Business ideas
Steps to start your own translating agency
Donnerstag, 9.Juli 2009As per the 2007 edition of the business magazine, ‘Writer’s Market’, freelance translating and interpreting is a thriving business offering lucrative opportunities of making a profit of $ 5, 000 to $ 15, 000 per project. The only pre-requisite of foraying into this new avenue of business is your ability to translate and interpret in more than one language. As misinterpreted by many, lack of excellent writing skills is not a deterrent to start your own translation agency. All you need is the right combination of your potential multi-lingual or bi-lingual skills and basic knowledge on establishing a business enterprise to make an impressionable foray into this new market.
Here are some imperative business tools and marketing tactics you must follow before taking the plunge of establishing your business.
Business Plan: Strategizing your business plan is the first step towards establishing a concrete business. Your plan is your ultimate guide for every step you initiate towards building a full-service business. It is a source of your realistic goals and steps that you would like to achieve in the course of your establishments. This plan plays the most important role in checking your expenditures in tandem with your set budget.
Build a translator network: A translation service is known for its network of capable translators. As soon as you establish your company, you will be contacted with a number of interpreters specializing in one or more language. Thoroughly go through their CVs and select the best of the lot. It would be advisable to select a few candidates possessing specialization in one language for undertaking special assignments from clients. You can also check out websites dedicated for freelance translators like GoTranslators and Translators café. Assess their skills by taking translation tests and then select a few promising freelancers based on the test results. Remember that you should have a pool of freelance interpreters with specialized and multi-lingual skills. Your network of freelancers should agree to work with you in compliance with the tax and custom rules of your country. Make sure that each translator is able to produce a self-attested statement declaring himself / herself as an independent translator.
Target your clients: It is important to prepare a list of potential agencies that would fetch you work. Target all those companies who have frequent needs for freelance interpreters round the year. Note that advertising agencies could be your prospective target as they are in a constant need for translators to carry out their foreign ventures. Next, make a list of airports that lie near your city. Airports, especially undertaking international flights have a frequent need for multi-lingual experts to address the needs of foreign passengers. Also, include the names of popular physicians, lawyers, accountants and other business enterprises in your target list as they have timely needs for hiring translators to venture their businesses abroad or assist a foreign client. They avail services of a translator for preparing legal documents, attending meetings and other work that requires assistance in understanding and analyzing foreign languages.
Market your business: Once you have your agency in place with a prepared list of targeted clients, pool of interpreters and fine established office, your next step is to sort ways to garner your company’s awareness. For many start-ups and small-level business enterprises, marketing their company seems to be their biggest hurdle. However, if one uses exploits all the marketing options available intelligently, one can ensure immense publicity, especially in the online arena. The marketing options available are:
Online Marketing: Online marketing is a cheap way of garnering publicity and increased visibility of your enterprise. The means of Search Engine Optimization helps you increase your visibility on search engines. Spread the buzz of your agency in the blogsphere by making explicit use of key words. Use the means of social networking sites like, Twitter, Facebook, Orkut to market your translation agency. Position well-drafted classifieds on websites dedicated to advertising new services. Submit articles rich in key word density on article directories and leave back links to your website. The more you use key words, the more are the chances of appearing on the first few pages of the search engines. You can also place your ads at Adword, and Google Ads to get immediate projects from clients with online existence.
Use the means of mail marketing to directly communicate to your list of target clients on your new agency. These email blasts generate your agency’s awareness and leave strong impacts on the receivers. Make sure that your drafted letter should contain complete information on your profile as well as your company’s.
Offline Marketing: This is the traditional but the most impactful tool of marketing. Prepare a list of journals, newspapers and supplements that are dedicated at advertising new business enterprises. These dedicated journals are largely read by those looking for availing the services of new business affiliates. Place your ads with the most popular newspapers that enjoy a large readership.
Decide on your charges: It is imperative to fix the charges of varied projects even before you draft your introductory emails to clients. This can be achieved by conducting some prior research how much your competitors, located in your area are charging. Explore the internet to find an estimate on the prices charged by others. Seek the assistance of established language interpretation agencies by calling them and asking for their fees structure. Visit foreignword.com for money related and other important queries on translation jobs.
Get your name registered on the Government run interpreter rosters. These government agencies are on a constant need for interpreters to address immigration, foreign hearings and queries related to refugees. Pay periodic visits to the multi-cultural centers in your city and get your name listed with them. These agencies owing to their job of dealing with the foreign delegates have frequent needs for interpreters. Once you have established your office, get yourself registered in various cultural centers to assist them in their needs for interpreters.
