ProZ.com Blog

The first thing that strikes you about Elena Romero is how relaxed she is. Not to mention her easy-going and fluent English. Surely it can’t all be because she spent two years in London in her early 20s? But dig a little deeper and you see why: Elena spends her life travelling, much of it in English. Having left the narrow confines of her small town in the Canaries (ironically enough, a destination coveted by most of the world), she has roamed extensively – in Europe and SE Asia in particular, and counts Bali among her favourite places of all.

Ask Yassine El Bouknify what he enjoys about being a freelance translator and he responds without hesitation: the chance to work with other professionals and clients; the mobility bundled up with the job, and the ability to choose who he works for. In short, being his own boss. Just two years into his career, he’s obviously understood what makes freelance life tick. 

OK, so you posted your job, sent private messages and now you have many quotes from potential service providers. The next step is choosing who you want to work with. Sounds easy enough, but how do you know who will be the best match, the most reliable language professional?

Here's what you should look for when choosing the best service provider:

Have you ever posted a job on ProZ.com and wondered why you didn’t get as many quotes as you had expected? 

By now, the entire world knows that the current Covid-19 outbreak has --and will continue to have--  an enormous impact on freelance financial lives. However, language professionals who usually work on-site --interpreters, project managers, teachers-- don't necessarily have to live off savings during the current quarantine. ProZ.com has a few tricks up its sleeve to make money starting this weekend and while at home, and supplement your income during these uncertain times.

A jobs checkbox on ProZ.com with a new COVID-19 tag now enables job posters to tag their jobs as "Covid-19" and service providers to filter Covid-19 jobs. Many job posters are already using this option to connect with some of the 1 million language professionals at ProZ.com.

Serving the world's largest community of translators, ProZ.com delivers a comprehensive network of essential services, resources and experiences that enhance the lives of its members. What are some of the site's most popular features?

ProZ.com Mobile, the application developed by ProZ.com for use on mobile devices, now offers the possibility of updating basic profile information even when your are away from your computer.

ProZ.com Plus membership comes with all the benefits members have come to know over the past nineteen years, plus a lot of new tools and opportunities designed with the serious freelance language professional in mind. This series takes a look at these additional benefits, one at a time.

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"The proof is in the pudding," I've heard, in response to the question "How do you show potential clients you can deliver what they are looking for, at the quality they seek?"

DJHartmann is a NAATI Certified Thai-English Translator specializing in the translation of issues relating to applied anthropology, international development, NGO's, refugees and migration, human trafficking, indigenous peoples' rights, the effects of mining and resource extraction on local communities, social impact assessments, land tenure and environmental management.

He is a ProZ.com member and member of the ProZ.com Certified PRO Network.