It takes more than just the ability to understand two languages.

Professional translators and interpreters have the education, experience, and expertise to understand the nuances in one language and transfer them to another. The right professional will have solid knowledge of your industry and will know how to culturally adapt your content for the target audience you are trying to reach. You only get one chance to make a first impression, so make sure it counts.

Why Should I Hire a Professional?

Can I afford to hire a professional?

You can't afford NOT to. Getting your message wrong can cost money, ruin your image, and even cost lives. Whether you’re having a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign translated or need an interpreter to communicate treatment options between a doctor and patient, it pays to hire a professional to get the job done right.

Instead of hiring a professional, this restaurant used machine translation and did not realize the result was an error message.

Understanding what’s at stake

ATA publishes articles to illustrate why it is critical to hire qualified translators and interpreters.

How Much Does a Translation Cost?

By ATA Compass | May 17, 2023

If you’re looking for translation services, you’re likely wondering how much translations cost. Whether you need a birth certificate or diploma translation, a translation of documents about your family history, or a translation for business, it’s only logical to ask: what price will I have to pay? There’s no cut-and-dried answer to that question, but here are six factors that…

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How to Recognize and Implement Quality Interpreting (Hint: It Doesn’t Involve Your Bilingual Staff)

By ATA Compass | April 26, 2023

With a set of quality standards in place, it is possible to make healthcare accessible to limited English proficiency individuals without delaying patient care or interrupting your workflow. As many as 1 in 10 working-age adults in the U.S. has limited English proficiency (LEP). Let alone the personal employment and economic implications of this reality, when LEP patients are inadequately…

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Machine Translation vs. Human Translation: Will Artificial Intelligence Replace the World’s Second Oldest Profession?

By ATA Compass | April 5, 2023

Translators pride themselves on being excellent communicators, and so they should. After all, it’s their job! But sometimes, even the best communicators can talk until they’re blue in the face and still have not really communicated what needs to be said for lack of common ground with their audience. That’s exactly what happened in the time frame between neural machine…

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7 Tips for Crushing an International Meeting Remotely, According to an Interpreter

By ATA Compass | February 22, 2023

As millions around the globe have moved their classes and even social gatherings online, international business and meetings between speakers of different languages look a lot different. In a pre-pandemic world, along with thousands of other professional language interpreters across the globe, I facilitated in-person multilingual interactions with regularity. Now, with a few adjustments, we continue to enable international organizations…

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What’s the Difference Between a Translator and an Interpreter?

By ATA Compass | February 1, 2023

If you’re looking to hire a language professional, the first thing you need to ask yourself is whether you need a translator or an interpreter. Although the terms are often used interchangeably, they are very different jobs for very different situations. If you didn’t know this, you’re not alone. The nuances of the language industry are all Greek to many.…

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5 Steps for Translating Official Documents

By ATA Compass | January 11, 2023

If you’re starting the U.S. immigration process, applying to an American university, or considering a career opportunity in the United States, you will need certain legal or official documents translated into English. These may include birth certificates, academic records, financial statements, and property documents, just to name a few. You might be wondering where to start when it comes to…

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Why Hire an ATA Member?

ATA members have a commitment to continuing education and are held to the highest professional standards. Feel secure knowing if you’re hiring an ATA member, you’re hiring the best in the business.

Expertise

ATA plays a crucial role in helping members pursue the knowledge and skills necessary to help clients reach their goals. Through their membership in ATA, translators and interpreters signal the importance they place on professional education in the service of their clients.

Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility

ATA members share a commitment to the ethical business practices that hold their services accountable to the highest possible standards. ATA's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility is the basis for a member's honest, confidential, and responsible interaction with clients.

It’s easy

ATA’s Language Services Directory is the largest of its kind in the world. It’s free to use and lets you customize a search for translators, interpreters, and companies that meets your requirements.

Find a Professional Translator or Interpreter

When you are committed to quality, the language professional you need is an ATA member.

The ATA Compass

Our outreach publication provides up-to-date information and resources about the translating and interpreting industry.

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What's the difference?

Translators do the writing. Interpreters do the talking. ATA helps you find the right language professional.

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Can't a computer do all this?

There are times when machine translation is useful, and times when it's not. Learn when to use Google Translate, and when to hire a professional.

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