Training for Translators

Classes for translators and interpreters


Corinne McKay

How to ask clients for feedback

Working as a freelance translator means working in a bit of a vacuum. The upside: no pointy-haired boss! The downside: no on-location colleagues off whom to bounce ideas, and very little feedback on how you’re doing. If you work as an in-house translator, your work is probably reviewed by a senior translator or in-house reviser. Hopefully you receive a performance review now and again. But as a freelancer, you’re often on your own when it comes to soliciting feedback on your translations.

Sometimes, a client’s behavior speaks for itself. A client who sends you a steady flow of work is mostly likely very happy with your translations. A one-and-done client, perhaps not so much. Freelancers often work with little to no meaningful feedback from clients, for various reasons. Perhaps the client doesn’t read the source or target language; perhaps they don’t want to get in the middle of a translator-editor UFC match; perhaps they’re simply too busy.

You can’t force a client to tell you what they thought of your translation. Some people are personally or culturally allergic to giving feedback that isn’t glowing. Still, feedback is an important element of keeping clients happy and becoming a better translator, so let’s look at how to at least encourage feedback from clients.

Set the tone at the start of the relationship. I tell every new client that:

  • I want to build a long-term relationship with them, and honest feedback is part of that (from them to me and from me to them).
  • I really value their feedback, even if it’s negative or critical. I really appreciate any client who takes the time to thoroughly read and review my work.
  • I never want a client to be afraid of hurting my feelings: if they have feedback about the translation, positive or negative, they should just say it.

If you add one element to your feedback-solicitation process, I think it should be this: at least tell your clients that you value their feedback and you’re open to it.

Reiterate the request for feedback every time you return a translation to a client. In my experience, direct clients are much more willing to provide feedback than most agencies are. Still, even if you work exclusively with agencies, put the offer out there. “Thank you for contacting me for this, and I look forward to your feedback so that I know what worked well in this translation and how I can better serve you in the future.”

Agency-specific tip. If you think you can stick to it, offer to read the final version of the translation without responding to it. Here’s where things get tricky. In my experience, many agencies provide almost no feedback other than something cursory (“The client was happy with it”), and generally do not allow the translator to see the editor’s changes or the final version of the document. My guess is that they don’t want to get in the middle of a dispute between the translator and the editor–the changes get sent to the translator, the translator objects to them, gets angry, and insists that the agency reverse the changes, or fire the editor, or whatever. Some agencies might be amenable to showing you the changes or the final document, if you promise not to respond. Before you propose that type of arrangement, you have to think it through: what will you do if you see that the editor introduced an error or made stylistic changes that you don’t agree with? Still, it could be worth a shot.

Add a customer satisfaction survey to your process. I gleaned this tip from a student in my Marketing to Direct Clients class; it’s fast and basic, and gives clients a little nudge to comment on your services if they want to. Start by creating a very simple survey in a tool like Survey Monkey, so that it can be anonymous. The translator who taught me this technique used three questions:

  • On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied were you with my services?
  • On a scale of 1-5, how likely would you be to recommend me to a friend or colleague?
  • Would you like to offer any comments about my services?

Then, include a link to this survey when you return a translation to a client: “If you’d like to offer any feedback about my services, I have a very short customer satisfaction survey that you can complete.” This gives clients an easy way to provide feedback if they want to.

Ask for a recommendation on your LinkedIn profile. This is more in the testimonial category than the feedback category, but it’s a good way to ask for client input in a way that is not pushy. If you e-mail a client directly and ask for a testimonial, it’s somewhat awkward if they don’t want to provide one. Some clients just do not provide testimonials or references to freelancers, end of story. And, as long as they pay the bills, that’s their prerogative. Asking for a recommendation on your LinkedIn profile has a few advantages: it’s not pushy (the client just doesn’t do it if they don’t want to), and, if the client does do it, it’s public, so it’s easy to show to potential clients.

Ask for feedback from all of your clients once a year. You could apply one of the techniques above, but frame it as “an end-of-year request for feedback from all of my clients.” Again, part of the goal is to encourage your clients to provide feedback while not stressing them out if they don’t want to say anything. Making the request seem like part of your standard client relations process can help in that department.

