Small Translation Projects or Large Translation Projects?

Some translators prefer to work on small projects, while others prefer larger ones.

Some translators prefer to work on small projects, while others prefer larger ones. Of course, there are issues associated with different project lengths, such as job satisfaction, income potential, and quality control.

Income Potential

When it comes to income potential, it’s up to you personally whether you decide to offer a discount due to the volume of the translation project; but, if you’re always pretty busy with your translation work then it’s not necessary to offer discounts. And perhaps that’s the greatest advantage of working on a large project; that you’re guaranteed to earn a large amount of money in one hit, rather than earning different, smaller amounts for smaller projects. With large projects, you also have some economies of scale; such as one client, one invoice, one glossary for the project, and so on. However, it seems that when the word count is high, there’s also a greater chance that your client will suffer from sticker shock when they discover the total price of the translation. It doesn’t seem to matter what the per-word rate is; for larger projects the final figure seems to shock some clients. For that reason, it’s sometimes easier to work on short documents and charge higher rates, than to work on larger documents and be forced to deal with clients’ reactions to the amount being invoiced.

Job Satisfaction

There’s nothing more exciting than landing a huge project on a topic that’s really interesting. You wake up in the morning knowing what your day’s agenda is and you’ll probably find there’s a little spring in your step because life looks pretty good. On the other hand, however, if you land a big project and things don’t go well, your days can be excruciatingly painful. Your project won’t be over in a day or two, or even a week or two, and you have to face this manual, or book, or another project that you wish you’d never heard of for the next month! So the job satisfaction aspect of winning a big contract could go either way.

Quality Control

It’s not always easy to manage quality control on large projects. Regardless of how great your memory is for terms, if you’re using CAT tools and you’ve been working on a project for a few weeks, you’re probably going to get that feeling of ‘haven’t I read this before’, and it can be difficult to locate the section of text you’re thinking about. And when it comes to abbreviations, like (say) PO or Purchase Order, which way did you decide to go? Did you decide on abbreviations or was that just something you were thinking about?

So, large translation projects can be really great if they’re interesting, they generate a decent invoice, and they’re not so long that you get bored and lose the enjoyment of your work.

Transitioning from Employed to Self-Employed - Part 2

Doubt is a close relative of fear, and it can certainly be your enemy when it comes to your successes as a freelance translator.

Doubt

Doubt is a close relative of fear, and it can certainly be your enemy when it comes to your successes as a freelance translator. You have to learn to control your emotions and this won’t be easy if you start doubting your ability to find clients who pay on time, finding translation projects that suit your expertise, and your ability to cope with a translation workload. Fear and doubt will work against you, so to counteract these negative feelings simply start counting your blessings. It really is that easy! You wouldn’t have started on the path to self-employment if you weren’t sure that you have great translation skills. If doubt is starting to take over, make a list of your skills and keep focusing on this list. You know you can handle whatever comes your way, but perhaps at this point in time, you’re lacking confidence. This will change once you start marketing yourself and your skills and when you attract your first translation clients.

The Desire for Financial Success – Now!

Obviously, you’ve decided to become a freelance translator because you want to become financially independent, but aiming too high could cause you to stumble. If you aim too high you may not win the projects you quote on, but aiming too low can result in working long hours on low-paying projects, forcing you to take on more and more work. Ultimately, this will lead to a lack of quality in your completed translations. Try not to doubt your abilities, but by the same token you need to be realistic when stating your abilities. If you’re a newbie when it comes to translation, don’t go after projects that are beyond your skill levels: you may have the confidence, but do you have the ability? Don’t aim too high at this point, because if you do you could well miss opportunities that are perfect for you. Be clear about your special skills and match them to translation projects being offered to you.

You Can Have It All!

The above three emotions can be the stumbling blocks to your freelance translation career, but if you can master these then you’re well and truly on your way to a successful career. Of course, there will be many more challenges to come, but looking fear in the face, not doubting yourself and your abilities, and resisting the temptation to aim too high, will set you on the path to success as a freelance translator.

