Freelancers
If you follow Tomedes on Twitter (and if you don’t, you should!), then you’ll be aware of our “Quick Translator Tip”, which we’ve been faithfully posting every other day since May 2014. We received so much positive feedback about these tips that we decided to collect all 103 tips into one huge Translators’ Hub mega-post […]
Can translation quality be inferred from where a translator is located? Does it matter where translators live? The fabled in-country translators “We only work with translators who are native speakers and live in the country you want to connect with!” Home
A reader asks: I come across lots of bad translations in my language pairs. How can I use these to pitch my freelance services to new clients without sounding like a hyper-critical tattletale? This is a regular topic of conversation among translators who work with direct clients, and bad translations can be a great marketing […]
Whilst there are lots of benefits to working as a freelance translator, there’s also significant amounts of less-romanticised, hard work that’s also involved. This post will ask some of the hard questions that aspiring freelance translators will have to consider themselves, prompting you to evaluate yourself and see if this is the sort of job […]
The myths, misconceptions and drawbacks of working from your own home. Let’s talk about what it’s really like to work from home. I’m sure you can easily imagine the benefits of being able to work at home, but until you’re actually there, it can be difficult to think of the downsides. http://sixrevisions.com
During any occurring and horrific “famine” period, I tend to look back at my career so far. I stand still and mentally travel to the time when I made the first hesitant steps in the competitive freelancing world. Part of this process is looking at a spreadsheet I use to keep track of income per […]
One of the biggest challenges that any business faces is how to find and attract clients. You cannot help people or attract clients if they do not know your business exists. Sounds simple, but you would be surprised at just how many translators struggle to show up on their ideal clients’ radar. https://alexandria-translation-resources.com
Last week, Letraduct authored a post about one of the problems that your target customer (the translation agency) has, which is lack of time and desire to read lengthy cover letters, CVs and translation portfolios. The advice was clear: be a translator that makes it quick and easy for the project manager to see key […]
Correct me if I’m wrong, but the overriding factor causing translators to end their relationship with an agency is not being paid at all (no-brainer really, as continuing to work for a client that is not paying you—whatever their excuses and promises—just doesn’t make good business sense), and secondly being paid late. […]
One of the interesting qualities of freelancing work is that you may never meet your clients in real life. Perhaps more than any other job market, freelancers rely heavily on their online image… http://www.sabusinessindex.co.za
Today’s post is for all the men and women out there who have crossed paths with a freelance translator—and have decided to live with him or her. Husbands, wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, civil union partners—this one is for you. This guide will help you understand the lifestyle and needs of your significant other. http://www.catherinetranslates.com
Referrals are one of the easiest and most effective ways to get new clients. Here are tips on how you can get more referrals from your translation clients. Marketing Tips for translators
Do you prefer to assume a commitment with several thousands of words about a certain topic or several smaller projects at the same time? It is preferable to develop and strengthen a specialization … https://letstalkabouttranslation.wordpress.com
Whether you’re thinking of becoming a freelance translator, or have already been working as one for a while now, you should definitely consider making a comprehensive business plan to help map out your career. http://www.tomedes.com
Comme souvent, cet article s’adresse principalement aux traducteurs qui débutent. Je me souviens que quand j’ai commencé, je n’avais pas trop confiance en moi en tant que professionnelle (“je n’ai pas assez d’expérience, si un client me donne ma chance c’est parce qu’il a pitié de moi ou que je propose des tarifs plus bas”, […]
Too often, military interpreters in Afghanistan do not receive the respect they deserve as vital members of a team. Image credit: Michael Schmelling Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company http://www.nytimes.com
Are you the kind of person who heaves a sigh of relief when a long project drops into your inbox – or are you more of a butterfly, preferring to flit from short job to slightly longer job? Much depends on your personality profile https://clairecoxtranslations.wordpress.com
A reader asks: On my website and resumé, is it OK to use my clients’ names? Does it matter if I worked for them directly or through an agency? Short answer: To be safe, never use a client’s name without their permission. http://thoughtsontranslation.com
Making mistakes is a good thing — provided you learn from them. But the problem is that you may not even know you’re making a mistake. Flickr Creative Commons Image via Justin Kern http://www.copyblogger.com
I started working as a project manager in one of the translation companies in London just after graduating from a translation and interpreting MA course at the University of Westminster in London. At the time when I started to manage translation and interpreting projects, I had significant experience in the translation and interpreting industry, from […]
As an autodidact, albeit with 14 years experience as a translator and editor, plus a couple of years studying linguistics at the University of Western Australia, I realise that this is a somewhat tenuous basis upon which to write an article for skilled language professionals on improving their service provision, … http://thecyclingtranslator.com
Everybody knows that trust is paramount in all relationships, business or otherwise. But for freelance translators looking for work online it’s sometimes a tall order, as there are plenty of unscrupulous agencies out there looking to rip off inexperienced freelancers. Nearly every translator has a horror story about a nightmare company… https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/your-translation-agency-treating-you-fairly-top-tips-oleg-semerikov
Today, a translation project leader should have some specific skills. We’ll take a look at these skills and declarations of some colleagues that have already put them in practice. These colleagues have proven that improving one’s skills is necessary to be successful in the market. http://victorgonzales.blogspot.be
Here are 6 tips to help get you started and set you on your self-employment path http://theselfemployed.com
Found out what translators can do to get the most out of downtimes. Every freelancer experiences times when work slows down, and motivation tends to follow the trend. Still, being solopreneurs we need to take care of a lot, and there’s always something we can do to put downtimes to good use. http://www.mtmtranslations.com
I was a Project Manager for 6 years. During those years, I did have favorites, and my favorite translators got a LOT of work. How does a translator become a PM’s favorite? http://www.angelabenoit.com
