By Margaret Wiens

Today, Google searching is an integral part of online activity, whether the user is acting as an information provider or consumer. With the widespread availability of information, 89% of consumers will search for a product or service online before making a purchase (Kumar 2017). In the battle to maximize content and make an impact online, the stakes are high. Research indicates that 75% of users never look beyond the first page of search results (Kumar 2017), which greatly limits the options the user has available to them, as well as limits the vast number of companies and individuals who are passed over by the search engine’s algorithm.

According to Google, having complete and accurate data is necessary to improve a website’s ranking. Keywords, metadata, and a social media presence are just a few ways to ensure a user’s engine search will provide them with relevant results. Multiple external connections are proven to increase search engine rankings (Rampton 2015): Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn profiles are among the first results to appear in a Google search.

Translators can benefit from this trend because the majority of their work is done online, and their training and experience as content writers and interpreters enables them to provide complete and accurate information for their clients. Additionally, their work is increasingly dependent on effective networking. As a result, they are proficient in online marketing strategies—including push and pull marketing—to promote themselves to both existing and potential clients, and by extension they are able to use these strategies to benefit their clients. In the language industry, reviews are increasing used to gauge the value of a company or an independent translator. A growing number of companies, including translation agencies, take advantage of this trend by showcasing their team members and encouraging clients to write positive reviews that are published on their websites.   
Translators also have the advantage of knowing two or more languages, which enables them to have multiple versions of their content that can reach a wider and more diverse audience. Having translated versions of a website or text greatly increases its prominence and distance online.

I have noticed that having a French-English language pair is beneficial in Canada and abroad, due to the amount of Internet content created in English that outweighs other languages. I am also able to search for results in either language if the results are not what I am looking for. As a translator, I also feel better equipped to write effectively so that I can reach a target audience when I create content and make an impact on the online community.

Profile Link http://modlingua.com/interns/368-margaret-wiens%E2%80%94frencch-english-translator.html

Sources

Ravi Kumar. 2017 “Push and Pull Marketing”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCz7C5KArlA&feature=youtu.be
John Rampton. 2015 “How Internet Marketing Will Affect Various Industries in 2015”. https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnrampton/2015/01/12/how-internet-marketing-will-affect-various-industries-in-2015/#757b1be3782a
“Improve your local ranking on Google” https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091?hl=en