| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | On "getting established" (having 6 years of experience!) Thread poster: Sebastian Witte
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Sebastian Witte 
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
This might not be the most original post ever written, but I have simply exhausted my resources on how to make a living off of this job.
- permanent positions for translators/proofreaders who are native in German are hard to find (perhaps unless you're willing to move to another country which is not an option) and according to my experience even harder to win
- as to getting (agency) freelance jobs, I have IMO observed the following pieces of advice:
+ include a... See more This might not be the most original post ever written, but I have simply exhausted my resources on how to make a living off of this job.
- permanent positions for translators/proofreaders who are native in German are hard to find (perhaps unless you're willing to move to another country which is not an option) and according to my experience even harder to win
- as to getting (agency) freelance jobs, I have IMO observed the following pieces of advice:
+ include a photo with your profile to create trust
+ specialize, gather expertise in these fields and "talk about it" (advertise it)
+ gain KudoZ points (I have some 290) in your specialist areas as a sign of in-depth knowledge
+ get your credentials verified, once again to create trust
+ become a member of professional associations and start networking with colleagues on a personal basis (for example, by attending monthly local linguist meetings/Stammtische)
+ become a ProZ.com Certified Pro to stand out from the crowd
+ include résumés in any of your working languages to facilitate translator selection
+ 3 out of 4 of these I shortened substantially due to outsourcers complaining about them being too long
+ some 40 forum posts written to gain visibility: I can see almost anyone coming from the forums and heading to my profile is a freelancer - not an outsourcer
+ add relevant sample translations: they are from my specialist fields and in my 2 main language pairs
+ gather feedback to convince prospects: I started pretty late to collect these kinds of comments (in 2008), but have gotten a number of WWAs, Blue Board replies and also, sadly, only one (positive) Project History comment ever since
+ keep in mind most outsourcers don't review résumés so your profile text needs to catch their attention: maybe you can comment on this aspect in detail, how to go about it
+ pay attention to spelling and also punctuation as potential clients are picky
+ highlight key terms in profile text (about me section) so they don't need to read everything that's on there, saving them some of their PRECIOUS time
+ quote on many posted jobs in a skilled manner to establish business contacts, even if you might not win that particular job - this has not helped much although there have been a couple jobs resulting from it
+ put a lot of effort into the design of and texts on your own website (well, the design had to be cost-efficient, but I think the texts on there could really be worse ...)
- the acceptance ratio of paper-based applications with direct clients is somewhere around 1%, this I heard from two different sources, which is why I'm not sure I have the patience to design and dispatch 'em. I think emails to direct clients will be instantly deleted.
Feedback, anyone?
The same would be much appreciated and desperately needed in the case of my new website, www.textpartner.biz , which sadly doesn't show up on the first 4 or 5 pages of Google hits.
Sebastian
[Edited at 2010-02-19 22:12 GMT]
[Edited at 2010-02-19 22:20 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Cedomir Pusica
Serbia
Local time: 06:40
Member (2009)
English to Serbian
+ ...
So, I just checked your website. What I find really inadequate is the font you're using. It makes it really really difficult to go through contents. Actually, I would have given up reading altogether if I found your website through google. Maybe that is your style, as you advertize yourself as "text partner", thus using the same font as would appear in wordpad. I believe this image is not good for business.
Second, I believe that the website is too personalized. Not that you should ... See more So, I just checked your website. What I find really inadequate is the font you're using. It makes it really really difficult to go through contents. Actually, I would have given up reading altogether if I found your website through google. Maybe that is your style, as you advertize yourself as "text partner", thus using the same font as would appear in wordpad. I believe this image is not good for business.
Second, I believe that the website is too personalized. Not that you should not include a photo of you or something to give it a personal touch, but there's too much of your private life there. You may be a great translator - I believe you are, but you need to do something about the way you present yourself on your own website.
To generate more traffic to your website there are so many pieces of advice given by google itself. You should really take a lot of time reading those. I am also trying to understand this aspect more, but generally - the more precise you are, the more possibility of attracting visitors and appearing on the 1st page of google search you have. Instead of saying - german translator, say: german to english financial text, for example. Think as a buyer. What would you put in a search engine if you wanted to find the service you're looking for?
Landing jobs is really hard, and there is no magic formula that works. Generally, the more active you are, the more possibilities you have. No guarantees.
Good luck! ▲ Collapse
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Hello Sebastian,
It is not easy to build any business and a translation business is no different. This is why, I believe, the successful entrepreneur deserves great respect.
In any case, six years is not very long and you are quite young, at least you look quite young in your photo.
