| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | How do you market yourselves and where do you find the majority of your work? Thread poster: Louise Bamford
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Hi all,
I have been freelance for almost 6 years now and have always had a very steady stream of work from agencies and other clients however recently, I have found myself with more downtime and wondered how do most translators find the majority of their work? Obviously, I attend regular networking groups and post regularly on LinkedIn etc. but I wondered if you have any other, low cost, ideas to increase the number of incoming projects and new clients?
My language p... See more Hi all,
I have been freelance for almost 6 years now and have always had a very steady stream of work from agencies and other clients however recently, I have found myself with more downtime and wondered how do most translators find the majority of their work? Obviously, I attend regular networking groups and post regularly on LinkedIn etc. but I wondered if you have any other, low cost, ideas to increase the number of incoming projects and new clients?
My language pairs of French and German into English and like all translators, I love to work on larger projects so that I can fully immerse myself in the projects however the smaller jobs are also great.
Any ideas would be very much appreciated!
Many Thanks
Louise ▲ Collapse
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lbamford wrote:
Obviously, I attend regular networking groups and post regularly on LinkedIn etc.
Obviously? I don't, and I think many others don't.
like all translators, I love to work on larger projects so that I can fully immerse myself in the projects
All? I don't, and I think many others don't.
But to answer your question... It depends on who you want work from. Different types of client require different approaches. But they are all pretty intuitive and have been repeated endlessly on this forum if you have a rummage.
I, on the other hand, wait for the mountain to come to me, because I'm a diva.
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Most of my new clients have come to me from several sources: Proz (mainly through the directory), TC, ATA, my translation association (APTRAD) and recommendations by regular customers and peers. Regarding Proz there is no magic formula and my experience has been that the main channel to get jobs in ProZ.com are direct searches in the directory and for that you need to be really visible and to get Kudoz points to go up the directory ladder.
Good luck!
| | | | Baran Keki 
Türkiye
Local time: 09:25
Member
English to Turkish
lbamford wrote:
post regularly on LinkedIn etc.
Has posting regularly on LinkedIn brought about any results in 6 years? Any jobs, promise of a collaboration opportunity, anything? I'm just curious. I know only one person here who swears by LinkedIn for finding translation jobs, but that same person also claims to have found clients while walking her dog in the park. So it's pure coincidence and luck. But like I say, I'm very curious about LinkedIn.
I started freelancing 6 years ago as well, in my experience luck has been and is the single most important determinant. I wish you luck.
[Edited at 2023-04-04 10:46 GMT]
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:25
Member (2008)
Italian to English
| I only have two recommendations | Apr 4, 2023 |
1. Make your profile 100% complete and work on it periodically to keep it fresh. I see you have a lot of past experience so for example, you should be able to put a lot of examples of your work in the "Portfolio" section. Think of your profile as your shop window. Many people will just walk past but someone may see something out of the ordinary, and stop to look.
2. Specialise in something that not many other translators specialise in. You have a lot of competitors in your language pair, s... See more 1. Make your profile 100% complete and work on it periodically to keep it fresh. I see you have a lot of past experience so for example, you should be able to put a lot of examples of your work in the "Portfolio" section. Think of your profile as your shop window. Many people will just walk past but someone may see something out of the ordinary, and stop to look.
2. Specialise in something that not many other translators specialise in. You have a lot of competitors in your language pair, so you need to offer something not everyone can.
In my experience, prospective clients look for those things.
By the way - it is generally believed that you should not make your CV freely available. I have downloaded yours and I now know your name, address, phone no. and everything else. It isn't wise to make all this info available throughout the world, to all and sundry. It's better to say something like "CV available on request" and then only make it available as a PDF.
[Edited at 2023-04-04 11:10 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 08:25
French to English
Baran Keki wrote: lbamford wrote:
post regularly on LinkedIn etc. Has posting regularly on LinkedIn brought about any results in 6 years? Any jobs, promise of a collaboration opportunity, anything? I'm just curious. I know only one person here who swears by LinkedIn for finding translation jobs, but that same person also claims to have found clients while walking her dog in the park. So it's pure coincidence and luck. But like I say, I'm very curious about LinkedIn. I started freelancing 6 years ago as well, in my experience luck has been and is the single most important determinant. I wish you luck. [Edited at 2023-04-04 10:46 GMT]
As the youngsters say, I feel seen!
Regarding LinkedIn, I never actually post anything, I've just done all I can to remain in contact with people I've worked with. For example, a PM just sent out a Dear all message to say that she was leaving the agency, so I promptly reached out to her on LinkedIn. If she starts working at another agency, she might well think of me for the kind of job I used to do for her.
When I started freelancing, I sent out messages to all potential clients and several sent me work straight away. These were mostly former colleagues at the agency I used to work at, who are now working at other agencies or set up their own agency, and some former clients too.
There are also random people who have contacted me via LinkedIn for an one-off translation. My profile is out there for all to see, it seems to inspire confidence. One fellow translator working into French asked me to translate her website. I asked her why she chose me, of all translators on LinkedIn, and she said "I dunno, I just felt a good vibe".
I did find a client at the dog park too recently. That was of course just a stroke of luck, but it's not the first time. Thing is, I love my job and talk about it readily, which is how come the client mentioned it to me. People in the arts tend to prefer working with people they know well, so word of mouth also works. It seems like most translators like to do everything online nowadays, but a personal touch can be very useful.
| | | | Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 09:25
Member
English to Turkish
Kay Denney wrote:
As the youngsters say, I feel seen!
