Poll: Which season do you think is the best one in terms of translation orders?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Feb 4, 2016

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Which season do you think is the best one in terms of translation orders?".

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Julian Holmes
Julian Holmes  Identity Verified
Japan
Local time: 07:32
Member (2011)
Japanese to English
Other - No seasonal tendencies Feb 4, 2016

Except that, in Japan, big companies tend to use up any remaining budget by the end of March before the new fiscal year begins. Otherwise, a smaller budget is allocated for the next year. So, theoretically I should pick up some decently large jobs now and in March. Shall keep fingers crossed.

To quote William Shakespeare from Richard III

"Now is the winter of our discounted translations, made even mor
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Except that, in Japan, big companies tend to use up any remaining budget by the end of March before the new fiscal year begins. Otherwise, a smaller budget is allocated for the next year. So, theoretically I should pick up some decently large jobs now and in March. Shall keep fingers crossed.

To quote William Shakespeare from Richard III

"Now is the winter of our discounted translations, made even more inglorious and grimmer by this sundry of CAT tools"

Wee, tiny edits

[Edited at 2016-02-04 08:31 GMT]

[Edited at 2016-02-05 07:16 GMT]
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Michael Harris
Michael Harris  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 23:32
Member (2006)
German to English
None Feb 4, 2016

Fortunately, I have a steady workflow throughout the year. I do get more queries from other agencies during the holiday seasons, but generally turn them down because I have enough to do.

 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 22:32
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Other/I don't know Feb 4, 2016

I don’t think I’ve ever looked at the total amount invoiced per quarter or season, but always per month or per year. Income always varies throughout the year and doesn’t show any noticeable seasonal pattern. Work has been as unpredictable as ever, but pretty balanced overall.

 
Yetta Jensen Bogarde
Yetta Jensen Bogarde  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 23:32
Member (2012)
English to Danish
+ ...
Other Feb 4, 2016

The first two weeks of this year were a bit slow, but otherwise it seems the same all year round.

 
Andrea Garfield-Barkworth
Andrea Garfield-Barkworth  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 23:32
Member (2015)
German to English
The weeks leading up to Christmas Feb 4, 2016

I was incredibly inundated with projects in those few weeks, although I have a very steady to heavy workload since the summer. It does seem that the demand for my language pair German-English has increased this year. Or perhaps it's just down to my increased marketing efforts. They certainly seem to have paid off.

 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 15:32
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
It's unpredictable Feb 4, 2016

After more years in the industry than I care to admit, I have yet to identify any trends.

I will say that I get an uptick in August when many colleagues are on vacation. Their clients get desperate and start looking for new people.


 
Mario Chavez (X)
Mario Chavez (X)  Identity Verified
Local time: 18:32
English to Spanish
+ ...
Trends and desperation Feb 4, 2016

Muriel Vasconcellos wrote:

After more years in the industry than I care to admit, I have yet to identify any trends.

I will say that I get an uptick in August when many colleagues are on vacation. Their clients get desperate and start looking for new people.


The summer of 2014 was pretty busy for me, like most summers. But the same season in 2015 was a wash; I had to wait for about 2 months of small jobs to start seeing a trend upwards.

Speaking of desperation, I got a call from an agency in W. Virginia (I think). This very nice PM told me they found me through a search for phone interpreters (weird, because I never offered such services before). When I declined, she asked me if I would be interested in learning to do phone interpreting. I said “not my cup of tea.” We parted ways courteously.

There are at least two kinds of acts of desperation: when the person knows what is required to do a job and can't find someone to do it, and when the person is an ignorant PM who thinks skills for phone interpreting can be taught online or over the phone.


 
Thayenga
Thayenga  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 23:32
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
It varies Feb 4, 2016

As far as I can tell, there is no particularily slow or busy season.

 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 19:32
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
In which hemisphere? Feb 6, 2016

I voted Autumn, considering that most ProZ users live in the northern hemisphere, as my answer would have been Spring down here in the southern hemisphere. It's not the season or the weather that makes a difference, of course, yet the time of the year. Since 80% of my clients also live in the northern hemisphere, I havd to consider their economic aspects and their seasons.

 


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Poll: Which season do you think is the best one in terms of translation orders?






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