language barriers. To reach a global audience, translations are a must. But, should you handle translations in-house or collaborate with a translation agency? 

While in-house translations might seem like a good idea, there are many reasons why working with a translation partner is the way to go. 

Firstly, translation agencies are experts in their field. They have a team of professional linguists who are not only fluent in the target language but also have a deep understanding of the culture, which is crucial when conveying a message that resonates with all your target audiences. Having a qualified and experienced in-house team that covers all languages to native level can be costly. Many in-house teams will start much smaller and often involve multilingual employees who may not have the same range of expertise. Remember: Being multilingual does not qualify a person to be a professional linguist. Translators train for many years, with postgraduate level degrees and accreditation from professional bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL) and the Institute of Translating and Interpreting (ITI). If your in-house translation team consists of multitasking employees, it might be worth finding out how an agency could support with your current linguistic strategy. 

Translation agencies have access to the latest linguistic technology, such as Translation Management Systems (TMS) and Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) tools. These technologies streamline the translation process, ensuring consistency and accuracy across all documents. In-house teams may not have access to these tools, making the translation process more time-consuming and prone to error. However, as useful as some technology can be within the translation industry, we strongly advise that AI-based translation tools (you know the one) are not used in place of professional translation in an attempt to save on cost. Beyond the risk of error through lack of communication, these facilities do not possess the capability to understand and convey tone, emotion and idiomatic phrases. So, we regularly see clients ask us to fix their projects that have undergone this kind of translation, making it much more costly in the long run! 

Working with a translation agency means that you can scale your translations according to demand. If you need a large volume of content translated within a short timeframe, a translation agency can quickly allocate additional resources to meet your needs. Professional translation providers usually possess a global network of linguists that can accommodate your request for urgent translation regardless of your location and required timeframe. This level of flexibility is not always possible with an in-house team, which may have limited resources and be unable to return projects as and when required. Remember: Translation agencies don’t have to replace your internal language facilities. We love to support in-house teams on projects that need an extra helping hand during busy periods and large requests. 

Finally, working with a translation agency can be more cost-effective than allocating linguistic work to employees with other responsibilities. While it may seem more expensive upfront, when you factor in the time and resources required to train an in-house team and invest in the necessary technology, outsourcing translations to a professional agency is always a worthwhile investment. 

So, although possessing in-house capabilities for translation may seem like a good idea, partnering with a professional language service provider offers many advantages, including access to experts, the latest technology, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. With the reliable work of International Translations Limited, you can guarantee your message is communicated effectively every time, supporting your operations, and taking your business to the next level. 

If you would like to discuss an upcoming language project, or learn more about the services we offer, get in touch for a chat with our team today.