My suggestion would be to very simply diversify your professional offerings. If you have real expertise in business, finance, legal issues, etc, then surely you should be able t... See more Hello Sebastian,
It is not easy to build any business and a translation business is no different. This is why, I believe, the successful entrepreneur deserves great respect.
In any case, six years is not very long and you are quite young, at least you look quite young in your photo.
My suggestion would be to very simply diversify your professional offerings. If you have real expertise in business, finance, legal issues, etc, then surely you should be able to also take on freelance writing, market research work, interpreting,... I think you are finding what most business people learn eventually, that no single product or service will ever be enough.
If you don't want to venture into some of the things I mentioned, I would perhaps add into your portfolio such things as translations for the humanitarian sector and anything related to your non-professional areas of interest. I am sure that you have other interests or hobbies that you have a certain expertise in, yet perhaps you have not considered these as having any potential. They do.
One last thing, on your website, you describe your command of languages as "brilliant". Be that as it may, I would avoid such terms as they can be off-putting to some people.
[Edited at 2010-02-19 23:31 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Life is like a game of chess | Feb 19, 2010 |
Cedomir Pusica wrote:
Second, I believe that the website is too personalized. Not that you should not include a photo of you or something to give it a personal touch, but there's too much of your private life there.
I would have believed this picture of me playing chess on my site to appear attractive to potential clients, to create trust and to make me seem smart, but if you think it will have a negative effect, really making me come across "unprofessional" ...
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| Hang in there | Feb 19, 2010 |
Hi Sebastian,
First of all thank you for being so honest in your post. I think you will find that there are a lot of people in the same boat. People seem to be either inundated with work or not have enough. The very nature of freelancing is so unsettling at times.
You can only continue to refine/review what you're already doing and hang in there.
This is not particularly helpful, but sometimes opportunities do come from previous work that was done at a sli... See more Hi Sebastian,
First of all thank you for being so honest in your post. I think you will find that there are a lot of people in the same boat. People seem to be either inundated with work or not have enough. The very nature of freelancing is so unsettling at times.
You can only continue to refine/review what you're already doing and hang in there.
This is not particularly helpful, but sometimes opportunities do come from previous work that was done at a slightly reduced rate or even as voluntary work. At a local (Australian) translators' meeting we were told once that it was better to work for nothing (very) occasionally than for little pay! This ensures that you're perceived as a professional that chooses to make his/her services available, rather than undervaluing yourself.
In regards to too much personal info, I would second what the previous poster has said.
I have read a blog post recently about how CVs have to be different depending on the country you're in and that our level of being comfortable with giving out personal information varies as well. For instance, during an interview in Europe you might be asked some question in regards to your personal situation (marital status, children etc), that people in the US would consider an invasion of their privacy and not relevant to their application.
If you wanted to apply this fact to your website, you might want to gather anything personal (and all but one photo for instance) and put it in one place at the end, so it doesn't interfere with your professional credentials and info.
I suppose we could all learn more about search engine optimisation and as Cedomir says, google might be a good place to start to find out some hints.
I'm sorry this is not more helpful. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Karen Tkaczyk
United States
Local time: 22:40
French to English
+ ...
| Specialization and responsiveness | Feb 20, 2010 |
Hi,
Here are two things I think help: they certainly helped me.
Are you specialized? You don't mention the subjects you work in. The translators I know who are always overloaded are frequently specialized.
I get a lot of compliments from PM's on my responsiveness. Many freelancers appear not to reply to email very quickly. If you are easy to work with, the chances are good that the PM will want to contact you again.
Hope things pick up for you!
Karen
| | | | Speranza
Local time: 06:40
Spanish to Russian
+ ...
| Look for clients, not employers | Feb 20, 2010 |
Your entire list is essentially an extended version of "be active on ProZ" and "have a website." There is an Internet beyond ProZ and an offline world beyond the Internet.
Approach the task as a small business looking for clients, not as a jobless guy looking to get hired by the almighty agencies. Instead of limiting yourself to these forums, google "small business marketing" and you'... See more Your entire list is essentially an extended version of "be active on ProZ" and "have a website." There is an Internet beyond ProZ and an offline world beyond the Internet.
Approach the task as a small business looking for clients, not as a jobless guy looking to get hired by the almighty agencies. Instead of limiting yourself to these forums, google "small business marketing" and you'll get more information than you'll ever need. Here is a good place to start, but you'll easily find entire websites dedicated to the topic.
As to networking, hanging out with fellow translators is great because it's fun and sometimes educational, not because it will bring you many jobs. For marketing purposes, you need to be where your clients are and be visible to your target audience. Attend their events, post on their forums... You get the idea.
