Acquisition of direct clients Thread poster: Bracha de Man
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I would be interested in getting tips and hearing about experiences of freelancers about acquiring direct clients (not agencies). I translate mainly for agencies and would like to acquire direct clients. I have a good website, but I\'m flooded with CVs of other freelancers, rather than companies. I also wonder if residency outside of Europe deters companies from turning to me directly.
Thanks for any tips,
Bracha
[addsig]
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Ruth Rosenthal (X)
Israel
Local time: 05:57
English to Dutch
+ ...
| It is not easy | Feb 10, 2003 |
Hi Bracha,
You are right to want to find direct customers and you are right that it is difficult, especially if you look for them in the Netherlands and you live abroad.
You are right to want to find them, because it pays much better to work for a direct customer than for a translation agency.
It is difficult, because the customer usually prefers an agency. An agency offers him the advantage of being able to handle all his translation work at a... See more Hi Bracha,
You are right to want to find direct customers and you are right that it is difficult, especially if you look for them in the Netherlands and you live abroad.
You are right to want to find them, because it pays much better to work for a direct customer than for a translation agency.
It is difficult, because the customer usually prefers an agency. An agency offers him the advantage of being able to handle all his translation work at all times. A direct translator will probably only work in one or two language combinations, may sometimes not be available, may be ill or on a holiday. Why should a customer want to bother with that? The only advantage for him in working with a direct tranlator lies in the price. It will probably be cheaper for him than working through an agency.
In my experience, and I am in the same situation as you, you need help from friends or family and a lot of luck. Moreover, you will have to be very careful never to refuse an assignment, for that would emphasize the disadvantage of working with you as a solo translator.
I wish you success,
Ruth Rosenthal ▲ Collapse
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Acquisition of direct clients
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