Start A Language Translation Service - Business Ideas
Language translation services bridge the linguistic barriers, helping businesses reach a wider audience outside of a single language. A language translation job is an opportunity to cover a wide range of topics and meet people from different cultures.
To become a language translator , master a second language and earn some experience so you become fluent in the second language.
Starting a language translation service requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.
If you're interested in how to sell language translation service, or selling language translation service online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.
Key Stats
Startup Costs
| Min Startup Costs | Max Startup Costs | |
|---|---|---|
|
Office Space Expenses |
$0 |
$7,000 |
|
Employee & Freelancer Expenses |
$151 |
$352 |
|
Website Costs |
$223 |
$7,215 |
|
Business Formation Fees |
$600 |
$4,700 |
|
Software Expenses |
$150 |
$2,470 |
|
Advertising & Marketing Costs |
$75 |
$4,786 |
|
Training & Education Expenses |
$0 |
$1,000 |
|
Total Startup Costs |
$1,199 |
$27,523 |
Case Studies
•
$550K/mo
•
$40K/mo
•
$40K/mo
Successful Businesses
| Business | URL | Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Online Doc Translator |
onlinedoctranslator.com |
10,012 |
|
|
Lionbridge |
lionbridge.com |
15,253 |
|
|
Free Online Translator |
translate.com |
24,659 |
|
|
CCJK |
ccjk.com |
30,754 |
|
|
TransPerfect |
transperfect.com |
31,873 |
|
|
Paralink Translator |
paralink.com |
44,867 |
|
|
On Demand Translation Service |
stepes.com |
46,116 |
|
|
Tomedes |
tomedes.com |
55,142 |
|
|
Translate by Babylon - Free Online Translation |
translation.babylon-software.com |
58,195 |
|
|
Babylon Software |
babylon-software.com |
58,442 |
|
|
SDL: Language Translation & Content Management Company |
sdl.com |
75,775 |
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Description |
|---|---|
|
Flexibility |
You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own. |
|
Ability to start your business from home |
It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning! |
|
Scalable |
With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers. |
|
Meaningful business connections |
You never know who you will meet as a language translation service. This could be the start of an incredible business opportunity! |
|
High customer retention rates |
Once a customer invests in your product, they've invested their time and energy to utilize your product/service which is highly valuable to them. Typically, your product or service becomes indispensable to your customer. |
|
High margins |
The gross margins for your language translation service are typically around 50%, which is considerably high and allows you to grow your business and manage costs easily. |
| Cons | Description |
|---|---|
|
Motivation of employees |
If you plan to have a sales/content team on board, finding creative ways to motivate them can be a challenge. It's important that you're able to offer great incentives and a good work environment for your employees. |
|
Stressful work |
This line of work can be stressful for both you and your clients. This type of transaction is a significant financial decision for your client, so expectations are very high for you. Although this career path can be very rewarding, it also comes with its challenges and stressful moments. |
|
Niche Market |
A niche business is not necessarily a bad thing, in fact, it can be the key to your success. However, it can be more challenging and time consuming to find the perfect niche market and target audience. |
|
Work can be repetitive |
You may find creating the same product over and over repetitive and tiresome. One way of avoiding this is to diversify product lines and revenue streams - this will keep things interesting! |
|
Time commitment |
With starting a language translation service, all responsibilities and decisions are in your hands. Although this is not necessarily a negative thing, work life can take over at times. This can place a strain on friends and family and add to the pressure of launching a new business. |
|
Difficult to build trust with your customer |
With starting a language translation service, there can be minimal face-to-face interaction, which means it can be a lot more difficult to establish trust with your customers. You'll need to go the extra mile with your customer to grab their attention and business. |
Marketing Ideas
-
1
Direct Sales
Direct sales strategy implies a direct contact between a seller and a consumer without the involvement of any third party. Direct selling is popular in sectors where sellers communicate with their clientele personally. The sales technique occurs at non-store locations which include at home, work, or online.
For direct selling to succeed, hire a few (or many) salespeople to support the sales conversion process. It's critical that you assign them specific roles and responsibilities to nurture the client and provide excellent support.
-
2
Word of mouth
Word of mouth is when a consumers reflects their interest in a company’s product or service in their daily dialogues.
Therefore, word of mouth advertising is essentially a free advertising triggered by the customers experience.
According to Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family.
Therefore, in today’s hyper-connected world, a single recommendation through a word of mouth can have a huge impact to your business.
-
3
Social Media Advertising
Social media advertising is the use of social media platforms to connect with your audience with the objective to build your brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic.
According to Oberlo, approximately 48% of the global population use social media, and the number is ever-growing.
Therefore, social media allows brands access to cost-effective advertising by enabling them to interact with a large audience.
Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.
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