I've never heard of this expression, but you must have felt your ears burning.
So you've gone and acquired yet another client in the dog park? Maybe it's time I invested in a puppy instead of relying on luck for business? It would get me out of the house and do me some good... As much as I hate the beasts, it might prove to be a good marketing tool (better than Google ads, by the sounds of it) 
| | | | Louise Bamford
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:25
English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you everyone for your responses, this is really helpful. I'm hoping to branch out to more direct clients so hopefully I can do this successfully over the coming months.
In response to the question re: LinkedIn, yes, I have had some great successes on there but as it isn't a translation specific platform, I guess the successes are more sporadic than on other platforms. As with anything, LinkedIn really can be a matter of you only get something out of it if you put something in... See more Thank you everyone for your responses, this is really helpful. I'm hoping to branch out to more direct clients so hopefully I can do this successfully over the coming months.
In response to the question re: LinkedIn, yes, I have had some great successes on there but as it isn't a translation specific platform, I guess the successes are more sporadic than on other platforms. As with anything, LinkedIn really can be a matter of you only get something out of it if you put something into it.
Following advice on here, I will aim to keep my Proz profile up to date and ensure that it is 100% completed. I also need to use the job search function more effectively and probably more routinely.
Thanks again for the advice given, the fact that translators are so readily willing to offer advice to other translators, is one of the things that I feel makes our profession so special. ▲ Collapse
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| Don't forget your existing clients | Apr 4, 2023 |
lbamford wrote:
Hi all,
I have been freelance for almost 6 years now and have always had a very steady stream of work from agencies and other clients however recently, I have found myself with more downtime and wondered how do most translators find the majority of their work? Obviously, I attend regular networking groups and post regularly on LinkedIn etc. but I wondered if you have any other, low cost, ideas to increase the number of incoming projects and new clients?
My language pairs of French and German into English and like all translators, I love to work on larger projects so that I can fully immerse myself in the projects however the smaller jobs are also great.
Any ideas would be very much appreciated!
Many Thanks
Louise
If you already have clients but are not getting enough work the easiest piece of marketing you can do is to get in the habit of letting them know your availability on a regular basis and generally keeping in touch. Make sure you are the first person your clients think of when they have a job to assign.
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Also, if the CV posted on here is the one you are sending out to potential clients, maybe it is time to give it a makeover. Get it down to 1-2 pages so that readers can take in your best selling points at a glance. 5 pages is way too long.
Good luck - I think a lot of previously busy translators are finding they are having to work harder at marketing themselves at the moment.
| | | | | Don't overdo it though | Apr 4, 2023 |
Rachel Waddington wrote:
If you already have clients but are not getting enough work the easiest piece of marketing you can do is to get in the habit of letting them know your availability on a regular basis and generally keeping in touch. Make sure you are the first person your clients think of when they have a job to assign.
Occasionally maybe, but anything more might be annoying...
IMO the best way to be the first person they think of is by (a) delivering amazing translations and (b) meeting them at some point ideally in person or at least on Teams.
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Baran Keki wrote: So you've gone and acquired yet another client in the dog park? Maybe it's time I invested in a puppy instead of relying on luck for business? It would get me out of the house and do me some good... As much as I hate the beasts, it might prove to be a good marketing tool (better than Google ads, by the sounds of it)
The only time strangers under the age of 65 ever talk to you in the UK is if you have a dog or young child. But while they're perfect for making friends and maybe business contacts too, they smell.
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Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 09:25
Member
English to Turkish
| Sounds like a sound investment | Apr 4, 2023 |
Ice Scream wrote:
The only time strangers under the age of 65 ever talk to you in the UK is if you have a dog or young child. But while they're perfect for making friends and maybe business contacts too, they smell.
It is kind of ironic that as a cat person (like that guy called Mickey Pogg, who trolled this forum recently) I've never invested in any CAT tools (used pirate versions or client licenses), but now I'm considering buying an actual dog for marketing purposes.. Go figure...
Strangers under the age of 65 and young children sounds like an ominous combination in today's PC climate, more so after learning the heartbreaking story of the Milky Bar Kid...
[Edited at 2023-04-04 15:50 GMT]
| | | | Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:25
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Ice Scream wrote:
The only time strangers under the age of 65 ever talk to you in the UK is if you have a dog or young child.
Except for Kilburn, where the people are not rich, but they're friendly.
| | | | Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 09:25
Member
English to Turkish
| Some practical advice | Apr 4, 2023 |
It might be a good idea to send emails to the PMs with whom you worked in the past and say something along the lines of "long time no see, why haven't you been sending any work my way" (that's the gist of it of course, you have to make it sound a lot better than that, and it also helps to have had some sort of banter with them in the past).
I did that today with two agencies with which I was working regularly in the past, but haven't been receiving any work in the last 4 to 6 months.
... See more It might be a good idea to send emails to the PMs with whom you worked in the past and say something along the lines of "long time no see, why haven't you been sending any work my way" (that's the gist of it of course, you have to make it sound a lot better than that, and it also helps to have had some sort of banter with them in the past).
I did that today with two agencies with which I was working regularly in the past, but haven't been receiving any work in the last 4 to 6 months.
One of them replied saying that the business was slow in my pair, and they would keep me in mind in case that changed, and I believed them.
The other one didn't reply, and sort of confirmed my suspicion/hunch that they went with a cheaper translator.
In any case, putting yourself about this way might be more useful than posting/liking cheesy PC posts on LinkedIn. ▲ Collapse
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