Posting a pic of yourself is not marketing. KudoZ points help nobody but the guys who will then sell the work you've done for them free of charge. (Or maybe I am wrong. Maybe the answerers are in huge demand, but they simply choose to sacrifice paying jobs for the pleasure of being available at a second's notice to work for free. Because they are charitable like that.) I don't have the link at hand, but research shows that affiliation with professional associations doesn't help attract clients either.
You need to stand out of the crowd, and the big red P next to your name is not the way to go: there is a crowd just like that. (I got an invitation to join the party before the official launch, and already at that point there were way more people than you could easily remember.) You need a unique selling proposition for a specific target audience and ingenious ways of getting in front of your prospects' eyes.
People are overloaded with information these days. You need to get creative to grasp their attention. What have we got here? A translator who can fly and sing like a bird and has his translations delivered to clients by a unicorn? I want to know more. A qualified, experienced, excellent and brilliant translator? Oh. That guy is the best. Just like every single other LSP around.
In brief, think more broadly. Marketing your business is not all about getting noticed on ProZ. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Professional pictures | Feb 20, 2010 |
Hi Sebastian,
I would say, your pics are very nice, but not very professional. I would prefer a portrait in front of a neutral background, in a formal outfit (suit & tie).
Try to structure your information on the website and to highlight the most important things (e.g. fields of specialisation).
Google ranking: I know the key words you enter in the header line of your html text are very important.
As Nadejda already wrote, try to approach direc... See more Hi Sebastian,
I would say, your pics are very nice, but not very professional. I would prefer a portrait in front of a neutral background, in a formal outfit (suit & tie).
Try to structure your information on the website and to highlight the most important things (e.g. fields of specialisation).
Google ranking: I know the key words you enter in the header line of your html text are very important.
As Nadejda already wrote, try to approach direct clients on- and offline in your fields of specialisation (professional social networks e.g. Xing or LinkedIn, trade fairs -> there are catalogues with all companies participating, company events, etc.).
Good luck!
Sophie ▲ Collapse
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It looks like the other 12-year-olds from your chess club will arrive any minute now for a tournament in your grandmother's living room. The photo on the main page is also not ideal. Why do you call them Mini-AGBs? It sounds like this is just an excerpt then, and you have a more complete list somewhere else? I'm personally not fond of the .biz exte... See more It looks like the other 12-year-olds from your chess club will arrive any minute now for a tournament in your grandmother's living room. The photo on the main page is also not ideal. Why do you call them Mini-AGBs? It sounds like this is just an excerpt then, and you have a more complete list somewhere else? I'm personally not fond of the .biz extension, read here for some reasons: http://www.seobook.com/archives/002286.shtml I'd stick to translating into your native language, otherwise it sort of looks like you're trying to "do it all", and I'd like to see what languages you translate from on the very first page of your website, not have to dig around for that info.
Sebastian Witte wrote:
I would have believed this picture of me playing chess on my site to appear attractive to potential clients, to create trust and to make me seem smart, but if you think it will have a negative effect, really making me come across "unprofessional" ... ▲ Collapse
| | | | Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | What I forgot what I also paid attention to | Feb 20, 2010 |
+ send a cover letter and résumé to a lot of agencies: 380 applications have been emailed to outsourcers, all of which had a flawless or near-flawless payment record - to nearly no avail
+ be reachable: there were times when I got emails within as little as 5 minutes from them hitting my account despite not being in the office, and I let agencies know. I'm not sure this should really be part of one's marketing material, even though a few outsourcers have given me props in this regard, fo... See more + send a cover letter and résumé to a lot of agencies: 380 applications have been emailed to outsourcers, all of which had a flawless or near-flawless payment record - to nearly no avail
+ be reachable: there were times when I got emails within as little as 5 minutes from them hitting my account despite not being in the office, and I let agencies know. I'm not sure this should really be part of one's marketing material, even though a few outsourcers have given me props in this regard, for replying quickly, that is. And then there's Outlook or Thunderbird, which I, like most translators, use, and my cell. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Short reply regarding command of languages | Feb 20, 2010 |
rebeccalyne wrote:
One last thing, on your website, you describe your command of languages as "brilliant". Be that as it may, I would avoid such terms as they can be off-putting to some people.
[Edited at 2010-02-19 23:31 GMT]
I think you could be right. How to put it, then?
| | | | Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | On social networks, trade fairs and my photos | Feb 20, 2010 |
Sophie Reynaud wrote:
As Nadejda already wrote, try to approach direct clients on- and offline in your fields of specialisation (professional social networks e.g. Xing or LinkedIn, trade fairs -> there are catalogues with all companies participating, company events, etc.).
Good luck!
