What’s in a Brand? Janaina Ribeiro

Today’s guest is a colleague hailing from Brazil. I discovered her website one day, not really knowing what I was looking for – and then I knew! Janaina Ribeiro has been an English to Brazilian Portuguese translator for 6 years, working mainly in the marketing and PR fields. When I contacted her, she told me that this exact series had helped her figuring out the different elements that would form her brand. I thought there was no better way to to continue these interviews than with such a testimonial. Let’s hear it from Janaina!

Hello Janaina! First, thank you so much for answering my questions and taking part in this series. Could you start by telling our readers a little bit more about yourself and your business?

Hi Emeline, first I want to thank you because your blog has been such a source of inspiration for me. Your interviews with other translators have helped me tremendously, so it’s truly an honor to be featured here.

Well, I’ve been a full-time English to Brazilian Portuguese translator for six years, working mostly with business, PR and marketing texts. When I decided to pursue translation as a profession, I immediately enrolled in a reputable translation course in Brazil and was soon hired as an in-house translator by a global PR company. It was an incredible opportunity that helped me really grow into the role of a professional translator. I stayed with them for four years until venturing out as a freelancer and learned a lot about the profession and my specializations during that time.

Even though I’m not a newcomer to the industry anymore, my passion for translation has never dulled. I voraciously read translation blogs, attend various webinars and courses, love learning about new translation technology, and I recently started attending translation conferences, putting a face to all those amazing colleagues and work partners that I had never met in person.         

Many translators choose to pick an original name for their business, yet you decided to stick to your own personal name. Why is that? Did you also think about other names or was it clear from the beginning that you would go down that road?

I did contemplate having a business name, but because I’m a solopreneur, I had concerns about being confused with an agency. In the end I decided that I wanted my work to be associated with me. I’m proud of the work I do and putting my name on it just makes sense.

I find your logo very representative of what we do as translators. Can you share the story behind it?

The logo was designed by the very talented Rachel Bonness, whose work I first saw here on your blog. Because I decided to use my name as my business name, I needed imagery that would best represent the kind of work I do in a fairly straightforward manner. I was very specific with the elements that I wanted and the designer really nailed it. She gave me tons of great ideas to choose from, so it was definitely not an easy task. I chose the logo that incorporated three images—speech bubble, localization pin and globe—that I felt best summarized the industry. It’s clean, simple and to the point.

When I first visited your website, my eye was immediately drawn to the last element of the slider: a video! This is quite interesting. Was it hard to integrate it to your website? And why did you decide to add it instead of having a third picture?

My website was created by the amazing team at Websites for Translators. They work with WordPress and helped me pick a theme from the platform’s endless myriad of theme options. I was immediately drawn to the video slider. It was different from everything I had seen so far and I like how it adds an element of the unexpected. My main concern was having an easy-to-navigate website that combined text with interesting visuals because I wanted people to have a pleasant experience while visiting my website. I think the video makes people stand up and take notice; hopefully it heightens their curiosity and compels them to explore.

It certainly does, I think it achieves the effect you were looking for! And now for the traditional questions! We all know that branding is more than a name and a logo. If you had to choose three words to represent your brand, which ones would they be? 

Reliable, solid and approachable. These words represent the experience I want my clients and colleagues to have when they are interacting with me, whether visiting my website or working with me.

Finally, how do you manage to convey these aspects to your customers?

That’s a great question. I think reliability is easily conveyed during a work relationship, but some of my copy also highlights this trait, such as the strict quality assurance process I’ve adopted and my strong track record of meeting deadlines, for example.

Solidness, for me, has to do with experience and professional commitment. It also means that I take my craft seriously. This is conveyed through the projects I’ve worked on, my commitment to improving translation skills and specialist knowledge, and membership in professional associations, to list some examples.

Lastly, I chose mint green as my logo color because it’s such a welcoming and approachable color. Being approachable means that I am friendly and that my main concern is my clients’ needs. Whether I’m contacted by an old client or someone who is shopping around for their first translation provider, I always listen closely and ask questions so that I can provide them with solutions to help them attain their goals, even if that means helping them find another translation provider that better suits their needs. I’m passionate about what I do and it’s important for me that every client leaves with a smile on their face.

Thank you so much for sharing your story with us, Janaina!