| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3 4 5 6] > | Finding work, fast, lost my previous client(s) Thread poster: S_G_C
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S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
Dan Lucas wrote:
As a previous poster has mentioned, the UK (and many other countries) are experiencing a severe shortage of staff in some industries. I don't know if the same applies to Romania.
Dan
It doesn't. Not where I live, at least. And when there are unskilled or less skilled jobs (like sales assistant, cashier, or the people working in food stores), they prefer youngsters. I will be turning 45 in 2023. I'm still looking, though.
| | | | S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
Metin Demirel wrote:
That's a great number.
Yup, changed myself into different sets of pajamas and kept typing.
| | | | John Fossey 
Canada
Local time: 14:07
Member (2008)
French to English
+ ...
Sorana_M. wrote: Hayley Wakenshaw wrote:
...and unfortunately, this is not the quick fix you need right now, but have you written to translation agencies who might need your language pair?
Some years ago, I sent like 3,000 e-mails in 10 days. To every viable agency here and on another portal. Of those, maybe 30 replied. Maybe. Of those, maybe 5 offered me a real job. Maybe. But revisiting the database might be an idea. 
30 replies out of 3000 - in other words a 1% response - is about what you should expect. And 5 clients out of 30 contacts - a 17% result - is very good.
Now those 30 are real contacts that you can follow up again. And the remaining 2970 would certainly be worth following up, with a different message. You only need one response to get back to work!
As a general rule of thumb, you should not let any one client represent more than 20 - 25% of your sales, because it takes too big of a bite from your income if you lose that client.
| | | | S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
Rachel Waddington wrote:
Also, if you are sending 3000 CVs in a day, maybe a more targeted and personal approach might pay off. A couple of highly personalised emails per day might work better than a bulk approach.
I wish you the very best of luck,
Rachel
That was 3,000 in 10 days. So 300 a day.
Thank you!
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S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
John Fossey wrote:
As a general rule of thumb, you should not let any one client represent more than 20 - 25% of your sales, because it takes too big of a bite from your income if you lose that client.
I know. But things have been tough for me in the past too and when this one client proved to be a solid one, accepting upfront payments and my chosen payment method and really dedicating themselves to making the relationship work, even understanding my personal problems when my daughter was hospitalized in the neighboring city, well... it just mattered more.
| | | | S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
Elena Feriani wrote:
The good part is that the client didn't look for someone else because they didn't like your work, but because you were not available. It is likely that they will contact you again in the future. Maybe you can contact them to inform them that you are all set up now and are available for proofreading jobs.
True. My work was fine. It's already been published. And there's more to come.
They know I'm available now.
| | | | S_G_C
Romania
Local time: 21:07
English to Romanian
TOPIC STARTER
A fellow Romanian translator has just told me about the Romanian contenders: "we are just too many". He may be right. A new generation of translators is being produced by the dedicated colleges/faculties and universities over here each year.
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Anna Sarah Fazendeiro wrote:
I have been a little out of the circuit myself in the last years, and still find somewhat adequate work in my language. But a relative who is trying to enter the translation industry is telling me the same about translation jobs into Portuguese. The rate doesn't allow to make a living from translation.
But the problem is not really the translation industry, it's that most work in Southern European countries doesn't allow people to live with dignity. Whatever the reasons for this (my personal favorite is neoliberalism together with widespread corruption [or are they the same thing], I guess we could have pages of discussions about it), how can we as individuals answer to this increased pressure?
Harsh words from someone who says: “understanding the feelings and thoughts of others is one of the foundations of good communication” (https://yourlanguage.de/about/).
No hard feelings from an old Portuguese translator who was able to support a family on her translation income alone.
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Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 20:07
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
| Do you have a specialization? | Dec 15, 2022 |
Sorana_M. wrote:
A fellow Romanian translator has just told me about the Romanian contenders: "we are just too many". He may be right. A new generation of translators is being produced by the dedicated colleges/faculties and universities over here each year.
I hope things will clear for better for you soon, hang in there.
What’s your specialization?
| | | | | Post removed: This post was hidden by a moderator or staff member because it was not in line with site rule | Ana Vozone
Local time: 19:07
Member (2010)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
| Don't give up... Give it a little bit of time | Dec 15, 2022 |
Sorana, I am really sorry that you are experiencing these difficulties, and my advice is: Don’t give up.
