Why Most Go-Independent Efforts Fail

Once they've been in the game for a while, a lot of freelance translators who are working mainly for agents decide to take a run at the direct-client market.

They've been doing well (perhaps by applying the tools set out in my ebook), and they've got cash in the bank and a fair amount of free time available to kick start their new venture.

So they get some snazzy business cards printed up (and maybe even incorporate the operation), put together an expansive website, and start contacting potential clients.

They're buzzing!

They're feeling stoked!

This premature elation is hardly surprising as direct rates are often many times higher than agency rates.

But in most cases, their efforts end in abject FAILURE.

Time goes by, and their client book just isn't filling up in the way they'd hoped.

The initial energy and enthusiasm begins to wane - and their bank balance is shrinking by the day.

Gradually, they go into retreat.

They start putting less effort into landing direct clients, and more time punching keys for the agencies again.

In other words, they ...

GIVE UP.

Their website sits there un-updated like a cyberfossil (there are literally thousands of these zombie websites out there right now), and sad to say, they're pretty much back to square one ...

There's always ONE basic reason why they failed:

THEY DIDN'T TAKE ENOUGH ACTION.

They grossly underestimated the effort it would take to develop their business - normally by a factor of 10, according to Grant Cardone.

They printed up and distributed 10,000 pamphlets. It should've been 100,000.

They emailed 50 potential clients a day. It should've been 500.

They spent $5 a day boosting their facebook page. It should've been $50.

They called 20 potential clients a day. It should've been 200.

They read three books about sales and marketing. It should've been 30.

They attended four industry conferences relating to their fields of translation in the first year. It should've been 40.

They made personal visits to one potential client a day. It should've been 10.

Of course, there can be other reasons for failure, but insufficient action is usually the biggest by far.

They're a translator. They change sentences in one language into sentences in another language. They're selling a commodity. They haven't developed the latest hot app that's just going to magically become a hit. They might think they're hot stuff, but they're selling something that thousands of others are selling, and they simply don't have any idea beforehand of the kind of relentless action it's going to take to push through the resistance and establish themselves as a significant presence in the marketplace.

Going independent can be done. But it takes a hell of a lot of work.

Whether you decide to go for it or not, best of luck on your journey.

Matt