There are so many language service agencies that offer Spanish translation services in the Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Anaheim areas, so how do you go about choosing the right one?
To start with, you should just give them a call and see how you’re treated. Note how long it took to speak to someone. This will indicate if you’re likely to get lost in fray of a big company, or if they give you the “small-town” treatment. If they take their time to listen to your needs and are pleasant with you, then you’ll feel much better about doing business with them. It will also give you an idea of how much they value their customers. If you hang up feeling as though you’ve been rushed or they were curt and unkind, then it’s likely they’ll treat your project in the same way…sloppy.
Another indication that you’ve chosen a good translator or agency is if they have a positive online presence. Look for reviews or comments about their service. If people generally have had a bad experience with them, then you’ll most likely want to steer clear, even if they end up being the cheapest. Remember, you get what you pay for and in the end you may have to spend even more getting the work translated properly if it’s not done correctly the first time.
You may also want to ask what the translator’s credentials are. There are tons of people who claim to be language specialists or think they are fluent enough in two languages so as to provide document translation services, but you should ask to see if they have been tested and certified by any organization. The ATA is one organization that certifies translators. They may also be court certified by the Judicial Council of California, for example. This typically applies to interpreters, but it’s a tough exam and those who pass it are qualified to translate as well. You’ll need them especially if you have a court document that needs to be translated. Expect to pay more for court certified translations.
Finally, you can always ask for a sample translation, especially if you’re working on a larger project such as a manual, handbook, novel, move captioning or subtitling…etc. You don’t want to trust a large project to someone without seeing what they can do. You can take the translation to someone you know who speaks the language to see if they have any comments, or even ask another agency to translate it back into the source language to see how well it matches what you wanted it to say. The second part assumes that the second translator is to be trusted otherwise you won’t be sure where the error occurred, in the translation or the re-translation.
At Spot On Interpreting we offer interpretation and translation services in Spanish, Mandarin, Vietnamese, French, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, Farsi, and many more languages. We offer both certified and qualified work depending on your specific language needs. We work with immigration documents as well as interviews, court trials such as witness testimony, depositions, business meetings and conferences, medical appointments, and even offer last minute over the phone interpreters. Whatever your language needs are, we’ll be glad to help. Whenever you’re ready, just give us a call for a quote.