Check out the newest episode of the SLD podcast! Madalena Zampaulo, owner and CEO of Accessible Translation Solutions, answers member questions and shares tips about websites for translators.
ATA58 Review: Working with Direct Clients. For Real. (IC-8)
Review by Ekaterina Howard
Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash
At ATA conferences I make attending Chris Durban’s sessions a priority (even SLD’s Ru>En slam could not tear me away), and to me they invariably become one of the highlights of any conference.
This year’s session tied in nicely with the session on blind spots at ATA57, which effectively became the primary source of my business development plan for 2017 (as easy as that!).
In the “Working with Direct Clients. For Real.” Session Chris Durban addressed the most common constraints that prevent translators from moving out of the mass-market segment (although some direct clients can be mass-market, too) into the premium segment (which is where recognition, satisfaction and high rates come together).
The main constraints are:
- Good writing and/or good quality are a given, not a differentiator, as are native-level quality and consistent terminology.
- Instead of generic statements that do not add up to anything distinctive, you have to provide specific examples of value that you bring to the table.
- Quality may be (and frequently is) affected by any or all of the following factors:
- Time pressure
- Blind spots
- Cynicism
- Overselling (and under delivering).
To start working with direct clients:
- The factors that go into producing a product that is not likely to be MT-replicated or replaceable are: Time + Brain + Talent. Plan accordingly
- Understand priorities of direct clients in your segment (likely not price-driven). Know what is mission-critical or sensitive
- Find a partner (reviser)
- Create a client-friendly system: be generous, be efficient, do not make clients jump through multiple hoops to work with you
- Be friendly and enthusiastic. Do not snark. Do not blabber
- Be honest on your experience and on whether or not you subcontract. Specialization goes deep, not wide (to eliminate blind spots)
- Research and stalk (professionally, of course) potential clients
- Be mindful of scalability vs quality restraints
- Sign your work
- Offer solutions instead of words on a page.
If you are considering working with direct clients, for real or hypothetically, you might want to look up The Prosperous Translator — Advice from Fire Ant & Worker Bee at https://prosperoustranslator.com/, follow Chris Durban’s blog at https://chrisdurbanblog.com/author/christinedurban/, or read a review of the first Business Acceleration Masterclass for Translators and Interpreters by Jayne Fox: https://foxdocs.biz/BetweenTranslations/business-tips-translators-chris-durbans-masterclass/.
Even if you feel that you are not quite ready yet, it is not too early to start getting ready to move towards working in the direct client segment. I believe that one of the most important things you could do is not learn how to market yourself (although this won’t hurt), but continuously work on your translation and writing skills.
If you are an SLD member, you can join the SLD Certification Exam Prep Group to exchange translations with other participants and discuss the challenges on a monthly basis. If you would like to up the ante, consider participating in SLD translation slams, either by submitting a slam proposal for the next ATA conference, or by volunteering to join a virtual slam. Those are all great starting points for working on your translation skills, and I hope that someday there will be an event similar to “Translate in…” (in 2017 it was in Quebec City – https://www.ontraduitaquebec.com/en/about/) for Slavic languages.
On that note, I invite you to share your collaboration experiences, your stories of growing as a translator, and your tips on working with “dream” direct clients.
Ekaterina Howard is an English to Russian and German to Russian translator working with marketing materials. She is the current Administrator of the Slavic Languages Divisions. You can follow her blog at https://pinwheeltrans.com/blog, stay in touch on Twitter (@katya_howard), or connect with her on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ekaterinahoward). If you would like to become SLD’s next translation slammer, you can reach her at ekaterina@atasld.org.
Stage Russia: Russian theater comes to you
Photo by Felix Mooneeram on Unsplash
For Russian theater lovers, Russian languages fans and anyone looking for new and fun ways to keep improving their Russian language skills, this screening and streaming program is a great option.
Stage Russia shows a variety of classical and contemporary plays staged by leading Russian theaters with English subtitles. As a Muscovite, I am delighted to have access to Satirikon’s Seagull and to be able to see other performances that would have been unavailable to me otherwise. Even if you are not a die-hard Butusov fan, you might enjoy other Stage Russia recordings, from Uncle Vanya to Drillalians.
It is also possible to organize viewings for colleges and to request viewings at local libraries (for free or for a licensing fee): https://www.stagerussia.com/streaming.
Read more about the project here. And, if you go to a screening, please consider writing a review for SlavFile or for SLD blog!
So You’ve Never Been to an ATA Conference…
By Jen Guernsey
Every year SlavFile publishes an article encouraging our fellow SLD members to attend the ATA Annual Conference and providing tips for newcomers. Why is that? you ask. Do we get some sort of referral discount? Nope! Does the rate get cheaper when attendance is higher? No (though I am sure there is a critical mass of attendees required to keep rates reasonable). Why, then, do we keep bugging you about going to the conference?
There are two reasons: one altruistic, one selfish. The altruistic reason is that the conference has been a terrific experience for us, and we want you to be able to share in that experience. Don’t take our word for it; read about the experiences of our conference newcomers of recent years in the SlavFile Preview.
The second, selfish, reason is that your presence makes the conference a richer experience for us. Getting to know our colleagues is the best, and ultimately the most productive, part of the conference. If all we wanted was educational sessions, we’d attend webinars. Instead, we invest the time and expense to go to the conference. For me personally, being able to commune with like-minded people, getting their sage advice, being able to refer work to them or share jobs with them, and having them refer work to me have all made an immeasurable difference in the success of my translation career, not to mention made it far more enjoyable. We regular conference-goers want YOU to come so we can get to know you and add you to our circle of colleagues.
