How To Make An Extra $1k Per Month As An English To Spanish Translator

This is a question one of my readers had.

Honestly I've been asked similar questions a lot. Please find my answer is below.

Let me know what you think, ok?

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Q: Hi Joy I’m looking to relocate overseas to Venezuela where cost of living is less and I hope to earn some decent pay from home.

I’m planning to teach at a school and tutor as well. That part of it will offer me the social contact and enjoyment that I need.

However the local Venezuelan currency is worthless which is the appeal of translating online and earning in better currency. Teaching pays above average but I still would like to earn around $1k per month maybe $500 or so to save and get ahead.

Is translating something I can do entirely from home? Also what languages are the highest in demand right now, meaning offering a decent amount of opportunities as well as pay? Your thoughts?

Doug McKenzie from U.S.

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A: Hi Doug, thanks for the message. As a matter of fact, many language teachers are doing translations on the side and many translators also tutor languages to bring in additional income. Language teaching and translation seem to be such a natural fit for people who want to explore income potential with their linguistic talent and skills.

Let’s get down to the point here. To be able to create a monthly income of $1k you need more than just luck. Like other popular languages such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French, Spanish has always been a language in high demand in the industry. But the supply is also huge. That means you have a large amount of competitors out there – English to Spanish translator or those who translate Spanish into English. I’m not even counting those who just claim they can translate from Spanish to English or translate from English to Spanish.

If you don’t have anything particular that makes you stand out from the crowd, you might have to take jobs with very low pay.It’s not uncommon for online translation jobs to pay under 5 cents per word these days.

I personally find it amazing what people are willing to do for such a small amount of money. But this is the reality: most people are looking for bargains online unless your service offers something unique which translates into additional value that people are willing to pay for.

Let’s assume you have a set rate of 5 cents per word, how much work do you have to get to make that $1k monthly? That’s about 20000 words per months here.

I can tell you from my own experience - it would be very difficult to consistently get that much work from online source alone unless you have a substantial network in place that brings you referrals all the time.

Besides, how much time do you have working as an English to Spanish translator after teaching and tutoring?

Based on the information you provided, here are a few suggestions for you:

1- Pick a niche

To set yourself apart from your competition, you need to be an expert in a specific area. A general translator is more likely to get a meagre pay rate than someone who is specialized in a niche.

You don’t have to choose legal translation or medical translation if that’s not your call. There are other in-demand niches if you pay attention.

How about offering services that help businesses writing monthly newsletters in Spanish and English? How about virtual assistance services that utilize your bilingual skills? Remember, you should at least make a part of what you offer repeatable. That way, you are not simply trading your time for money which can be very hard way to get ahead financially.

2- Consider selling other business services or products

If you just offer personal service as an English to Spanish translator, you have only limited income potential. The reason is simple – there’s only so much time you have. If you learn how to leverage your time, you’ll have a better chance of bringing a healthy income on a regular basis.

There are a few ways to leverage your time, but there are a few tested ones that you may want to start with,

- Outsource your actual translation work and concentrate on marketing your services and get commissions on each job completed

- evelop digital versions of your services. That could be an ebook, or a educational cd or online classes etc. Anything you can sell over and over again even when you are not working

3- Be prepared to spot opportunities around you

We all start from somewhere. But the most successful business venture you run may not be the one that you had in your mind initially. Yes, you may just want to moonlight as an English to Spanish translator to bring in some extra income. But whether you like it or not, it is a business model.

To run a successful business, you have to try and test and adjust to find the best solution for yourself. Things that have worked for me may not work for you in the same way. You really have to be ready to adapt to the market needs and adjust accordingly.

good luck!

Joy

translators-biz-secret.com

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