ProZ.com Mobile is ready for outsourcers Reply

Since its release in June 2016, ProZ.com Mobile –a native app developed by ProZ.com for use on mobile devices– has been widely used by freelance language professionals to browse jobs, submit job quotes, search for translated terms, participate in KudoZ, polls and forums directly from their phones and tablets.

Now, as announced via ProZ.com forums, the app has been expanded to include a set of outsourcing tools and so give potential clients the option to find service providers on the go.

This new app version allows outsourcers to:

• browse the ProZ.com directory of translators and interpreters,
• contact service providers directly via email, phone or Skype,
• save potential candidates in vendor management lists,
• browse ProZ.com pools of screened experts and contact them, and
• post classic jobs with just one click.

Outsourcer benefits

By using ProZ.com Mobile, outsourcers can significantly improve project management times by finding service providers and assigning projects –especially urgent ones– anytime, and from anywhere.

Freelancer benefits

For freelance translators and interpreters, ProZ.com Mobile is perfect for getting the best out of ProZ.com at any time. Language professionals get and respond to jobs offers while shopping, they participate in forum discussions at lunch breaks, and they even earn KudoZ points that will later help them to stand out in the directory by answering KudoZ questions while waiting for a bus!

Also, in order to facilitate the passing of jobs not only for the agencies that use ProZ.com regularly, but also for end clients out there, new account registration and non-member login have been enabled.

Download ProZ.com Mobile for Android via the Google Play Store, and for iOS via the Apple Store:

 

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Announcing the new ProZ.com service agreements tool Reply

Good Monday, everyone! The ProZ.com site team is happy to announce the new Service agreements tool designed for site members:

ProZ.com service agreements →

The ProZ.com service agreements tool allows members to:

• create and store standard service agreements that you can use in any working relationship,
• send service agreements to other parties, discuss terms with them and agree on conditions before any projects are assigned, and
• keep an online record of agreements you entered into to prevent potential disputes –or solve them quickly– or to simply use them as reference.

Any ProZ.com member can create service agreements. Site users can only be invited to review and accept them (not a ProZ.com member yet? Join now →)

You can check this new tool by clicking on “ProZ.com service agreements” above or by mousing over the site’s “Tool” menu tab and clicking on “Service agreements”.

More information is also available in the FAQs section.

Hope you find this tool useful and that it helps you to improve the way you work. Feedback below is welcome.

Happy translating!

Resumen del seminario regional de ProZ.com en Córdoba, Argentina (2014) 1

Apenas pasadas las ocho de la mañana del sábado 8 de noviembre de 2014, los asistentes al seminario regional de ProZ.com en Córdoba, Argentina ya se agrupaban sobre una de las veredas del dinámico barrio de Nueva Córdoba. Iban llegando solos, en grupos, con mochilas en las espaldas, anotadores en las manos y algún que otro bostezo pendiente. Algunos de ellos estudiantes, otros profesionales con años de experiencia a cuestas. ¿Qué tenían en común todos? Las ganas de aprender, conectarse con colegas y divertirse.

Una vez hecha la acreditación de más de 130 asistentes, fue Juán Manuel Macarlupu Peña el que los recibió con un enorme abrazo con perfil de traductor profesional. Y ya antes del desayuno, así, con hambre de conocimiento y de medialunas, Juan Manuel los invitó a trabajar juntos para descubrir a la traducción como profesión y como negocio, delineando posibles salidas laborales, enumerando diferentes habilidades indispensables del traductor y detallando estrategias para no parecer novatos.

Finalmente, el café no se hizo esperar más, y antes de dar paso al resto de los módulos del programa, actuó como un perfecto punto de partida para que los asistentes se conozcan y comiencen a sacar mayor provecho de asistir a este evento. ¿Cómo te llamás? ¿En qué año estás? ¿En qué te especializás? Estas preguntas iban de traductor a traductor, de estudiante a estudiante, de colega a colega, actuales y futuros.

El seminario continuó con información sobre la situación del mercado laboral, tácticas para encontrar clientes, estrategias para determinar honorarios y negociar efectivamente, y una extensa discusión acerca de las diferentes posibilidades de cobro –nacional e internacional, culminando con una foto grupal cargada de buena voluntad y de amenaza de lluvia (que no tardó en hacerse efectiva).

¿Qué faltó? ¡Nada! Si hasta nos reunimos luego del seminario para verificar identidades y credenciales en los perfiles de ProZ.com, y compartir una merienda en un bar de la ciudad mientras conversamos sobre las ventajas y desventajas de la traducción automática, las diferentes formas de especializarse, los métodos de enseñanza en las diferentes instituciones educativas de la República Argentina, y, como si fuese poco, sobre la posibilidad de volver a vernos pronto, muy pronto.

