By Mery Molenaar
CTA President
May 25, 2018
It’s 6:30 am on May 15, a sunny and crisp Colorado spring morning, and I am on my way to the Colorado Convention Center in Denver to attend the 45th World Trade Day. This is the third year in a row that the Colorado Interpreters & Translators Association sponsors the event with a lunch table in the Expo hall.
From the moment I step into the Convention Center, I instantly feel the buzz of global activity, from the multiple languages spoken to the many globally oriented companies and organizations located in the Expo hall. Martina, Kate and Yvonne have already set up the CTA table and I happily join them for breakfast. Ten CTA members will be participating today in a full day of meaningful discussions, connections, networking, learning, and—most importantly—promoting CTA and the translation industry.
World Trade Day is the premier business conference in the Rocky Mountain Region. This year’s summit features updates on GDPR, NAFTA and international trade agreements, plus sessions on how global commerce impacts our state and how Colorado businesses can succeed globally. I am looking forward to a day of mingling and connecting with a diverse internationally oriented community of interesting individuals and organizations.
Why does CTA participate at World Trade Day 2018?
CTA’s slogan is “Helping businesses succeed internationally” and succeeding internationally means a need for translators and interpreters. Our main goal today at World Trade Day is to introduce businesses, organizations and individuals to the Colorado Interpreters & Translators Association and improve our visibility by handing out brochures and directing people to our online directory to find local freelance translators, interpreters, and translation agencies.
True, English is the lingua franca of the business world and the official language of most international organizations. But for individual companies, neglecting other languages means missing out on potential customers. In today’s world, most companies realize the advantages and the power of the internet. Many companies nowadays outsource translating their products and services to agencies and freelance translators, rather than doing it in-house, and that means: business for us!
By sponsoring a table at World Trade 2018, we are in a unique position to reach out and emphasize the value of using professional translators and interpreters as well as the added value of working with someone local. We connect with representatives from companies, both small and large, government and non-profit sectors, economic development organizations, local universities, as well as entrepreneurs and interested individuals.
How do individual translators and interpreters benefit?
At the end of the day, did our efforts create any business for our local translators and interpreters? That will be hard to track. But the least we have achieved today is a greater awareness and visibility of our local association and the language industry in general. Building on our mission of helping businesses to succeed internationally, I believe we have succeeded in conveying the message that we as professional translators are there to help companies and organizations expand their business in a foreign environment and look good internationally.
Please do let us know if you have received business as a result of our efforts.
World Trade Center Denver is building a new campus, scheduled to open in 2020. We invite you to visit www.wtcden.com to stay up to date on the progress of this marvelous project.
