Six Steps to
Take When Creating a Startup Translation Firm
Being a great translator
is no guarantee of being a great business person. Even if you possess in-depth
knowledge of languages, that sort of excellence does not necessarily translate
well into starting your own translation firm.
Let’s take a
look at some of the issues to consider when establishing your own startup translation
firm.
1. Decide your
language pairs; e.g., English-Spanish, Italian-English, etcetera.
2. Know your
Limitations
3. Financial
Planning
4. When
starting, at the very first stages, try to offer your services through online
marketplaces for freelance services. Signing up is free.
5. Place ads on
Facebook, Google Ads, maybe Twitter…
6. If possible,
offer rock-bottom prices
1. Decide your
language pairs; e.g., English-Spanish, Italian-English, etcetera.
In most cases,
you will want to focus your translation firm on just one or two language pairs.
Trying to be an expert in many languages doesn’t usually work in the translation world.
2. Know your
Limitations
You may have the
experience to be a great translator, but do you really have the knowledge or
expertise to be a great business person?
3. Financial
Planning
As with most
things in life, money is going to be a major factor in how you setup your translation
firm. When creating a financial plan it is important that you be thorough while
not overwhelming yourself. Focus on the major expenses, but don’t get bogged
down in the details. The first thing you will need to do is calculate your
monthly and annual expenses. Your biggest expenses will likely be for rent,
utilities, insurance, membership and licensing fees, marketing, wages, and
office supplies. Furthermore, there may be upfront expenses when you are just
starting out, such as for office furniture, computers, appliances, and maybe copy
machines. By adding up all of these expenses you will have a better idea of
what you will need to make in order to run a profit. Your expenses will allow
you to determine a per-word or an hourly rate and, using that hourly rate, to
determine how many billable hours you need to work in a month. Of course, if
you are just starting out and do not have a large client base then you need to
factor this into your budget. Also, do not aim to simply break even with your
expenses. If it looks like you will only just be making enough money to cover
your expenses then you need to consider either increasing your hourly rate or
cutting your expenses, such as by working from home, opting for a cheaper office,
and so on.
Some translators
charge from USD 0.01 to 0.12 per word.
Those
translators who offer their translation services for U.S. $0.01 per word
usually charge an hourly rate of U.S. $2.50, taking into account they will be
translating some 250 words per hour.
If some platform
or online marketplace for freelance services doesn’t let them charge fractions,
they will be asking for three dollars an hour.
Those
translators who offer their translation services for U.S. $0.12 per word,
usually charge an equivalent of U.S. $30.00 per hour, taking into account they will
be translating some 250 words per hour.
Along with your
budget, you will also need a business plan that covers different aspects of
what you want your business to accomplish. A business plan is typically
composed of a number of different documents. These documents may include, but
are not limited to, an executive summary, an operating plan, a marketing
strategy and analysis, financial projections, and a description of your firm
and the services it offers. Again, keep your business plan as simple as
possible (especially as regards the executive summary and services) in order to
keep you focused on what your firm will be providing. Making a business plan
that is too complicated will only cause you to get overwhelmed and lose sight
of what it is you are trying to accomplish with your firm.
4. When
starting, at the very first stages, try to offer your services through online
marketplaces for freelance services. Signing up is free. There are a number of
such concerns / websites; for example: Freelancer, Fiverr, People Per Hour,
Upwork, Workana, etcetera.
5. Consider
placing cheap ads on Facebook, Google Ads, maybe Twitter…
Or… better yet, you can place ads FOR FREE in: thefreeadforum [dot] com AND/OR
freeglobalclassifiedads [dot] com AND/OR craigslist [dot] org
6. If/when possible,
offer rock-bottom prices, so you may run ahead of competition in terms of
accepting gigs, but perhaps you might not want to sell your time/work at such
low prices.
Well… IT IS UP
TO YOU to set your rates.