Readers, over to you: any other ideas on asking for feedback from clients?


Corinne McKay

New online course: English to Spanish legal translation

Earlier this year, I decided to expand my usual offering of online business classes for translators (going strong since 2006!) and begin offering translation skills development courses. The inaugural course in that vein was Translation Workshop: French to English, and–thanks to the efforts of the amazing team of instructors, including Michele Hansen, Judy Lyons, Karen Tkaczyk and Tom West–it was a great success. The session sold out, and feedback from the participants was overwhelmingly positive.

Building on the success of the French to English course, I’m excited that well-known English to Spanish legal translator and lawyer Paula Arturo accepted my invitation to teach a translation technique class. English to Spanish legal translation will run, fully online, from September 4 through October 16, including two live sessions per week and six practice translations that Paula will provide individual feedback on. The students in the French to English workshop commented that it is a (sadly!) rare, and valuable thing to have your work evaluated by a true expert, and this English to Spanish class will give that opportunity to anyone who translates into Spanish and specializes, or wants to specialize, in legal translation.

The early bird price of $525 for this class expires on Friday and we still have a few spots left, so please sign up before then and save $150 off the regular price. ATA members can receive an additional $25 off with coupon code ATA. I hope to see some of you there!


Corinne McKay

Travel: Back from Beautiful British Columbia!

After a thoroughly relaxing month off (well, minus the day that my bike was stolen off our car in Missoula, Montana…but that’s another story!), I’m back in the office as of today. As usual, the complete break from work really cleared my head and gave me some good new perspectives on where I’d like my freelance business to head in the remaining half–well, almost half–of 2018. My family spent the month of July on an epic mountain biking road trip from our home in Boulder, Colorado, to the wilds of British Columbia, including such mountain biking hotspots as Vancouver’s North Shore, Squamish, Whistler, Kamloops, and Rossland. Although Italy will always have a special place in my heart as a biking destination, BC was pretty incredible and we’re already plotting a return trip in the not-too-distant future.

I’ve beaten this drum many times, but just as a refresher, here’s how you take real vacations as a freelancer:

  • Make sure that you’re charging enough for your freelance services that you can afford to take time off
  • Create a paid vacation account, and–either routinely or periodically–deposit money into that account, then use the stored balance to pay yourself during the time that you’re not working
  • Alert your clients that you will be on vacation, and provide them with the name of at least one trusted colleague who can fill in for you while you’re away
  • Put your trusted colleague’s contact information on your e-mail auto-responder and your voicemail, so that clients aren’t left in the lurch when you’re not available
  • UNPLUG. Trust me, it’s possible, if you set things up properly in advance. I’ve been taking a month off in the summers for almost 10 years, and to my knowledge, I’ve never lost a client because of it. No one is indispensable, and time off–even if you take a week instead of a month–is critical to your mental and physical health.

Happy summer to all of you, and I look forward to what’s ahead in the rest of 2018!


Corinne McKay

Fall online courses open for registration

I’m excited to announce that my Fall 2018 lineup of online courses is open for registration. After 12 years of offering only business development classes for translators, I decided to expand my course offerings into translation technique classes, and the inaugural session of Translation Workshop: French to English ran in May and June.  Thanks to the team of expert instructors (Michele Hansen, Judy Lyons, Karen Tkaczyk, and Tom West), the class went really well; one participant commented:

“It was really rewarding to have this more intimate class with very experienced teachers geared toward people already working in the translation industry. Some of the topics and discussions were more practical than some of the classes in my Masters program. The sessions were extremely informative and it was really helpful to receive individual feedback on my translations”

Building on the success of that sold-out course, I’m offering more translation technique courses (and one business development course) this fall: read below for details, and I hope to see some of you there!

Content Marketing: For your business, and for your clients

Instructors: Matt Baird, CT; and Corinne McKay, CT
Next session: September 5-October 17, 2018
Cost: $525 through Friday, August 3; $675 thereafter if spots are still available. $25 discount for members of the American Translators Association; apply coupon code ATA at checkout.

English to Spanish legal translation

Instructor: Paula Arturo
Next session: September 4-October 16, 2018
Cost: $525 through Friday, August 3; $675 thereafter if spots are still available. $25 discount for members of the American Translators Association; apply coupon code ATA at checkout.

