Many newcomers to the translation business find it extremely difficult to find clients and frequently give up translation as a full time job owing to the frustration of working for agencies willing only to pay a pittance for their effort and skill.

Translators and potential translators are no different to others who believe self-employment to be a walk in the park and fail to develop the business skills essential and common to any business.

Being a good at what you do is the first and a key requirement. Having a good attitude is pretty much on a par with this. Having confidence in your knowledge and in dealing with clients and enquiries comes pretty close too, however, this can only come with experience and it is easy to become over-confident and promise too much. Failing a client once will result in a lot of one-off clients which greatly reduces the translator’s income potential. Satisfied customers means repeat customers the existence of which takes away the constant chore of having to find new ones.

Never be afraid to say “No”. When you offer your service to the public and people want to haggle, sometimes that’s OK and feasible for you to negotiate and work for a slightly lower rate. Only you can decide what works for you. But don’t forget that haggling and negotiation have their limits: you run your business, in whatever capacity, and you set your rate of pay, so stick to it rather than being a pushover. When was the last time you dictated the fee you are prepared to pay an accountant or lawyer?

 Getting word out there about your business is another key element to your success and many people are afraid to blow their own trumpets when it comes to this. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback and reviews, and as many entrepreneurs will advise, don’t be afraid to ask for an order. Finding the style that works for you is again something only you can do and choosing the right written style shouldn’t be too difficult for decent translators who, in effect, are competent writers.

Many translators are put off by the low rates offered by agencies and by the lack of clients knocking down their door to place orders but reality is that with any business, it takes time. Give yourself a good two years to set up your business and gain initial clients and reputation. Nothing happens overnight although, potentially, this depends on your marketing budget.

Insufficient income over the first few years is another element that deters potentially talented translators from pursuing a translation career.  Not everyone has a supportive partner or the financial means to see them through until things pick up. Therefore, like so many other businesses, diversification is key, use your language skills to your advantage by promoting your editing and proofreading skills not just the fact that you are a translator. 

You can even try offering writing services since, after all, that is a big part of your role as a translator and it involves research which again is a skill required for translation. However, as with translation, never attempt to write an article on a subject on which you have little understanding: you want positive feedback and return clients, not the opposite.

Language Matters Worldwide Ltd is a UK based translation services company specialising in legal translation services including Sharia law and Islamic finance matters as well as business translation and document translation services for many industries.