Poll: For the most part, the clients I need come to me, I don't go to them.
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Jul 29, 2022

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "For the most part, the clients I need come to me, I don't go to them.".

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Thayenga
Thayenga  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 11:34
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
Agree Jul 29, 2022

My clients find me either through ProZ.Find, my translator association, or via referrals from happy customers.

Philippe Etienne
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Philip Lees
Laurens Vermeulen
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 10:34
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Agree Jul 29, 2022

I haven’t been seeking new clients for a while as I’m quite happy with those I have: interesting projects paid at my rates and on my conditions, but when a client finds me he/she will be more than welcome if we can agree on terms. Usually, they find me through word of mouth (referrals from colleagues and clients), ATA, Proz, TC and my website.

Philippe Etienne
Barbara Cochran, MFA
Maria Silvestri
Philip Lees
neilmac
 
Lieven Malaise
Lieven Malaise
Belgium
Local time: 11:34
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
Agree. Jul 29, 2022

I remember to have sent 5 letters to translation agencies to introduce myself in the first year of my freelancing career in the year 2005. That's it. I was lucky enough to start with a major client from day 1 and new clients entered the building gradually and naturally (meaning they contacted me) and, more important, decided to stay.

But if, for whatever reason, I would lose important clients, I wouldn't hesitate to jump like a madman on every single translation agency out there to
... See more
I remember to have sent 5 letters to translation agencies to introduce myself in the first year of my freelancing career in the year 2005. That's it. I was lucky enough to start with a major client from day 1 and new clients entered the building gradually and naturally (meaning they contacted me) and, more important, decided to stay.

But if, for whatever reason, I would lose important clients, I wouldn't hesitate to jump like a madman on every single translation agency out there to eventually end up with some new decent clients.
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Philippe Etienne
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Barbara Cochran, MFA
Girara Mnada
 
Barbara Cochran, MFA
Barbara Cochran, MFA  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:34
Spanish to English
+ ...
Both Jul 29, 2022

Has worked both ways for me, and very well at that. My most educated, gifted, and hardworking clients have always come back to me when they have a new translation project. I really hate it when I have to turn down, for whatever reason, their requests, since I hold them and their works in such high esteem. But I certainly don't look down my nose at "going to them", so to speak. No way! Because I have always been willing to do just that, I have added many prestigious and extremely interesting proj... See more
Has worked both ways for me, and very well at that. My most educated, gifted, and hardworking clients have always come back to me when they have a new translation project. I really hate it when I have to turn down, for whatever reason, their requests, since I hold them and their works in such high esteem. But I certainly don't look down my nose at "going to them", so to speak. No way! Because I have always been willing to do just that, I have added many prestigious and extremely interesting projects, such as those that I have done for well-known publishers (newspapers, books), websites, and university departments, located here in the US and in Belgium.

[Edited at 2022-07-29 14:21 GMT]

[Edited at 2022-07-29 14:23 GMT]
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Maria Silvestri
Josephine Cassar
expressisverbis
 
Michael Newton
Michael Newton  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:34
Japanese to English
+ ...
clients come to me? Jul 30, 2022

Since I am actively engaged in marketing, I go to prospective clients. The few clients who contact me through my proz.com are not worth mentioning. They want one or two pages or want to pay abysmal rates.

Barbara Cochran, MFA
 
Michael Newton
Michael Newton  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:34
Japanese to English
+ ...
clients come to me? Jul 30, 2022

I should have said that the clients I seek are direct clients and not agencies.

 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 11:34
Spanish to English
+ ...
True Jul 30, 2022

I haven't done any agency work for at least a couple of years now. The vast majority of my direct clients have come to me by word-of-mouth recommendation from other satisfied customers.

 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 11:34
French to English
. Aug 1, 2022

Most of them I initially reached out to, as they were contacts on LinkedIn, mostly former colleagues now working elsewhere, or clients. I just wrote to let them know I was now freelancing.
Some former clients of the agency came to me once they realised I was no longer working there.
A few people have contacted me by word of mouth, so they definitely came to me.
At least a couple of clients found me on LinkedIn and contacted me even though they didn't know me at all.
... See more
Most of them I initially reached out to, as they were contacts on LinkedIn, mostly former colleagues now working elsewhere, or clients. I just wrote to let them know I was now freelancing.
Some former clients of the agency came to me once they realised I was no longer working there.
A few people have contacted me by word of mouth, so they definitely came to me.
At least a couple of clients found me on LinkedIn and contacted me even though they didn't know me at all.

The only people who contact me here are people who start their email with "Dear Linguist" and want me to produce tons of work in very little time for a pittance, I don't call them clients.
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Poll: For the most part, the clients I need come to me, I don't go to them.






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