Translation Workshop: German to English

Instructors: Eve Hecht, Jill Sommer, and Ted Wozniak
Next session: November 5-December 21, 2018 (no class the week of November 19)
Cost: $525 through October 5; $675 thereafter if spots are still available. $25 discount for members of the American Translators Association; apply coupon code ATA at checkout.

Marketing to Direct Clients

Instructor: Corinne McKay
Next session: November 5-December 10, 2018 (no class during the week of November 19)
Cost: $360 through Friday, October 5; $385 thereafter if spots are still available. $25 discount for members of the American Translators Association; apply coupon code ATA at checkout.


Corinne McKay

Simple time management tips to implement today

If your schedule is anything like mine, summer = all aboard the crazy train, when it comes to time management and getting things done. Between trips, kids out of school, picnics, weeding, making sure that the cat has enough of his favorite food before the house-sitter comes, AND many of my Europe-based clients trying to finish major projects before they take the month of August off, things can start to unravel very quickly.

To add to the fun, time management is a personal journey. Like other things in life–getting in shape or saving money–that seem simple, yet have entire self-help genres devoted to them, managing your time involves self-awareness, self-discipline, clarity about your priorities, and other goals that take a lifetime to master. What’s a frazzled freelancer to do? With no one-size-fits-all solution, my best advice is: Experiment. Take a few simple time management techniques and try them…starting right now. Here are a few that I’ve found helpful and that I’d encourage you to try. Remember that–unlike what self-help gurus preach–you don’t have to commit to this for the rest of your life. Try an hour; I think you can do that, and you’ll feel a lot better.

–The Pomodoro Technique is a simple, sensible time management technique that a lot of people like. Named after the tomato-shaped timer that its founder used, the idea here is to give yourself a chunk of time to work on just one task. The technique boils down to: pick a task, set a timer for 25 minutes, cross the task off and take a short break away from your desk. After four chunks of time (Pomodoros), take a longer break of 20-30 minutes.

–The power hour. I made that name up, but you’ll get the idea. Give yourself an hour to work on your primary project with NO interruptions. I did this when I got to work today; I’m working on a large international development project that has to be done before I leave for vacation on Sunday. I’ll make the deadline, but just. I got to my office, checked e-mail, responded to the urgent ones, and then worked on this translation with zero interruptions for an hour. Bingo: in that hour, one third of what I needed to translate today was done. I think you’ll be surprised at how much you can get done in just one hour if you really focus.

–Eat the frog. Just Google that expression and you’ll find an entire self-help genre devoted to it alone! Inspired by Mark Twain’s advice to “Eat a live frog every morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day,” the idea is to do your most unpleasant tasks first. Let’s say you avoid accounting–not that I’ve ever done that…every single day of my freelance life. You do the accounting tasks immediately upon sitting down at your desk, before you look at e-mail, before you drink coffee, before anything else, and then the worst part of the day is done, right there.

–Bundle your activities. By now, we all know that multitasking doesn’t really work. Instead, try this: think of two activities you can do simultaneously, without impeding your performance in either one. Practice interpreting while you’re walking on the treadmill. Take phone calls while walking laps around your kitchen island. Get together with a friend you haven’t seen in a long time, work for an hour, and then talk for a while. Have your kids ride their bikes next to you while you go jogging. Ride the bus to work instead of driving, so that you can work on the bus.This kind of bundling can feel a little desperate, but falls into the “better than nothing” category.

–Ruthlessly scratch things off the priority list. Let the non-essential things drop, right this red hot second. For example, when I’m in a crunch period, I give myself permission to delete certain types of e-mails (“We think your blog readers would love our infographic on travel writing”) without responding. And I delete the followups without responding. It’s not how I like to operate in the best of times, but I give myself permission to use it as a survival strategy in a pinch.

If you like to create a schedule (I don’t do this on a daily basis, but I do when I’m attending a conference or other work-related event), HubSpot contacted me and suggested a set of free schedule templates that they offer.

Whatever your summer plans, I hope these tips help you to carve out some sanity amid the haphazard non-routine of the season. If you have additional suggestions, I’d love to hear them in the comments!