Article 7 ways to find clients in the AI era

Artificial intelligence has made a big difference to the translation industry. Perhaps you’ve heard?!

Well, unless you’ve been taking an extended break in an isolated cabin, with no internet (sounds glorious), or on the moon, we’re guessing you have. Let’s be honest, whatever you think of them, there’s no ignoring the changes that AI has made to our profession over the last few years.

Perhaps you’re new to the industry and are looking for your first clients. Perhaps you’ve seen your workflow impacted or lost clients to AI in the last two years and are in the market for new ones. Or perhaps your business is thriving, but you know it’s still always good to have new prospects in the pipeline.

Whatever your situation, this blog is all about ways you can land those clients in the current climate.

And the truth is, the vast majority of the best ways to find clients haven’t changed at all. There are plenty of tactics that worked before and still work just as well, and most of them have nothing to do with artificial intelligence. In fact, good old, traditional in-person networking might be one of your best bets.

But it is true that, as freelance translators, if we want to thrive in a world in which AI is very much a reality, we need to stand out from the crowd more than ever. We need to demonstrate to our clients all the reasons why they should choose to work with a professional linguist rather than relying on machine translation. Luckily, there are plenty of ways we can do just that.

1. Use your brain and prioritise human-to-human interaction

Before we dig into the more specific tips, we wanted to start with this one. This might not be quite what you’d thought we’d be saying in this article, but in our humble opinion, the main, overarching thing you can do when looking for clients is to remember you’re a human wanting to work with other humans. That might sound obvious, but with AI seemingly omnipresent these days, it’s easy to forget.

When it comes to your marketing, don’t be tempted to use AI for things you could quite easily use your own brain to create. If you’re interacting with potential clients or posting on LinkedIn, they want to hear from you, not ChatGPT.

We firmly believe that, although AI has its place, nothing can replace real communication and connection, person to person. In a world where we’re all, let’s face it, pretty fed up with stuff written by a robot, if you put humans first in everything you do, people will notice.

2. Create or polish your website

We’ve said this before and we’ll say it again. Every freelance translator needs a professional website.

And we think that’s even more true now, as a slick website is a way of showing potential clients that you mean business. If you don’t have your own digital home, you’re not sending the right signals and leads might not think you’re legit.

There’s still so much room in the world for qualified human translators who can give businesses the benefit of all their linguistic and cultural knowledge. But AI pretty much has the very basics of translations covered (although with a lot of gaps in its capabilities, as we all well know), so it can be very tempting for clients to use it, rather than a professional.

So, a website is a chance for us to demonstrate all the added value we bring to the table. To show them why they won’t regret working with an expert human translator, rather than just hoping they’ll figure out what you can do for them of their own accord.

So, if your website is still a work in progress, now’s the time to make it a reality. And if it’s looking a bit rusty or doesn’t really do justice to your services, it’s time to give it some love.

3. Make SEO your friend

So, you’ve got your website. Now, is anyone actually going to find it on Google?

It’s tough to keep up with SEO at the moment as things change so quickly, but it’s super important for us translators to have at least a basic understanding of it. Both because of the added value we can offer to our clients with SEO translation, and because we can use that knowledge to give our own websites a boost.

After all, Google is still one of the best ways for new clients to find you.

And whilst you’re never going to rank for terms like “Spanish to English translator”, you might have success with specific, long-tail keywords focusing on your specialisms or your location.

4. In-person networking

As we’ve mentioned, even in the age of AI, and perhaps especially in the age of AI, the old ways of finding clients are still some of the best.

If you’re looking for more clients, then getting out of the translation cave and attending networking events is one of the best things you can do. Go along to translation events and meet up with your colleagues, but also get out of the translation bubble and go to industry events or trade fairs whenever you can. Events aimed at freelancers in general are also great ones to attend.

And remember, there are networking opportunities everywhere, it doesn’t have to be a formal event. We’re sure the same is true of other professions too, but as translators, we’re often guilty of assuming everyone knows what we do, when most people don’t have a clue. A lot of businesses or individuals who need our services barely know we exist.

So, make a point of talking about what you do, the problems you solve and all the reasons why AI translation isn’t a patch on you to your family, friends, random people you meet down the pub on a Saturday night, and their dogs.

Don’t be shy about letting people know you’re looking for new clients, you never know whether they’ll have a friend of a friend who works somewhere and knows someone looking for the exact services you have to offer.

5. LinkedIn

We know, we talk about LinkedIn a lot. But that’s because it’s been one of the best ways to find clients as a freelance translator for quite a few years now, and there’s no sign of that changing any time soon.

If you use LinkedIn well, you’ll find that prospective clients start getting in touch with you, rather than the other way around.

Take a long hard look at your profile, and see if it speaks to your dream clients. Does it show them what problems you can solve for them? Does it focus on all the benefits of choosing to work with you?

Once your profile is up to scratch, it’s time to get some eyes on it. Interacting and engaging with your prospective clients, as well as your fellow translators, on top of regularly posting helpful, insightful and even entertaining content, can bring lots of potential clients your way.

Sharing your knowledge, including your awareness of AI and all the latest industry developments, will prove to prospects that you’re on the ball and know your onions.

As we mentioned earlier, to get the best out of LinkedIn, focus on human-to-human connection. Don’t fall into the trap that LI is setting by inviting you to write with AI. People will be able to tell a mile off.

Write from the heart, and write in your real voice. Think about the ways you can stand out from the crowd, rather than just blending into it, and give them a try. You’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

6. Pitching

We’ve placed a lot of emphasis on inbound marketing in this article, and whilst we think that’s the bedrock of any successful freelance translator, there’s a lot to be said for proactively going out and contacting clients, if you go about it in the right way.

Of course, as a translator, you might decide to focus your energies on contacting translation agencies, especially if you’re just getting started and are looking to build your experience.

But the other approach, which can have far more lucrative results, is pitching your services to direct clients.

Now it’s true that when you decide to pitch to potential clients, the answer you’ll usually get will either be no, or just radio silence. So it’s important to adjust your expectations accordingly, or it can get demoralising. One way of approaching it is to actively aim to get a certain number of rejections per month, so those emails sting less and don’t knock your motivation levels.

If you decide to go ahead and pitch your services, don’t forget to track everything you’re doing, so you can follow up when appropriate.

And of course, make sure your pitches are tailored to the potential client in question. Try and strike a balance between doing enough research so that the person you’re contacting will be able to tell it’s not just a generic email you’ve sent to hundreds, and not spending too long on each pitch, when chances are you won’t get a response.

Again, write from the heart, in your voice, rather than using something soulless created by ChatGPT, and don’t be afraid to get creative and try innovative ways of standing out from the crowd.

7. Do a fantastic job

Give your existing clients the best possible service, as it’s far easier to keep a client than find a new one.

And when you do land a new client, do everything you can to make their experience a smooth one.

Once you’ve wrapped up your first project with them, don’t forget to ask for a testimonial. And whilst you’re at it, let them know you’re open to new clients, and you’d really appreciate any referrals they’re able to send your way.

It might seem obvious to you that you’re open to referrals, but if you don’t make it crystal clear, it might not ever cross your busy clients’ minds.

We’re here to help you do a fantastic job and keep your clients coming back for more.

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