Give this a few more months.
My suggestion also is that if you have some free time, offer your services pro bono to charities or NGO’s that you like, say, 1 or 2 thousand words for free. This will establish new contacts for you, and goodwill.
Also, depending on your language combinations, you could contact Romanian embassies and consulates in dif... See more Sorana, I am really sorry that you are experiencing these difficulties, and my advice is: Don’t give up.
Give this a few more months.
My suggestion also is that if you have some free time, offer your services pro bono to charities or NGO’s that you like, say, 1 or 2 thousand words for free. This will establish new contacts for you, and goodwill.
Also, depending on your language combinations, you could contact Romanian embassies and consulates in different countries, offering your services too. Also, Chambers of Commerce. Try to find the names of companies exporting and exporting from and to Romania. But don't give up! ▲ Collapse
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Sorana_M. wrote: Rachel Waddington wrote:
Also, if you are sending 3000 CVs in a day, maybe a more targeted and personal approach might pay off. A couple of highly personalised emails per day might work better than a bulk approach.
I wish you the very best of luck,
Rachel That was 3,000 in 10 days. So 300 a day. Thank you!
Sorry - I misread it! But 3000 in ten days is still a lot and anything that feels like spam will likely go straight in the bin. The approach that Hayley outlined seems like an excellent one (she said this much better than I did).
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Ana Vozone
Local time: 19:07
Member (2010)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Anna Sarah Fazendeiro wrote:
But a relative who is trying to enter the translation industry is telling me the same about translation jobs into Portuguese. The rate *****doesn't allow to make a living from translation*****.
But the problem is not really the translation industry, it's that *******most work in Southern European countries doesn't allow people to live with dignity*******. Whatever the reasons for this (my ******personal favorite is neoliberalism together with widespread corruption [or are they the same thing]******, I guess we could have pages of discussions about it), how can we as individuals answer to this increased pressure?
My take on your post:
Now that is a pretty prejudiced view and generalization.
I have worked "solely" as a freelance translator in Portugal for nearly 45 years, I know the market here in Portugal, and I can tell you are wrong. You are basing your opinion on "a relative" when perhaps you could have searched some more.
Oh, by the way, I have "been allowed to live with dignity" all these years, would you believe?
Oh, and your views about neoliberalism and widespread corruption, is that your view as someone from a "Northern" country which, apparently, in your mind, is a superior segment of civilization where translator rates are also far superior? Really?
So, this reply is off the original topic, but relevant I think.
[Edited at 2022-12-15 14:20 GMT]
| | | | | Are they any good in Romania? | Dec 15, 2022 |
Sorana_M. wrote:
A fellow Romanian translator has just told me about the Romanian contenders: "we are just too many". He may be right. A new generation of translators is being produced by the dedicated colleges/faculties and universities over here each year.
I know, they're coming, they're young, and they're flooding the market with lowball bids. But can they get a job done? As a person who'd checked hundreds of test translations, most of them coming from young applicants, I'd say that kind of competition is not something I should worry about just yet. And my services are not the crème de la crème on the market, I don't command the best rates and do lack some important professional assets, but I can get a job done if it's within my limits.
Maybe Romania has a bigger (that is, compared to Russia) percentage of really bright alumni who are ready to challenge seasoned proz right after graduation. Most of them, however, will either have to learn for years before they become real proz or just quit because the learning process is long and hard. My guess is that most of them will quit. The Bologna system seems to be failing to produce people who are willing to do hard things for a long time.
On the other hand, more and more customers are now failing to understand what a good translation is because they're coming from the same universities. This is an alarming trend, but I believe the market will have enough common sense to avoid being destroyed by thoughtlessly produced machine-like translations being sold at face value
| | | | Marjolein Snippe
Netherlands
Local time: 20:07
Member (2012)
English to Dutch
+ ...
| maybe a strange suggestion | Dec 15, 2022 |
Have you looked into participating in clinical trials at all? I have no idea how many and what type of trials are currently going on in Romania but these often look for healthy volunteers (in addition to people with a particular disease). They usually offer a compensation for your time. Not enough to make this worthwhile when you have to give up normal work, but perhaps worthwhile to look into while you have time to spare.
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