Recommendations for future research

While this study has limitations, it is hoped that it can serve as a starting point for further studies in how interpreters in Mainland China brand themselves. For example, it is recommended that the study be replicated in a larger number of participants to

supplement or complement this present study. Questionnaires can be used to investigate whether there is any difference between how interpreters in different parts of Mainland China view such interpreters’ personal branding and whether their personal branding practices benefit their career development. More studies can also be conducted to compare other aspects of the interpretation markets on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

An important area for future research will be exploring interpreters’ personal branding strategies on other social media, like Wechat, Zhihu, and LinkedIn as subjects indicated they also used the above social media to promote themselves. Emphasis

should be especially placed on Moment of Wechat since several subjects mentioned that many interpreters in Mainland China used Wechat to brand themselves.

Another interesting venue of study might be to examine the difference between interpreters’ personal branding strategies on different social media. Gynnild (2017) claimed that digitalization pushes convergence of media, which in turn creates needs for multi-media and cross-media strategies. How interpreters utilize the features of different social media to promote themselves could be revealing. The effectiveness of their self-branding efforts on different social media could also be assessed.

Similar studies can be conducted in other regions to see whether self-branding on social media benefits interpreters in general. Comparisons can also be made to explore unique features of different interpretation markets. On top of that, it would be beneficial to replicate this study on freelancers of other professions.

The author hopes that the findings of this study are intriguing enough to generate future research on interpreters’ personal branding strategies and to restore its due place in interpreting studies.

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