Transitioning from Employed to Self-Employed - Part 1

Freelance translators know only too well that some people consider their position as freelancers an inferior position when compared to full-time employment.

Freelance translators know only too well that some people consider their position as freelancers an inferior position when compared to full-time employment. Any professional freelance translator who previously held down a regular job and who’s now achieved success in the freelance world will tell you that there’s certainly nothing ‘inferior’ about freelancing. Moving from being employed to working for yourself is not for the faint of heart, but for those brave enough to face an unknown frontier head-on, the change to self-employment can be an extremely rewarding career, both financially and personally. Success as a freelancer instills an enormous sense of pride and achievement for translators who’ve made it on their own.

Freelancing Is Not a Walk in the Park!

However, for employed translators considering making the move to self-employment, be assured that achieving success as a professional freelance translator is not a walk in the park. There are so many unknowns ahead, such as stiff competition, the unpredictability of translation projects, self-marketing, how to attract clients, time management, and the question of time off: will you ever be able to take a vacation? It’s natural to wonder if you’ll be at the mercy of your clients, assuming you ever get any, and whether anyone will appreciate your expertise as a translator. So, you can see that starting out as a freelance translator can be quite stressful. The encouraging news for you is that you’re not alone – you’re not the first person to transition from employment to self-employment, and you certainly won’t be the last. Many people have been in the same situation you’re in now, successfully creating a career for themselves as a freelance translator. And it’s to these people we look for advice on the pitfalls to avoid and the positive steps we need to take in order to achieve our goals.

For some people this step into the freelance world is one of courage, while for others it’s a step they’re taking due to circumstances, but either way, if your goal is to become a successful freelance translator, we hope the following tips may help you make a smooth transition into the world of self-employment. We’re going to look at this from an emotional perspective because we know that it’s our emotions that get in the way of our ultimate success; and so if that’s true, then it must also be our emotions that help us succeed.

Fear

Walking away from the safety and security of being a full-time employee can be absolutely terrifying; the fear of not having a regular paycheck is probably the greatest challenge a new translation professional will face unless of course, you have saved enough money to get you through this start-up phase. So, in order to move on, you have to gain control of your fear, and in order to do this, you need to ensure that your expectations are not set too high. The way to take control of your fear is to have a solid plan and put it into practice, because the more effort you put into planning, the more your emotions can be controlled.

Translators: Using Dictionaries to Improve the Quality of Your Work

Translators just starting out in the industry will soon discover that dictionaries can be your best friend.

Translators just starting out in the industry will soon discover that dictionaries can be your best friend: they’re a way of ensuring that you produce an accurate and high-quality translation. In the past, translators were required to use hardcopy dictionaries and glossaries, but today it’s all available online so the time involved in research has been greatly reduced. However, it seems that some translators are not using the resources available to them – well it certainly looks that way when we see some of the inaccurate and poor quality translations produced by some translators.

Below we’ve listed our advice for translators on how to ensure that you’re using the appropriate word or expression –

Check, Then Check Again!

In most cases, experienced translators are generally able to guess the meaning of a word when it’s used in a certain context, but even in this case our advice as that you still check with a dictionary. And if there’s any doubt in your mind at all, then you need to check again, then check again using a different dictionary. We know that words can have many different meanings and that’s why it’s important that translators choose the most suitable meaning for that particular text.

Use Glossaries and Specialized Dictionaries

If you’re a translator who works on specialized translations, perhaps in the field of IT, law, or medicine, it stands to reason that you must have easy access to glossaries and specialized dictionaries. Obviously, you need access to these resources in order to produce a high-quality translation, but in specialized fields such as (say) medicine, an inaccurate translation could prove fatal: a diagnosis could be mistranslated, the wrong dosage or treatment could be administered, and numerous other serious or fatal errors could occur.

Cross-Referencing Is Important for Accuracy

Don’t be limited to using just one kind of dictionary; for example, Spanish to English. Use also Spanish to Spanish and English to English dictionaries so you can cross-reference the definitions of expressions or words you’re trying to translate. And again, check the meaning in a glossary or dictionary, if necessary.