How to Survive Your First ATA Conference
Actually, you aren’t going to SURVIVE it, you’re going to LOVE it! Below are some tips that will make it a little easier for you to hit the ground running.
First, here are a few pearls of wisdom from other first-time attendees:
If you’re introverted, never fear! There are plenty of ways for you to meet people and make connections without having to walk into a crowd of strangers and start cold. I signed up for the excellent “Buddies Welcome Newbies” program that partnered me with an experienced translator working, as I do, from Russian into English (hi Jen!) who showed me the ropes. She answered my questions, introduced me to people in the Slavic [Languages] Division, and was a very welcome familiar face in a sea of strangers. I also attended Slavic [Languages] Division events, such as the newcomers’ lunch, the Division dinner, and the Division meeting. The great thing about this is that people in the division know each other and as a result know that you’re new, and they really do go out of their way to be welcoming. My worries of being the silent person standing awkwardly in the corner never materialized. – Natalie Mainland, 2016.
At the BWN [Buddies Welcome Newbies] program, all it takes is sitting at a table and saying “Hello” for all anxiety to disappear, because everyone is so welcoming, understanding, patient, really interested in what everyone has to say, and always happy to give advice. Having gained confidence, I went to the Welcome Celebration, where I experienced a second wave of anxiety, but found my way to the Slavic [Languages] Division table. What a relief! There were so many people who spoke my native language (Russian), and some were also wearing the pink ribbon saying “First time attendee.” There is no problem finding common interests when you know you are speaking with someone in your language pair. And that pink ribbon: it is the most powerful and magical thing for a newbie. It identifies you as someone who needs some guidance. People saw it and approached me at breakfast, coffee breaks, and other events. They made me feel welcome and asked questions. It would lead to the most amazing conversations. – Daria Toropchyn, 2015
First on my list of events was “Buddies Welcome Newbies,” part of a program in which seasoned conference-goers adopt first-time attendees and show them the ropes. My “buddy” was an experienced technical translator who seemed to know everyone else by name. He gave me advice on how to approach the conference (in a nutshell: relax and get to know other translators) and introduced me to people I wouldn’t otherwise have met. — Christopher Tauchen, 2015
So, prospective newbies, here is your pre-conference to-do list:
1) Register for the conference BY OCTOBER 6 to take advantage of lower rates.
2) Download the conference app. I find it very helpful for planning my conference and finding event locations. You can input your resume and other profile info to help both colleagues and prospective employers find you.
3) Review the conference program to get an idea of the sessions and events you’d like to attend. A list of presentations in the Slavic languages track and by SLD members can be found in the SlavFile Preview.
4) Join Buddies Welcome Newbies to be paired up with an experienced conference-goer who will show you the ropes. All three of our newbies quoted above mentioned this helpful program, scheduled for Wednesday 4:45-5:30 (Debriefing Saturday 12:30-1:30) https://www.atanet.org/conf/2017/newbies/.
5) Reserve your spot at the SLD Newcomers Lunch. This solves the question of lunch for your first conference day: you already have prearranged colleagues to eat with! Some of us old-timers come as well. On Thursday, October 26, we will meet at 12:20 PM in the lobby of the hotel and proceed together to the restaurant, or you can just walk there on your own. Meals are not prearranged; we just order off the menu and pay for our own. To expedite service and food preparation, we will order from a limited menu of around 15 dishes. Our destination this year will be:
Sette Osteria
1666 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20009
www.setteosteria.com
To reserve your place, please email jenguernsey@gmail.com by Friday, October 20. Please specify any dietary restrictions.
6) Reserve your spot at the SLD Dinner (see information here). It’s a nice chance to get to know your SLD colleagues better while enjoying a lovely meal. I didn’t sign up for the dinner my first year, and regretted it (and have gone to every one since!). If you follow a special diet, check it out anyway, as accommodations are possible. Thursday 7:00–10:00 PM.
And while at the conference:
1) Wear your pink First Time Attendee ribbon with pride. It will spark a lot of conversations…kind of like wearing a “Please Welcome Me” sign on your forehead…but more comfortable.
2) Come to the Welcome Celebration. It is huge! It is crowded! It is loud! It is daunting! Never fear—just seek out the table marked SLD. You will encounter some familiar names, soon to be familiar faces, and introduce yourself. Plus, hey, free food and a couple of drinks. Wednesday 5:30-7:00.
3) Attend the SLD meeting. This is another good way to get to know people in the division, as well as learn what is going on in the division. We usually have a little time at the end when we encourage first-timers to introduce themselves. The meeting will be 4:45-5:45 on Thursday, October 26.
4) Volunteer to write for SlavFile. Every year, SlavFile publishes reviews of all of the Slavic track sessions and any others a potential reviewer considers of special interest to our members, as well as printing the impressions of a conference newcomer. Volunteering to write one of these is a great way to get involved and get your name out there. Any other contributions from new members, including profiles introducing yourselves to readers, are enthusiastically welcomed.
5) Don’t get boxed in. While we in the SLD would love to have you with us for the entire conference, there is no requirement to stick with one group of people or one track of sessions. Explore! The conference has so many interesting sessions, and so many interesting people – you can’t go wrong!
See you at the conference!
Jen Guernsey is a Russian>English translator and longtime SLD member with 14 conferences under her belt. She is the SLD Leadership Council member responsible for newcomer activities.