Marketing T&I Services during a Pandemic: Why You Should Do It and How to Get It Right (COVID-19 Series)
Lately, you may be asking yourself, "How do I market my translation or interpreting services during a global health and economic crisis?" or "Should I be marketing at all?"
You're not alone.
This question has landed in my inbox so many times in the past few weeks as colleagues have written to me to ask what they should do.
How you decide to market your business during the COVID-19 pandemic is a very personal decision. You may be of the mind that outbound marketing (actively marketing by sending your marketing message to clients) is inappropriate right now.
And while I will admit that I thought this myself during those first few days when things were changing nearly by the hour, I quickly changed my mind.
Why?
Because our clients still need us. And their clients need us. Plain and simple.
While I'll touch on inbound marketing later in this post, I'd like to ask you to consider two things before you decide that you absolutely will not do any outbound marketing during this crisis.
Do you have work landing in your inbox consistently right now?
Are you sure that you will continue to have enough consistent work throughout this crisis?
If your answer is "no" to either of these questions (most of the colleagues I talk to would answer "no" to at least one) and you don’t have another source of cash flow in your household to rely on in uncertain times, you may need to rethink what you will and won't do.
I get it. No one wants to appear out of touch or opportunistic, especially when there is so much suffering.
But rather than continue to worry that you might turn clients off or bother them during what is a very stressful time for everyone, have you considered that your clients might very well need your services as a solution to one of many problems they're experiencing?
While continuing to work and earn money, you can continue to contribute to the economy. You can continue to provide your clients incredibly useful services during a time when their challenges are great and their resources are potentially very few.
To be clear, there is a way to market your business and not be salesy. There is a way to market your business and still be compassionate. There is a way to market your business and serve your clients where they are right now.
If incoming work has slowed down, or if it's come to a complete standstill, you might be experiencing a lot of doubt right now when it comes to marketing your services at all.
But trust me. Just because some of your clients don’t seem to be spending money right now, that doesn’t mean that no one is.
Yes, some industries and companies are experiencing a huge downturn right now. But others are not. Even those that are struggling are looking for ways to be creative when it comes to their own marketing. So, why not build a partnership to help them revive their businesses?
By marketing your business appropriately right now, you can not only show up for your clients during a time when everyone could use some additional support, but you can set your translation or interpreting business on the path to forming and maintaining long-term stability.
Hone your messaging first
Messaging is always key when it comes to marketing, but now, more than ever, it's absolutely essential to get it right.
If your messaging is appropriate, and you're coming from a place of service, your clients will see you as a helping hand, not as an opportunist. And while we surely all want to be the former, proper messaging is vital in avoiding the latter.
During a time when everyone is struggling in some way, the best way we can help our clients—both now and all the time—is by solving problems.
The key to your messaging lies in how you solve problems for those you serve. Only you know what messaging is appropriate for your ideal clients. Only you can determine the right messaging for a scenario like the current crisis.
Whatever approach you take, it is important to recognize the situation that everyone is in. Don’t avoid mentioning COVID-19. Instead, call it out. Everybody is thinking about this right now. And while your messaging should not be only about COVID-19, you should acknowledge it, and keep in mind that you do have something of value to offer that is relevant.
Current client approach
Craft a brief, but sincere, email message to your clients.
Ask how they’re doing.
Let them know that you’re available to help with anything urgent. If they have something related to COVID-19 messaging to send their clients, colleagues, or employees, tell them that you’ll put it at the front of the project queue.
Avoid a direct sales pitch of any sort unless what you are offering is relevant and of help to them right now.
Pretty simple, right?
When you write to your clients, don’t do so expecting a response. That said I'd be willing to bet that you will receive at least a few.
Even if there is no offer or mention of projects or assignments in the pipeline, your clients will be happy to hear from you, to experience some normalcy and a friendly face in their inbox. I mean, couldn't we all do with a kind message in our inbox these days?
It's important to keep in mind that everyone is stressed and working double the time in fewer hours right now.
My own work dried up for about a week or so, but once clients seemed to get settled in their new, remote routines, my project flow picked back up again.
And of course, my messaging helped.
Here are two messages I sent to clients and their responses:
Outbound message #1:
Client response:
Outbound message #2:
Client response:
While both of these messages resulted in positive outcomes, there is the possibility that there may not be a specific assignment in the queue for you at the time you send your current clients a message like this. On the other hand, it could very well be the case that your email is well-timed and that you could take something off your clients' overly full plates, either now or a month from now. You'll never know if you don't reach out.
New client approach
Once you've had a chance to craft your pandemic-related messaging to your current clients, it's time to think about new clients.
Yes, it's true that it's easier to market to existing clients than it is to new ones, but that doesn't make it impossible, nor does it make you tone-deaf.
Consider your area(s) of specialization and the clients you have the ability to serve. Then, ask yourself these questions.
What potential clients could you reach out to who are in a similar position as your current clients and that could truly use a professional translator or interpreter right now?
What gap(s) do you fill in the market right now?
Are you willing to offer your services at a discounted rate to those who may not have an ideal budget due to the economic downturn caused by COVID-19?
Can you serve another industry by using the skills you and experience you have?
Who most definitely needs professional and prompt language services during a time like this? And who will need them long after this crisis has ended?
Craft a similar message to those I shared above and tweak them to fit potential clients who would value your services and appreciate some help to overcome language-related challenges. Remember to:
Ask how they’re doing.
Tell them you're available to help them with anything urgent, and if it is related to the COVID-19 messaging for their clients, colleagues, or employees, you will put it at the front of your project queue.
Avoid a direct sales pitch of any sort unless what you are offering is relevant and of help to them right now.
