Translation company in Switzerland versus abroad

Are you a Swiss firm in need of translations?

You may well be sorely tempted to work with a provider from abroad instead of a translation company from Switzerland.

After all, let’s be honest: price is usually the most important factor at the end of the day.

That’s fair enough. But let us give you a few arguments that should make it easier for you to weigh up a proposal from a Swiss translation company as against one from an agency abroad.

Translation companies in Switzerland versus abroad: why is there a price difference?

It is widely known that Switzerland is an expensive country. Swiss products and services are accordingly associated with a certain price point. If your budget is limited and you need a service that you can easily find abroad, you will probably decide in favour of the most budget-friendly option.

A lot of Swiss firms are in constant competition with providers in the neighbouring German-speaking countries of Germany and Austria precisely for this reason. This is no different for translations and other language services. In terms of price, most Swiss translation companies cannot hold their own against their competitors from neighbouring countries.

Salaries and maintenance costs in Switzerland are simply too high for anyone running a professional translation company. Of course, not all translators are based in Switzerland, but at least some of them must be able to translate into the four national languages of Switzerland (DE-CH, FR-CH, IT-CH and Romansh). People who speak these languages can command higher salaries than those who speak languages like DE-DE, FR-FR and IT-IT, because the translators working into those languages are a lot more numerous.

When will you need a Swiss translation company?

Depending on the language combination and subject matter, any translation company may be able to meet your needs. If the language combination is very common and your text is generic in nature, you will have a broad selection of suitable translators at your disposal. Indeed, as a client, you will be spoiled for choice.

You don’t have quite so much freedom of choice if:

– you are a Swiss company selling a Swiss product or a Swiss service;

– you are looking to appeal to a specific target group within Switzerland;

– you need a translation from or into one of the four Swiss national languages;

– your corporate language contains a lot of terms specific to Switzerland (whether in politics, tourism or the economy).

Why do you have less of a choice in these situations?

Obviously, you as a client have free choice to select the right language partner for you. However, if one of the above scenarios applies to your business, you should opt for a translation company based in Switzerland.

Foreign translation companies (e.g. from the countries neighbouring Switzerland) are simply not familiar with the peculiarities of the Swiss national languages or the expressions commonly used in this country, including ‘helvetisms’, or words unique to Switzerland.

Translations from abroad might pass muster at first glance or do the job for a little while. Sooner or later, though, the truth will emerge that no Swiss translators were involved. This can have ramifications for your company’s reputation.

How far are you prepared to compromise on quality?

Granted, ‘foreign’ does not automatically mean ‘poorer quality’. Needless to say, there are translators with outstanding qualifications and top-quality language providers all over the world, who ideally are also ISO-certified.

At the end of the day, you yourself will have to weigh up the pros and cons and decide which price is right for your concept of quality.

With a Swiss translation company, you will usually have a certain level of quality, something that is not necessarily the case in other countries.

So think hard about what you feel is really value for money and how important it is for you to forge partnerships within Switzerland. Swiss quality simply cannot be sold transparently if certain processes are carried out abroad.

Certified Swiss Quality, from SwissGlobal

SwissGlobal is more than just a translation company in Switzerland. As an ISO-certified language service provider, SwissGlobal offers an extensive range of premium language services.

Find out more about quality assurance in translation at SwissGlobal or contact us for a no-obligation quote for your next translation.