Ask for Help!

Don’t ever be afraid to ask for advice. If you’re having doubts about a certain translation, or aspects of a translation, don’t hesitate to ask your peers for advice. There are forums and websites dedicated to professional translators and you’ll find that, not only are translators happy to offer advice to other translators, they’ll also be able to answer any questions you may have. Although the translation industry is growing, it’s been our experience that professional translators are always happy to assist their colleagues, in particular people just starting out in the industry. So, use these forms to your advantage, because there is so much to learn and there are many professionals out there willing to help.

Job Hunting Tips for New Translators - Part 1

Spend as much time as possible marketing yourself to as many direct clients and translation agencies as you can find.

This post is dedicated to helping new translators get their business off the ground, because we know first-hand just how overwhelming getting started can be. We hope that the following advice will perhaps reduce stress and help you grow your translation business.

Start Marketing!

Spend as much time as possible marketing yourself to as many direct clients and translation agencies as you can find. Understand that these businesses don’t know you’re available if they don’t know you exist. There’s no right or wrong number here, but the right number would be when you’ve completely exhausted your list of contacts! What is it about you and your translation skills that makes you stand out from other translators? This information is what you need to be marketing and highlighting to potential clients. And of course, with translation, you never stop marketing yourself – ever!

Become Active at Local, National and International Levels

You have to put yourself out there, so aim to join as many associations as you can. Join your local Translator’s Association and become active in the organization; get to know both the agencies and the freelance translators. In addition, attend some of the smaller regional conferences that specialize in fields that you either work in or that you want to work in. Use social media sites like Twitter and LinkedIn, and keep these sites updated on a regular basis. Become active on translation listservs, or create a blog on your website. You do have a website, right? Make sure your website is easy to find, and that the information contained on your website is up-to-date. Unless you’re an absolute newcomer to the translation you may consider writing articles for your local translation newsletters and, perhaps even if you are new to translating, an article in these newsletters would still be appropriate (maybe explaining the trials and tribulations of entering the industry, and/or asking for advice).

Read as Many Articles and Books as You Can

Have you read Judy and Dagmar Jenner’s book titled The Entrepreneurial Linguist, or Corrine McKay’s book titled How to Succeed as a Freelance Translator? There’s a lot of very valuable advice for both new and experienced translators in both these publications; and, of course, there are hundreds (perhaps thousands) of posts and articles online on various different sites giving advice and answering other translators’ questions.

Upgrade to a Full Version of Your CAT Tool

If you’re using a trial version of a CAT tool, then our advice is that you upgrade to the full version. There are some really great tools out there like OmegaT and Fluency that don’t cost a lot – in fact, OmegaT is free. Then, once you’re earning more you might want to consider purchasing one of the more expensive translation tools if you believe it’s necessary. Check out sites like Proz.com because they sometimes offer group buys which make certain software, such as a MemoQ, more affordable to translators.

Be Confident in the Price You’re Charging

It’s important that you stay strong on your per-word rate. It can be quite stressful advising current clients that you’ve decided to raise your rates because you simply have no guarantee that they’ll stay with you; but if you’ve been providing your customers high-quality translations and great customer service, then you must assume that they’ll accept your new rate.

How SEO Campaigns Can Bring Success to Your Website – Part III

In the final part of this 3 part article series, we round up our discussion of SEO and how to make it best work for your small business or freelance website.

Selecting Keywords by Commercial Intent

Not only should you organize keywords according to relevancy and specifically, you should make the additional effort to research which words lend themselves to commercial intent. Ideally you’ll be looking for words that relate to the end steps of the consumer buying process and indicate those on the edge of conversion.

This is important as such keywords are generally more effective at creating the ideal conditions for success. To do this you’ll want to consider specific categories such as:

• Products: Keywords that may belong to this category can include, ‘brand names,’ ‘affordable,’ ‘best,’ ‘cheapest,’ ‘comparison,’ ‘review’ and ‘premium’ for example.
• By Now: These keywords are used to communicate a certain level of immediacy and may include, ‘buy,’ ‘discount,’ ‘deals,’ ‘coupon’ and ‘free shipping’ amongst others.

