Competing with translation agencies – a personal example

 

Freelancers can compete with agencies by making the effort and applying their advantages. This week, I received a request for a quote through an online specialized legal service site for a “certified” translation of four documents from two different languages into English for a US agency. While the customer is still waiting for the answers to several questions, I am in the running to get the project despite the fact that he received a quote from at least one translation agency. As I see it, it proves that directed long-term marketing works, personal service creates loyalty even in the early stages and fair freelance pricing can be competitive with agency rates. I am optimistic about receiving the order.

It is known that directed marketing creates the most effective exposure, if not necessarily the widest one. The site that directed the contact to me primarily focuses on attorney services. As a complementary service, it is an ideal place for a translator to be listed as legal matters involving multiple countries frequently require translation of documents. The initial cost was moderate and has long since justified itself. If I had not made the effort to have myself listed there, I would not have had the opportunity to provide a quote.

As the provider of most of the involved services, I created trust by clarifying matters and posing questions, even suggesting opitons to reduce costs. Based on my experience and dependent on confirmation by the US government agency in the matter, I specified the steps involved in “certifying a translation”. When the issue of notarization arose, I further explained that the attorney rate in Israel is per signature and clarified what exactly the attorney in Israel attests to. I also suggested ways to reduce the notarization cost. Thus, I shared my professional knowledge to ensure that the customer would receive a product that meets his needs, even before taking the order. That willingness to provide a complete and accurate answer to a question is a vital element in creating trust. In many cases, customers need to feel confident in both the service provider and the product they will receive.

As the customer told me the proposed cost provided by a translation agency he contacted, I had the rare privilege of being able to analyze the relevance of my pricing. It turns out that the agency bid was slightly higher than mine. That means that my bid both reflected the hourly rate I wish to earn and the discount for the customer, reflecting the lack of a third party in the transaction when working directly with the translator. Granted, I have to invest additional time to handle all the procedures but I included this factor in my calculation. Pricewise, at least on certain types of documents, freelancers can compete with agencies without cutting their rates.

The customer has yet to decide as he awaits the answers to his questions. However, I feel confident that he will select my services now or in the future. In my opinion, freelancers must be proactive, service-oriented and insist on their rates. In terms of business, you win some and you lose some. However, you make a living and respect yourself even when competing with agencies. Davids sometimes win. 

P.S. - I did receive the order.

When the going gets tough… - A call to translators and other freelancers to join associations

 

In November and December, many professional associations, including those of translators, begin their annual membership campaigns. In recent years, the results have been disheartening to one degree or another. At least among translators, fewer and fewer freelancers choose to join even their national association, let alone a foreign-based organization. The reasons for this decline are both technical, economic and social. Yet, joining a national professional association is, in fact, a way to address those economic and social issues as well as to maintain creativity in the long term. All freelancers should seek that connection for both their personal benefit and the collective good.

Membership in professional associations is declining in most fields due to changes in technology, economy and social structure. AI is the mammoth in the China shop, reshaping the entire landscape of how businesses, big and small, work. Clearly, most freelance translators do not have a high degree of certainty about their own future or the future of the profession in 5-10 years. At the same time, rates continue to decline or remain static while many translators are experiencing a decrease in volume, a deadly combination. Paying association fees seems an ill-justified luxury. On a more general scale, many younger professionals grew up with the Internet and consider it their community, convenient and undemanding. The time and energy demands of physical participation, even by Zoom, feel uncomfortable. It is far easier and often more than sufficient in the short term to use one’s Internet persona and make connections. Thus, many newer and even not-so-new translators choose to avoid professional membership.

However, conversely, joining a professional association is an effective response to those issues. First, as nobody seems to understand exactly when and how to use AI, learning from the experience of others in the same position provides a wide-angle and more comprehensive picture of the situation at any given time. A word to the wise is sufficient. Furthermore, even more than ever, associations bring work. More and more buyers, struggling to identify worthy service suppliers in the chaos of the Internet, consult professional associations, seeking some kind of certification or recognition to help them in their choice of supplier. Personally, most of my new customers have found me on association lists. Furthermore, the official recognition allows freelancers to charge higher rates, increasing income. No less importantly, in the long term, the major challenge for any freelancer is to maintain enthusiasm and flexibility. Even if a participant at a conference technically learns nothing new, they leave the event with renewed energy, the result of being around so many talented people. Thus, professional associations actually help freelancers deal with technology, find customers and grow professionally.

Therefore, I believe that when the going gets tough, the tough get joining, gathering the strength, business and knowledge in uncertain times. There is strength and synergy in numbers.  I strongly recommend joining relevant associations at all levels, local, national and foreign, and physically participating in their events.