Lo que resta…

• Compartir fotos y videos a través de redes sociales con el hashtag #CordobaProZ1, y ver las fotos y videos que otros han compartido:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1470141453256774/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=%23CordobaProZ1&src=typd

ProZ.com: http://www.proz.com/conference/652?page=image_gallery

• Dejar feedback y comentarios sobre el seminario, y ver los comentarios publicados por los demás: http://www.proz.com/conference/652?page=feedback

• Dejar feedback y comentarios sobre el powwow, y ver el reporte: http://www.proz.com/?sp=event/powwow_reports_view&powwow_id=5312

• Ver y descargar los certificados de asistencia en la sección “Participación en conferencias” del perfil de ProZ.com (sólo asistentes al evento): http://www.proz.com/profile

• Ver qué otros eventos de ProZ.com se avecinan: http://www.proz.com/conference/?show_mode=conferences

• Proponer un evento: http://www.proz.com/conference/?show_mode=conferences&sp_submode=propose

Gracias, Juan Manuel Macarlupu Peña, por la organización de este evento y a todos los que asistieron y aprovecharon la oportunidad de aprender, conectarse con colegas y divertirse. Aquí les dejo un video-resumen del evento y espero verlos muy pronto!

Getting the most out of industry events: Part nine Reply

This is the ninth post in a series of weekly blog posts with tips to get the most out of translation industry events (click here to see a full list of previous posts). As explained in the first part, tips are grouped into “before the event”, “during the event” and “after the event” for easy reference. Please feel free to post below and share your tip(s)!

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After the event

Tip 9: keep in touch

Coffee break during the ProZ.com 2014 international conference in Pisa, Italy

Translation industry events represent a great opportunity to meet potential clients and collaborators. However, meeting them and taking to them during the event may not be enough to get them to remember you and to later contact you for collaboration. So, what can you do to make sure event attendees you met and that may become clients keep your name in mind? Let’s see…

• Send them a nice-meeting-you email: if you did your homework during the event, you should have a few email addresses and business cards in your briefcase. Send a short email message to colleagues that have the potential of becoming business partners or clients (those who work in your expertise fields and language pairs, or those who own or work for translation companies). Let them know that it was nice meeting them and that you hope you can collaborate in the future. Make sure you are clear about the services you offer and that they may use. What’s important here is that you send them a personalized message and not a general one that you may send others as well.

• Add them to your social networks: search for potential clients and collaborators who attended the event in social and professional networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. When doing so, just make sure that your profile is a professional one or that the posts you make and that they see are related to the services you offer (most social networks allow you to set visibility and privacy permissions).

• Add them to your chat list: if you use chat software such as Skype, add potential clients you met as contacts. This may increase your chances of being contacted by them for rush projects or for projects for which they don’t have anyone in mind.

• Include their names in greetings or gift list: if once in a while you take some time to thank your clients or send them a card or a gift (for Christmas or New Year for example), make sure you include potential clients’ names in the recipient list as well. This will let them know that you keep them in mind and help them to keep your name in their mind as well.

• Invite them to future events you plan to attend: if there are any future events that you are planning to attend and that you believe may be of interest to these potential clients or colleagues, make sure you take a few minutes to invite them and show them that you are willing to see them again. You may invite them via email or social networks as long as your message is short and to the point.

In general, keeping in touch with potential clients is easier than meeting them for the first time. So, if you managed to leave your shyness aside and make an impression during the event, you should be able to stay connected afterwards, increasing your chances of getting collaboration requests and even making new friends. In the end, and as Socrates puts it, be slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue firm and constant.

How do you keep in touch with potential clients and collaborators?

Share below.

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The next –and last– part in this series will provide you with one last tip to get the most our of industry events. Keep in touch!

Getting the most out of industry events: Part six Reply

This is the sixth post in a series of weekly blog posts with tips to get the most out of translation industry events (click here to see a full list of previous posts). As explained in the first part, tips are grouped into “before the event”, “during the event” and “after the event” for easy reference. Please feel free to post below and share your tip(s)!

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During the event

Tip 6: make an impression

Attending an industry event means meeting a good number of people for the first time. And it’s not just people you are meeting, these are individuals who have the potential of becoming clients or collaborators in the future. So, you will want to make a good first impression and be remembered once the event ends.

But how can we make sure we are ready to make a good first impression on these potential clients and collaborators? Here are some tips:

ProZ.com 2012 regional event in Lyon, France

Dress for the occasion: the first thing people will see when meeting you is you. At first sight, these people won’t know who you are, the experience you have, the services you offer or anything related to your personal or professional background. So, a good starting point for getting people interested in you is to reflect your professionalism with the appropriate outfit. Clothes, jewelry, make-up, etc. are taken into account by those who don’t know us when making an initial judgement. Business casual is probably what you want to wear for a conference, whether you are attending or presenting at one. For men, it may be easier than for women. However, both can be comfortable, fashionable and professional at the same.