By targeting these high commercial intent keywords, your site’s click-through rates can improve dramatically and will allow you to focus more time on what really matters – your conversion rates.

Creating a Plan for Effective Search Campaign Implementation

Once you’ve established a keyword hierarchy within your website you can then put that into action. Ensure that all your headings, article titles, URLs and meta-descriptions (including images) follow the vertical relevancy you’ve set out.

In this way you can ensure that your websites attract significant volumes of traffic and convert potential customers once they arrive. Remember to track this kind of information as you’ll need it when selling your portfolio on online marketplaces such as Flippa or others.

Implementing Pay-Per-Click Keyword Campaigns

Once you’ve created the conditions for the perfect revenue generating portfolio and have a marketing budget available, you’ll be able to take full advantage of what SEO campaigns have to offer.

Understanding that effective keyword grouping strategies are at the crux of your campaigns is essential – the more accurate you are the less will come out of your budget. Creating search campaigns is not an exact science however so don’t be discouraged if your efforts involve a lot of trial and error initially.

Maintaining Your Search Campaign Budget

Obviously everything you do with regards to your pay-per-click search campaigns will impact your bottom line and as such you should be aiming for efficiency above all else.

If your initiatives aren’t working the way you’d envisioned and you know your checkout process is fluid, you will have to go back to the research stage at the beginning of this article. Though hopefully you will have found this information relevant and now have a clearer picture moving forward.  

How SEO Campaigns Can Bring Success to Your Website – Part II

In part 2 of this 3 part article series, we continue to provide actionable tips for freelancers and small business owners to make SEO work for them.

The Anatomy of Effective Content Marketing

Keywords don’t capture everyone’s attention as your market will be comprised of many specific types of customers and they will each navigate to your websites in different ways.

The point of implementing effective keyword strategies is to improve your site traffic and conversion rates so that profitability enters the equation and generates interest among your potential buyers at auction.

With that in mind, you’ll need to be responsive and reactionary to the phrases your customers are searching and be aware of the fact that this is an ongoing process.

Understanding Your Target Audience

This comes down to recognizing the strengths of each of the websites within your portfolio and their function in appealing to your target audience. Identify which segments of your customer base account for the largest percentage of sales.

For example, if 20 percent of your target market is comprised of customers seeking high-end, premium quality products or services that are price and 35 percent simply wanted a mid-range or inexpensive option, which would be the better group of consumers to target?

The correct answer is both.

Keyword grouping strategies allow you to target these groups individually and across multiple campaigns in a co-ordinated way. As such, you will need to adjust your search campaigns either more specifically or generally depending upon who you’re targeting at any given point in time.

Understanding the Terminology of Search Campaigns

If you’re unfamiliar with using Google AdWords or other PPC platforms the process is generally straightforward. Defining the terminology however can be a different matter. Before reading further it is highly recommended that you familiarize yourself with the following:

• Campaign Types: determine which networks your campaigns will officially run across. Fortunately, the settings can be restricted for niche audiences or broadened to provide the widest reach possible if you so choose. 
• Ad groups: relate to the parameters of each of your search campaigns and includes your keyword groups, any accompanying budgets and any details regarding targeting in relation to your objective.
• Quality Scores: are measurements from Google based on the relevancy of your ad’s headline, description, keywords and destination URLs to your intended customers. A high quality score can reduce the cost of certain search campaigns.

Regardless of whether you’re just starting out or have been buying and selling websites for an extended period of time, you’ll need to implement such search campaigns on a case by case basis and create multiple campaigns to run over the same timeframe for consistency. 

The Role of Hierarchy in Keyword Search Terms

When making your keyword lists, make sure there will always be ways you can prioritize the importance of each term or phrase in relation to others within the group to establish a hierarchy.

As different topics gain traction, you can insert yourself into conversations by ‘newsjacking’ a story and piggy-backing off of the search campaigns of other, external sources. Internally, your content marketing efforts should incorporate keywords that link to other landing and product pages to maximize the cohesiveness of your website.