Picture an entrepreneur who had just spent €10,000 on marketing that brought them… absolutely nothing. Not a single relevant lead. When we ask who their ideal customer was, they looked and said, “Anyone who needs translation.”
That’s like a fisherman saying his target catch is “anything that swims.” It’s not a strategy. It’s guesswork.
A buyer persona isn’t a fancy marketing term, it’s the compass for your sales and marketing. Without it, you risk wasting time, budget, and energy on people who were never going to buy from you.
Here’s how we do it in the language services world.
Start with real data, not assumptions The biggest mistake I see LSPs make is building personas based on what they think their clients want. Instead, analyse your existing client base. Who are your top 10% most profitable customers? What industries do they work in? What problems did they hire you to solve? In our case, when we looked closely, we saw clear patterns — corporate event organisers needing interpreting, marketing agencies outsourcing multilingual content, and manufacturers translating technical documentation.
Go deeper than job titles A job title tells you the position. A persona tells you the person. A marketing manager in a fintech firm might be tech-savvy, data-driven, and short on time. A project manager in a manufacturing company might be risk-averse and value guaranteed deadlines over creativity. These differences shape how you approach them.
Understand their triggers Why would they choose you over another agency — or over Google Translate/ChatGPT? Is it accuracy? Speed? Subject matter expertise? Reputation? Identifying these emotional and practical triggers helps you tailor both your service offering and your messaging.
Make it visual We build a one-page profile for each persona — photo, name, key challenges, preferred communication style, and decision-making process. It’s not just for the marketing team. Sales, project managers, and even linguists benefit from understanding who’s at the other end of the email.
Test and refine Personas aren’t set in stone. Markets change, your business evolves, and so do your clients. Review your personas at least once a year. Adjust your marketing accordingly, and you’ll see the difference in lead quality almost immediately.
If you’re still thinking your ideal client is “anyone who needs translation,” you’re leaving money on the table. In our industry, clarity is power — and the more you know about who you serve best, the faster you grow.
And yes, that company from last year? They rebuilt their entire marketing strategy around three buyer personas. This year, they’re booked out three months in advance.
By Oleg Semerikov, CEO at Translators Family