Watch your body language: when talking to someone for the fist time, make sure your body language reflects confidence. Make eye contact, keep your hands to your side or in your lap, don’t bite your fingernails or a pen, try to sit or stand up straight, but relaxed (you don’t want to look like a robot either!), and smile. All these will tell the other person a lot about your mood and yourself.

Listen: when approaching someone, do so with genuine interest to know them. Don’t just talk about yourself, but also –and most importantly– listen to what the other person has to say. Ask questions, comment on what your interlocutor says, show interest and, with this, become interesting yourself.

Be yourself: even when the purpose of event networking is professionally-oriented, you don’t need to be promoting yourself and selling your services at all times. Not everyone will want to discuss rates or CAT tools, and some people may even get annoyed at receiving unsolicited resumes. Sometimes the best way to promote your business is to not do it at all and just be yourself. Use your intuition to know who is looking for colleagues to work with, who is looking for service providers or who is simply attending the event to learn more and have fun.

Close on a good note: whether you have nothing else to say or the conversation with your interlocutor dragged too long already, try to end it positively to increase the chances for future conversations. Make a closing remark about one of the topics discussed (“I’ll read that book you recommended then.”) or apologize for having to do something else, but let them know that it was good meeting them and give them your business card. You may also make use of your body language, offer a handshake or grab your purse.

It is said that you will never have a second chance to create a good first impression and industry events are no exception. The first impression someone has of us may be the result of their experience and the environment. However, we can add to these by doing things right the first time.

Do you know any other tips to make a good first impression?

Share below.

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The next part in this series will suggest tips to gain new clients and collaborators during an industry event . Stay tuned!

 

Getting the most out of industry events: Part four 5

This is the fourth post in a series of weekly blog posts with tips to get the most out of translation industry events (see Part one, Part two and Part three). As explained in the first part, tips will be grouped into “before the event”, “during the event” and “after the event” for easy reference. Please feel free to post below and share your tip(s)!

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Before the event

Tip 4: design a marketing plan

In general, attending conferences and other industry events costs not only time, but also money. Taking a couple of days off, sometimes travelling and staying at hotels, attending networking dinners, all these represent an expense. However, as your own business owner, it’s up to you to turn these expenses into an investment. How? By designing a marketing plan to be implemented before, during and after the event, and that allows you to see a return of your investment through new clients and collaborators.

Personalized business cookies baked by Gabriel Cabrera and shared with attendees to the ProZ.com 2013 regional event in Madrid, Spain.

The first step in drafting a marketing plan to be implemented when attending an industry event may consist of defining three basic points:

• What you want to accomplish: define your marketing goals. Do you want to make yourself / your company known? Do you want to build better relationships with colleagues? Do you want to meet new clients / collaborators? Do you want to share information, content or opinions with others in the industry? Do you want to explore new service types / approaches? Do you want to raise funds to support a further investment?

• What tools you will use: make a list of the marketing tools you will use to reach your goals. Social media tools, CV / resume, business cards, demos, other marketing items.

• How you will use those tools: decide how you will use each marketing tool. Will you give a business card to every attendee or just to those who may be potential clients / collaborators? Will you give a demo presentation of your services to potential clients only or to everyone? Will you use social media to target potential clients, potential clients and colleagues in general, or potential clients and potential collaborators? Will you give a copy of your CV to sponsors? Defining the use of your marketing tools will require defining your target audience and this will depend on what you want to accomplish.

Other important points may relate to timing (when you will use marketing tools or when you’d like to accomplish your marketing goals).

Once you have defined marketing goals, tools and their use, it’s time to implement your plan. Keep in mind that there are plenty of marketing strategies you can apply even weeks before an event (most of these using online resources). Start announcing your attendance to the event, show potential attendees how you are preparing yourself, get in touch with attendees you will want to meet in person and make arrangements. Almost everything counts when it comes to promoting yourself while learning, networking and having fun!

Do you have a marketing plan for attending industry events? What does it include?

Post below.

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The next part in this series will start introducing tips to get the most out of industry events while they occur. Stay tuned!

Choosing the right client 35

In general, the criteria used by translation agencies and end clients for choosing the appropriate translator or interpreter for a given job are well-known: specialization in a given language pair and field of expertise, years of experience, rate range, availability, credentials and client feedback, among others. But outsourcers are not the only ones in a position to set the parameters for a given job and working relationship. Translators and interpreters too can –and actually should– have their own set of parameters to decide when to accept a job offer made by a new client or decline it.