Business and contract negotiations take time and effort. They’re not easy even for those dealing in their own language. What about when it comes to foreign languages. You’ll need to make sure you get all the correct phrasing and terms, so need to invest in interpreter services. Here are four reasons to get a language interpreter when negotiating in a foreign language.

Accurate Interpretation

Your skills in a language may be okay, but not good enough for business dealings. Just a slight incorrect phrasing or use of a term could derail the whole discussion. You may even find yourself agreeing to something that you don’t want, or get the wrong point across and have the other side agreeing to something they don’t want.

Accurate interpretation is essential when negotiating. Both sides need to clearly understand what they are agreeing to and what their options are. A language interpreter will break it all down and make sure you and the other side know what is expected.

Avoid Smugness

Trying out your skills in the language is often viewed as being respectful of the other culture. This isn’t the case when it comes to negotiations. It can be viewed as being smug. You’re showing something that the other side can’t offer, and you come across as trying to prove you are better than them.

It is possible that you will alienate your counterpart. When you opt for interpreter services, you show that you’re not skilled in a foreign language, and you’re both starting from the same level. It will help move negotiations forward positively.

Allows for Fluidity

Being fluid in conversation is important for negotiations to be successful. When you speak with consistency, you come across as confident. Having breaks in sentences because you’re trying to think of a word makes you look mediocre and not ready for business.

When you have an interpreter there’s no need to worry about fluidity. You’ll just have to make sure you get your point across in your own language clearly and let the translator do the rest of the work.

Guard Against Power Plays

When dealing in foreign languages, you run the risk of power plays. Your counterpart may have discussions over the phone in their language, knowing that you won’t understand all of it. Teams can have discussions or use bigger words than you know to get you to agree to something else.

Your interpreter will be able to translate everything. Even the smallest phone call will be something they can translate for you, so you know exactly what is going on at all times. You don’t get a shock when you return home and find that you have given away half of your business!

Pay Attention to the Negotiations

When dealing in a foreign language, you may be so concerned with getting wording right that you take your eyes off the actual negotiations. You run the risk of agreeing to something you didn’t mean or losing out on an offer because your mind is elsewhere. This is a big reason to have a language interpreter with you.

You can focus purely on the negotiations. There’s no need to think about what words mean or whether you can translate something into an easier term.  Also even if you are fluent in another language having language interpreter gives you an opportunity to hear the same thing twice and gives you time to prepare your answer during negotiations.

It’s time to think about interpretation services for your business negotiations. They will help you focus solely on the negotiations at hand and ensure accurate interpretation at all times.