A blended client base and how to make it work for you

Watch the recording of Fiona Gray's presentation to the ITI Conference 2022. 

In this honest and relatable account of her own experience and what she has learnt along the way, Fiona provides practical tips that will help other translators to manage their clients and workload as they strive to achieve their business goals without having to compromise on their wellbeing and work-life balance.

Almost two-thirds of translators who responded to a recent Twitter poll work with both agencies and direct clients. Some of those translators will no doubt be gradually heading towards their long-term goal of working exclusively with direct clients. And others might have found that a blended client base is the best of both worlds and an effective antidote to the age-old freelance feast-or-famine predicament.

Either way, it takes a great deal of skill, flexibility and commitment to successfully manage this hybrid business model, considering that agency and direct clients are likely to have fundamentally different workflows, timescales, expectations and understandings of the translation process. But when it works, it works. If you are starting to think about diversifying your client base, or maybe you’re already feeling stuck in the middle and struggling to juggle your different client types, then this presentation promises you an honest and relatable guide to making your hybrid business model work for you.

 

Biography

Fiona Gray MITI is a German to English translator and the director of Grayscale Translations Limited. She specialises in marketing and business texts and excels in the translation of relatively small pieces that require a dash of creativity and close attention to style. A passionate member of ITI, Fiona is the Coordinator of the ITI East Anglia Network, a member of the Membership Committee and in May 2022 was appointed to the Board.

Twitter: @GrayscaleTR

Website: www.grayscaletranslations.co.uk

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/fiona-gray