Most popular language translation services in 2022

The last 3 years or so have been extremely difficult for majority of businesses and organisations in the United Kingdom. The general and sudden market volatility due to the pandemic coupled with Brexit, although anticipated to an extent, have certainly affected the way companies go about their daily business. This was also very strongly reflected in the number of companies, which required language translations of their documents and other materials aimed at international customers. 

Nonetheless, 2022 so far at least, appears to be a break-through year, and we can see things slowly going back to normal within the corporate sector. Business owners rejuvenated their internationalisation plans and once again feel confident enough to approach foreign clients and business partners. 

Naturally, in order to successfully approach the international target markets, companies must do so in the customers’ native language. The ‘one-fit-all’ approach is an outdated method; thankfully however, a rapidly growing number of business owners understands this, and so agencies offering professional translation and interpreting services have in the recent years become key partners for companies, across practically all corporate sectors and industries. 

The different types of language translation services can however seem somewhat confusing, especially if you haven’t had the opportunity to work with a translation agency yet. In fact, you may know that you need to translate your documents or content, but have no idea how to actually go about doing it. If this, is you, in fact, keep reading as below we’re going to look into the different types of language translations and explain, how you can find the best possible language provider for your needs. 

What are the different types of translation services?

Generally, we can recognise two main types of translations – written text translations and spoken translations. 

The written text translations are simply known as translation services. They cover a wide range of documents, certifications and also other materials, such as for example, websites, marketing campaigns, legal documents etc. Essentially, any written text that needs to be converted into another language.

Spoken (or oral) translations, are known as interpreting. This service covers interpretations for live events such as conferences, interviews or court cases. Here, the interpreter will first listen to what is being said by the third party, and then translate it into your native language so that you can understand what had been said. 

Taking the written translation service a step further is known as localisation. This type of language translation is usually specifically applied within marketing content and documents. It takes into account not only the linguistic aspects, but also any socio-cultural factors which may affect how your brand/product are perceived abroad. For example, colours, images, currency, time and date etc. 

Most popular language services in the UK

From the translation types described above, the written text translations are by far the most popular language solution in the UK. Generally speaking, most language providers offer this facility as a standard. Interpreting, localisation or transcription services are however not offered by all LSP (language service providers) and acquiring them may require contacting an expert supplier. 

Where and how to find a professional translation provider

In order to translate your documents or content, you can take one of two primary approaches. 

The first method is working with individual freelance translators who are able to convert your documents into the target language. On the other hand, you can also approach a professional translations agency.

The choice of your preferred method may depend on a wide variety of factors, and can be directly affected by your specific requirements. 

For example, having your documents translated by an agency which specialises in projects similar to yours can be somewhat more expensive, but generally speaking, the quality of the translation would be ensured to be of highest accuracy and industry standards.

Translation companies also offer faster turnaround times and are usually able to offer an extremely wide range of languages, and so if your documents need to be translated into several languages, it might be worth paying a little bit extra and have everything arranged comprehensively. Additionally, translation agencies often offer discounts for larger projects, and so if you have several documents to translate, this might be a cost-effective approach in the long term.

In order to better understand how translations are priced and how you can go about professionally converting your documents directly into another language with an agency, we have spoken to a representative of what is widely considered to be one of the top translation services companies in the United Kingdom, London based TS24. They were able to shed more light on the processes involved in acquiring a specialised language translation service and share their expertise with us.  

He started by saying that “TS24 agency works with a wide variety of clients, from private customers to UK based SMEs as well as large, international organisations. Over the years we developed processes and internal systems that allow us to translate practically any document or content directly into the target language and offer extremely competitive rates, starting at just £0.06 per source word. All of our processes are based online and protected with state-of-the-art security measures to ensure confidentiality of translated documents.” He said, and added: “Our translators are not only native linguists of the target language, but also have a first-hand experience within the given industry, meaning that any jargon and sector specific lingo will also be accurately transliterated.”

Freelance Translators

Freelance linguists/translators tend to have lower price, but on the other hand, they can, generally speaking, only cover only a single language. This means, that if your documents need to be converted into a number of different languages or dialects, you will have to find a separate supplier for each conversion, which might be extremely time-consuming. Additionally, the turnaround times for your documents might be longer than if you worked directly with a translation agency. 

If you’re looking for a freelance translator, one of the best places to visit is the Proz.com website, which is an online database of professional linguists. 

You can sort translators based on their language, experience as well as see their past clients and reviews, allowing you to make an informed decision when choosing a translation supplier. 

On their official website, the organisation says that: “ProZ.com’s mission is to empower language industry professionals to achieve their business objectives and realize their full potential. ProZ.com does this by being committed to member success, providing access to state-of-the-art tools, educating and inspiring, and fostering collaboration among positive, like-minded professionals.”

All in all…

Translation industry can be a very complex and complicated field to understand fully. It takes knowledge and experience to understand what type of service you might need exactly, and what kind of provider may be able to offer you the highest quality of service based on your particular requirements. The slight differences between the various translation types can be somewhat mind-boggling, and if the wrong service is applied, it can directly affect the suitability of your converted documents. 

Deciding whether you wish to work with a freelance online translator or partner directly with an experienced translation agency can be a little bit overwhelming, especially if that’s something you have never done before. Nonetheless, with some patience and careful research, finding an expert supplier to professionally translate your documents is possible, and on the bright side, these relationships tend to last a very long time.