Sophie
I 've been on XING for quite some time, and my profile on there is bilingual and was put together carefully. I attended a trade fair, bringing neat complimentary cards - success ratio was 0. I will do this again soon, accompanied by a friend of mine, who is a successful interpreter, native in English and has an MA in Finance (one of my fields). The issue with active marketing is that you never know if the person or entity you contact does have any need for translation/interpreting and if they haven't already filled all their "slots" with linguists they are satisfied with, leading to your marketing efforts being in vain.
As to my pictures looking unprofessional - they were taken by a former photo artist. But I will see what I can do.
[Edited at 2010-02-20 10:03 GMT]
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Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | My opinion on voluntary work | Feb 20, 2010 |
Elisabeth Kissel wrote:
This is not particularly helpful, but sometimes opportunities do come from previous work that was done at a slightly reduced rate or even as voluntary work. At a local (Australian) translators' meeting we were told once that it was better to work for nothing (very) occasionally than for little pay! This ensures that you're perceived as a professional that chooses to make his/her services available, rather than undervaluing yourself.
I appreciate any input and suggestions I can get in my situation, but this is DEFINITELY not an option. It never has been.
| | | | Sebastian Witte
Germany
Local time: 06:40
Member (2004)
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | A few remarks (Photo, Terms and Conditions, translating solely into your mother tongue) | Feb 20, 2010 |
Michele Johnson wrote: It looks like the other 12-year-olds from your chess club will arrive any minute now for a tournament in your grandmother's living room.
Sebastian Witte wrote:
I would have believed this picture of me playing chess on my site to appear attractive to potential clients, to create trust and to make me seem smart, but if you think it will have a negative effect, really making me come across "unprofessional" ...
Whereas your post does sound a bit rude there to me (I don't look like a kid), I think this was done unintentional and am therefore not offended.
Michele Johnson wrote: The photo on the main page is also not ideal. Why do you call them Mini-AGBs? It sounds like this is just an excerpt then, and you have a more complete list somewhere else? I'm personally not fond of the .biz extension, read here for some reasons: http://www.seobook.com/archives/002286.shtml I'd stick to translating into your native language, otherwise it sort of looks like you're trying to "do it all", and I'd like to see what languages you translate from on the very first page of your website, not have to dig around for that info.
As to the picture on the main page - I agree (even if it was taken by a former photo artist professionally involved with photography), will see if I can do better.
They are called Mini-AGBs because it sounds fun and they are considerably shorter than most Terms and Conditions.
Translating exclusively into one's native language is not common among German court-certified translators, not at all, so I think I am gonna leave my language pairs as they are (Portuguese to German, however, where I am not sworn, I can't do away with because I love it and wanna keep improving in it by translating/editing).
[Edited at 2010-02-20 10:40 GMT]
| | | | | A few things more... | Feb 20, 2010 |
Sebastian Witte wrote: rebeccalyne wrote:
One last thing, on your website, you describe your command of languages as "brilliant". Be that as it may, I would avoid such terms as they can be off-putting to some people.
[Edited at 2010-02-19 23:31 GMT] I think you could be right. How to put it, then?
Hello Sebastian,
I took a second look at your website and so I hope you don’t mind a few additional comments. They are really meant to be constructive and not simply critical.
First, one of the main things that struck me about your site is that the main things you talk about are yourself and money matters. Yet, there is very little content regarding how the client can be served.
For instance, you talk a great deal about terms and conditions, starting off with great detail about how you should be paid by a client. Plus you refer to these as the ¨mini terms and conditions”! What must the full size ones be like?! However, nowhere do you list your rates. I would save the terms and conditions for your documentation to the client and be transparent about your rates upfront. Do not overwhelm people with rules and restrictions or too much concern about money. Otherwise, some may walk away thinking you may be a bit too difficult to work with and not worth the trouble.
Photos- yes, I have to agree about the removal of the photos. Your Proz photo is much more professional (suit and tie) and you look a fair bit older in that photo. Your website photos make you look about 18. Great to look young! Wouldn’t we all love to! But with age comes a bit more respect.
Also, if you are going to use a photo of yourself, do smile. This may be cultural, but if you have large section of Anglo-Saxon clients, a smile will go a long way.
Overall, I would rephrase your wording and use less the ¨I¨. So, try selling yourself less and talking yourself up less, and talk more about the needs of your clients. At the end of the day, it is not about you. It is about your client. Most clients simply want professional services rendered professionally. They don’t care about who you are and if you come across as arrogant, like using the word ¨brilliant¨ about yourself, that could be a turn off.
There are some other things I would suggest, but if you like I would discuss that with you offline as it is really about the whole concept of marketing.
In any case, hang in there! Language work is a joy! You will make it.
Best,
Rebecca
[Edited at 2010-02-20 10:05 GMT]
[Edited at 2010-02-20 10:17 GMT]
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