If you go to any job exchange and enter “interpreter” in the search field, you will notice an interesting trend: all require work experience. But where does a yesterday’s graduate get it from? Generally speaking, clients don’t really care, they just want quality translations, and nobody wants to waste their time, so don’t be surprised if they only get rejections to your texts.
I went through the same thing as every translator, and now I’m going to uncover some secrets about how to find your first clients, how to behave, and how to build a dialogue with them. So, what options are still promising for beginners?
Freelancer Exchanges.
The advantages: easy registration, direct contact with the client, a wide choice of projects, and a flexible work schedule.
The disadvantages: the high probability of fraud, low stakes, and high competition.
The best thing about exchangers is that you can choose your own day, select projects and set rates. But there is also a minus: you don’t make money, you have no money, or, even worse, you do everything, but the customer is a “scammer”, you don’t pay, and again no money. However, if in the first case there is no money, because you are lazy, in the second case, spent time, effort, and no material satisfaction, negative emotions and anger overwhelm … Great job results, right? But no one is immune to this.
The first few projects taught me: you can only trust yourself, and it is better from time to time to check yourself. All in all, on my naivety I have missed a couple thousand dollars from unscrupulous customers. And with reviews was ahoy situation: they were not at all! So do not repeat my mistakes: always be vigilant, look at the customer’s profile, his reviews, rating, and date of registration. Based on my experience, I have prepared some recommendations to help you avoid unpleasant situations with dishonest clients.
Be sure to check the rating of the customer, paying attention to the date of his registration on the site, and look at the reviews. If a potential customer has only registered, he has no references, and during a conversation he offers to pay for the work after it is received – do not get involved, it is better to pay attention to other projects.
Also be careful when discussing payment options. If this is your first time working with a buyer, it is best to use an exchanger tool such as “Protected Deal” or “Safe Deal”, or offer the option of staggered payments.
- Translation agencies
Advantages: translation is always reviewed by an editor, billing guarantees, stable workload, promotion options.
Disadvantages: low rates, specific material to work with, the lack of opportunities to develop their own client base.
The second option for beginners is a collaboration with a translation company. I used to work with translation agencies too, and for quite a long time, since in freelancing there’s always a chance of not being paid no matter how you check the client. But translation agencies tend to be well-paid, and I wanted a more or less steady income. Now that I have my own client base, I have moved away from translation agencies, but I would strongly recommend them to beginners. Yes, of course, translation agency rates are not the best, but I would recommend considering a job with a translation agency as just another learning curve. After all, your translations will undergo mandatory editing, which is very helpful for beginners, because many documents have specific forms for translation, specific vocabulary, and so on. Accordingly, you will get the very practical knowledge you need for further professional development and growth.
I recommend that you work with translation agencies that have the strictest requirements at first. Why? Here is why: it so happened that I was in a translation agency from the very beginning under very strict conditions: you could not refuse from offered assignments, otherwise you would pay a fine; after the assignment, the editor would rate the translation quality on a 5-point scale. An extra percentage was added to the standard rate for an “A” or “B,” while a “C” had to be paid at the regular rate, and the rate for a “2” or “1.
Of course, there are other ways to get started as a translator, but in this article, I described the two basic options. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages, so decide which one is most acceptable to you. And remember, hard as you learn, easy as you fight. In the beginning it is hard for everyone, but if you work hard, value your reputation and develop, you will find your customers.
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