ATC Guide to Building New Commercial Collaborations

Over recent years, the ATC has worked to maximise the reach of our voice as the representative organisation for the UK Language Services Sector.

One major thrust of that work has been to build upon the experience of our members in building Commercial Collaborations with business organisations and client-side trade associations, allowing us to advise their members on how to use language capabilities in doing better business.

Very often, ATC members already have the right intentions and first steps in mind, but we know you could benefit from ideas on how to strategically approach Commercial Collaborations in the longer term. This ATC Member Guide to Building New Commercial Collaborations is designed to help you adapt the model used by our Commercial & Collaborations Lead in building relationships with client-side entities.

You should be able to fit this outline to your own fields of expertise and specialisation to grow your influence as an authority on the best use of language capability by potential clients whatever their needs and budgetary requirements. Use this guide as a best practice template on delivering your message on ‘the value of languages for business’ in collaboration with your local business organisation, or client-side trade, or professional association.

Developed on the basis of the ATC Networking event “From Networks to Net Worth – Building Business Through Commercial Collaborations” in Manchester in April 2025, this guide includes a simple step-by-step template and messaging you can replicate with your local and regional business entities, associations, and organisations.

It also outlines some of our successful commercial collaborations in the form of inspirational case studies to illustrate what is possible. These collaborations can help boost your client base, revenue and credibility. By putting yourself and your company ‘out there’ you can make the case for your position as a ‘go to partner of choice’ for the businesses in the sector or sectors you serve.

Ready to get started? You can access the guide on the Commercial Collaboration Guide page in the Membership Area.