10 things to do before you reply to a job offer

1. Always spell-check when replying to a job offer.. 2. Reply exactly the questions which are asked for 3. Write your language pair on the subject of your email 4. Address them by their names. Find their name from the job post 5. Do some research on the company before you reply to job offer. 6. Send your CV in the body of the email. 7. Read the mail once again before you send it 8. Send mail to only one person and not to many agencies in one mail. 9. Never write in capital letters. It is equal to shouting 10. Never send a blank e-mail All rights belong to ostom, Use of this post is allowed provided this link is present at the end of the article http://getdirectclient.blogspot.com

8 sure ways for freelancers to handle too much workload

8 sure ways to handle too much workload Do you have too much work at hand ? Do you often turn down offers but feel obliged to accept a certain amount in order not to put off clients. Do you work most of the weekends, which you think better than having too little work? Also do you know too much work can lead to high stress levels and absence of social life? How to handle it? Here are 8 sure ways to work less and earn more. 1.Raise your rates. Beleive me it is indeed a viable way of cutting down workload. Most of the clients may agree to your new rates, but some of them may start to send less work. For new or potential clients it's an ideal time to quote much higher rates. You don't need more work at the same rates, after all, and it's only worth making room for new, unproven clients if they pay you considerably more than your existing ones.So don't be afraid of quoting more than you normally charge - if they say no, you've lost nothing. 2.Evaluate your existing clients and consider raising your rates . Occasional clients who pay lower rates can be avoided without affecting your bottom line. With more regular clients, try suggesting a rate rise and see how they react. 3.Try to negotiate delivery dates. If you think you can do it by this week, suggest next week. If you're asked to do it for Friday afternoon, suggest Monday morning. Build in flexibility so you can accommodate desirable extra requests without having to work long hours. 4. let your regular clients know your situation - tell them that you can only fit in 10000 words in the next week or so. That way, you avoid having to say "no" too often as they won't ask you to take on too much. 5.Don't be afraid to say "no" to any occasional clients who offer you a job with a short turnaround - and take the opportunity to say "I'm generally fully booked up for 5/10 working days from any given point", so you save your time and theirs from wasted phone calls and e-mails. 6.Finally, don't be afraid to say no. They will come back after hearing "no" not just once, but repeatedly. 7.Do away with one of your language combinations. 8. Do away with one or more of your subject specialities

Google Docs and Spreadsheets

This facility looks like it could be of great use to translators. You can add collaborators and thus, if you trust the client, you can have a constant feed-back system. On the client side, it could ensure some amount of security against delay or default. At any given time, the client has access to the work. How does one go about this? You add collaborators. So it can be your client and you or your team and you. Ease of use: it is almost identical with the word doc format. You can download it too. Also it saves the need to open a word doc on your PC (assuming, for example, you were forced to work for a time on some public or other PC. It would, of course, be foolish not to download it regularly as the version on your PC is your proof, so to speak. For the moment a fellow translator and I are using it more creatively as we both love writing short stories- we get to edit each other's work.

IS IT DIFFICULT TO GET JOB OFFERS IF YOU DO NOT LIVE IN THE SOURCE OR TARGET LANGUAGE COUNTRY?

IS IT DIFFICULT TO GET JOB OFFERS IF YOU DO NOT LIVE IN THE SOURCE OR TARGET LANGUAGE COUNTRY? As a freelance translator you have the opportunity to work with people from all over the world who need documents translated into or from languages that you know. Many freelance translators think that they will receive more offers if they live in the country of their source or target language however that will not make a difference if your expertise is not up to the expectations of the client. Certainly living in the country of your source or target language offers you many advantages to hone your language skills; the nuance and register of language continues to evolve as the world changes. If your target language is Spanish and you are living in Spain, a client who needs an advertising document translated into Spanish may give your profile closer inspection. To use your location to your best advantage, it is important to use your knowledge as it impacts the content of the translation. On the other hand, if the same client presents you with a technical document about the mechanics of computer software, the fact that you live in Spain will not have the same value, because the software has the same requirements in ever country. Translating documents for use in your source or target language countries are where your location can work in your favor the best however expertise, professional behavior and reasonable rates are just as important. When you are approaching clients outside of these countries, this is what they will consider first. To make the most of your freelance translator opportunities, join translator forums and see how translators in other countries handle the issues that you are facing. You will learn new techniques for locating clients, tools that make your work easier as well as individuals that you can work with for proofreading and editing work.

HOW TO FIND FREELANCE TRANSLATION JOBS?

The first step in finding a freelance translation job is to assess your experience and capabilities; simply speaking two or more languages fluently is not enough. To find a job as a freelance translator your curriculum vitae should include: a bachelor's degree, qualifications and experience target language (mother tongue) source languages (the ones you translate) a picture of yourself contact information area of specialization, i.e., technical, legal, medical or literature real life experience in source language country The ability to write your own mother tongue fluently in regards to both style and context in relationship to the topic of the translation is essential. The real life experience of living or studying in a country where the language that you translate is spoken, will give you the realistic nuance of the language. Preparation and resources are the keys to finding work as a freelance translator. Preparation for being in business for yourself means having the basic tools to produce your work: an internet connection computer and appropriate software print and online dictionaries translation softwares and ideally a dictating machine If your budget allows, investing in Trados, the industry standard in Computer-Aided Translation will be invaluable. Your cover letter should describe how your will produced as well as all of your channels of communication; email, fax or instant messenger. With these tools you are now ready to start marketing your services. There are many freelance translator agencies/forums and where you can register for work and gain valuable exposure: Aquarius.Net: http://www.aquarius.net/ Language 123 Translators Marketplace: http://language123.com/s/freelance_translations_jobs.html Translators Base: http://www.translatorsbase.com/Forum/Forums/ ProZ.com at http://www.proz.com is an excellent resource for the art and business of freelance translation The International Forum: http://help.berberber.com/ English Spanish Translation Organization: http://www.english-spanish-translator.org/ Russian Translation Matters: http://www.russian-translation-matters.com/ German/Hungarian/English Translations Services: ATS Group - http://www.ats-group.net/job_en.html All Languages: Translation Services USA - http://www.translation-services-usa.com/jobs.shtml