If this pandemic has shown us anything, it's that everyone has been impacted in some way. We are seeing industries and companies suffering losses like never before. But at the same time, they are working on their own messaging and communications—both to survive the current crisis and to prepare for the future. They have to be ready to meet their customers where they are when people are ready to spend money on their products and services.
Decide if a pivot—even a temporary one—is necessary
Small and large businesses and organizations are showing just how creative and scrappy they can be right now. As I write this, restaurants are offering take-out and delivery options to be able to remain open. Schools are taking to online instruction more than we've ever seen in order to finish out the school year with some semblance of order. Fitness studios are offering remote group classes to pay the rent while their employees and patrons have been ordered to stay home.
As you consider the current and future state of your business, don't be afraid to rule out a pivot, even if it is a temporary one.
Perhaps you work for one of the harder hit industries, let's say travel and tourism. Take some time to look at previous projects and assignments you’ve successfully completed.
Are there any projects you've handled that could relate to another specialization or field?
What can you provide for an industry that might be booming right now?
How can you show up for your travel and tourism clients to help them finesse their current messaging, as well as their post-COVID-19 messaging when customers are ready to travel again?
While a complete pivot may not be necessary, it's important to stay open to possibilities you might not have previously considered.
If you're not sure where to start with your new-client messaging, go back to the idea of looking for a gap that you might fill right now. There are a lot if you are paying attention!
If you are a healthcare interpreter, consider contacting all of the local doctors and dentists offices that have patients in areas with large populations of speakers of other languages (preferably those in your wheelhouse) and offer your services. A lot of them are still cancelling and rescheduling appointments via phone calls, text messages, and emails, as well as conducting virtual “office visits” with their patients by utilizing remote interpreting methods.
If you're a translator, could you offer those same doctors and dentists a way to notify their clients about new procedures and healthy practices by translating email content for patients? Many offices will be sending COVID-19-related notifications for the next several months, maybe longer. How can you offer your services to help?
Consider offering short-term, pro bono relief to those most in need
You may have considered offering some free translations related to the pandemic within your specializations. Or perhaps you're willing to meet a need for an interpreter when there is simply no way to offer payment for a situation that requires critical communications.
If you have the ability to give something for free during this chaotic time, you can serve a current need while planting a seed for the future—when clients do have the cash flow to be able to allocate part of their budget to professional translation or interpreting.
I was truly moved by these kindhearted translators who recently contributed to those in need.
While both Gabriella and Dolores surely have their own set of unique challenges during this pandemic, those they help through their efforts will remember them in the future. And even though I'm sure they didn't offer pro bono services with this outcome in mind, they may very well see a thankful recipient of their services return the favor one day by hiring them for their own language needs or paying it forward by passing their names along to someone else.
If you're not in a position to offer your services for free at the moment, is there anything you could create for or pass along to your clients who you know are suffering right now in some way related to this virus? If you're drawing a blank, you could consider sending something useful but meaningful, such as:
An article or resource that might be timely and relevant
A simple message in one of your working languages that lets their clients know how long they will be closed or when they plan to reopen
An uplifting message (this can seem like a very small gesture, but you never know who needs to receive one)
Whatever you offer, make sure that you can relate it back to your brand and offerings in some way, but be sensitive about the language you use when you deliver it. What I've found to be most effective is to simply acknowledge the hardship and share what you can offer as a small contribution to helping them in a tough time.
Don't forget your inbound marketing strategy
This is rather obvious, no? After all, if you have extra time on your hands due to a slow trickle of incoming work, you can put that time to use by marketing your business in ways other than those mentioned here.
First and foremost, make sure you have updated your website so that your copy and design appeal to your ideal clients. If you've been meaning to create a new website, now's the time.
If your clients and leads are active on social media, engage with them regularly. You can still market your services indirectly by being helpful and available to them online in this way.
Update any directory profiles you have on association websites. Make sure that your profile leads back to your website.
Polish your résumé. Add any new experience or training you have, and remove anything that doesn't reflect the work you want to attract going forward.
Make a list of companies, organizations, or agencies where you'd like to apply or market your services once people are going back to work.
I could go on and on.
There is plenty of marketing work you can do to look to the future and prepare your business for better times to come.
Start small and market your services with care
If you've been on the fence about marketing your business during the COVID-19 crisis, start small. Perhaps a happy medium of both outbound and inbound marketing is the right fit for you.
Work on your inbound marketing first so that when you are ready, you have a place to (your website) to lead your clients. And when you figure out the outbound marketing techniques that are most appropriate for your ideal customers, be ready to go after it.
Get to work. Make this time count. No matter what, don’t simply wait for the work to come to you.
After dusting yourself off from the initial shock of all this, take proactive steps and consider the fact that this is a perfect time to be planting seeds. The economy will turn around, people will go back to work, and when they do, they will remember you for their future translation or interpreting needs.
Whatever your specializations are, there is work for you. There are people who need your services, and there are many who needed them yesterday! It’s time to step up, pivot your message with care, and contribute value by solving problems.
If your project pipeline has dried up, or even if it's just barely flowing at a trickle, you have the gift of time right now. And if it hasn’t yet slowed down, count yourself lucky. But think twice about putting off all marketing efforts to another time. You never know when crises like COVID-19 will happen. As quickly as this virus has taken hold of our communities, bringing many to their knees, your current project load could slow down tomorrow. No one is immune to the effects of here today, gone tomorrow. But take comfort in the fact that you have incredibly important skills that are valuable to others.
Even if your clients or leads cannot afford your services at your normal rates right now, they will remember that you reached out to them and that you checked on them during a time when they were struggling.
This does not go unnoticed. What does go unnoticed is if you stay silent and don't find a way to be relevant by offering your support and incredibly valuable services during a time when everyone can use an extra hand.
