When you’re in the start-up phase of a freelance translation business, you must give it time.

The Start-Up Phase

When you’re in the start-up phase of a freelance translation business, you must give it time. You’re not going to achieve success overnight, so if you’re not prepared to allow things to take their natural course, it may be time to choose another business. Many translators complain that it takes a long time to develop a solid client base, and it’s true – it does! If you’re in this start-up phase and already feeling disheartened, you need to understand that there will be many times you’ll wonder if you’ve made a mistake and that maybe you should have taken a full-time job.

Trust your instincts, and trust in your translation abilities; at the same time understanding that the process of creating and building your freelance business is never going to be an overnight job. As time passes, you’ll begin to see that you’re making more and more money and that you’re starting to gain better-paying clients; then, before you know it, you’ll realize that your freelance translation business is actually a success. But this can take anywhere up to 3 years until you’re working full-time translating and making good money.

If you happen to have an outside income source whilst building your business, that would be the perfect combination for getting your business off the ground. And, as the years pass, you will realize that sticking with your freelance translation business was a very good choice because you’ll soon discover that, if you worked at an in-house job, you wouldn’t be able to replace your freelance income. And what about the hours you work, and the flexibility? Freelance translation is a brilliant career, but the mistake that newbies make is that they expect way too much, way too soon! So, our advice to you is that if you need to make good money right now, then you need to look for another job.

There’s a Lot of Highly Paid Translation Work Out There!

It’s true! There’s a lot of highly paid work available in our industry, but most people don’t take the time to look for it. For some reason, they wait for the work to find them, and in the meantime they keep complaining about the lack of work.

It’s certainly true that there’s also a lot of low-paying work in our industry, but that should not be taken as a reflection of your abilities. If you are continuously accepting low-paying work, it means you’re not marketing yourself or your skills properly. There are so many really good direct clients out there who are looking to pay high rates for top-quality translators, but you must remember that those same clients are extremely busy with their own businesses and don’t have the time to search the web looking for you. This means they have no idea that you even exist!

Seriously, you must put yourself out there and go looking for these clients: don’t wait for them to find you. Go to their industry conferences, offer to write articles for their industry newsletters, send them postcards, or give webinars for them. Anything you do is better than doing nothing! You can’t be shy when it comes to advertising your own business, which basically means advertising yourself. Put your shyness away and be proud of the road you’re taking. Look to your financial future, and start marketing yourself to the people who could really use your translation skills.