Poll: How well do you think you screen new clients? Autor de la hebra: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How well do you think you screen new clients?".
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I start by trusting them. But I also have a good nose for detecting cheaters. I've never actually gotten burned, though twice the companies went out of business before I remembered to invoice them. I put off invoicing them for a couple of months. I have no one to blame but myself. Now I invoice immediately after I deliver every job.
| | | | Dušan Ján Hlísta (X) 
Eslovaquia
Local time: 06:36
inglés al eslovaco
+ ...
| classificatioon tb the origin | Jan 31, 2019 |
Usually the clients from Europe and USA are perfect.
It is rather worse with the countries from Africa, Asia.
No experience form Middle and South America, Japan, Taiwan.
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I’ve been applying due diligence and common sense. I do screen new clients as much as I can – Proz BlueBoard, TC’s Hall of Fame and Shame, PaymentPractices, Translation Scammers, Translation Ethics, Blacklist of Translation Agencies, Untrustworthy Translation Agencies and two LinkedIn groups. I always turn down a job from a potential client if something sounds fishy or too good to be true: better safe than sorry! Even so, over the years I have had some unpleasant surprises: right now I hav... See more I’ve been applying due diligence and common sense. I do screen new clients as much as I can – Proz BlueBoard, TC’s Hall of Fame and Shame, PaymentPractices, Translation Scammers, Translation Ethics, Blacklist of Translation Agencies, Untrustworthy Translation Agencies and two LinkedIn groups. I always turn down a job from a potential client if something sounds fishy or too good to be true: better safe than sorry! Even so, over the years I have had some unpleasant surprises: right now I have been dealing with a British agency whose BB record was spotless when we started working two years ago and has been going downhill since… ▲ Collapse
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Ana Vozone
Local time: 05:36
Miembro 2010
inglés al portugués
+ ...
I am usually cautious, very cautious, but sometimes take risks knowingly, if the amount at stake is small and the subject matter is interesting or new.
The last "risk" I took proved me wrong (a bitcoin company) and I "lost" £90.
I have, of course, opened a new entry on the Blue Board, and two colleagues have since added their own (negative) experiences.
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2001:
French agency bankruptcy, one of my major customers for one year, 3200 euros of invoices claimed and lost forever
2010:
French one-man agency personal bankruptcy, 1500 euros of invoices claimed and 1000 euros recovered in 2016
I'm getting better and better !
Philippe
| | | | Davide Leone
Estados Unidos
Local time: 00:36
Miembro 2015
inglés al italiano
+ ...
Muriel Vasconcellos wrote:
twice the companies went out of business before I remembered to invoice them. I put off invoicing them for a couple of months. I have no one to blame but myself. Now I invoice immediately after I deliver every job.
Were you able to recover the money from the companies which went out of business? I'm dealing with the same situation with one of my customers right now, luckily the only one in my career so far, and for a small amount of money. Just like you, I put off invoicing for a couple of months. And, as you said, we don't have anybody to blame but ourselves. Lesson learned.
[Edited at 2019-01-31 15:59 GMT]
| | | | Mario Freitas
Brasil
Local time: 02:36
Miembro 2014
inglés al portugués
+ ...
I was a victim of scams/non-payers three times, many years ago, when social media and the internet was still not as interactive as it is today. Nowadays, it's a lot easier to ask collegues if they know agency ABC, verify th BB and black lists, etc. Falling for scam today is a consequence of lack of experience and innocence.
But for many years, I have been able to identify bad clients on the spot (i.e. the very first e-mail or message), and to get rid of them fast. I don't remember the last... See more I was a victim of scams/non-payers three times, many years ago, when social media and the internet was still not as interactive as it is today. Nowadays, it's a lot easier to ask collegues if they know agency ABC, verify th BB and black lists, etc. Falling for scam today is a consequence of lack of experience and innocence.
But for many years, I have been able to identify bad clients on the spot (i.e. the very first e-mail or message), and to get rid of them fast. I don't remember the last time I fell for any such scam, phishing, and the like. ▲ Collapse
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Kay Denney
Francia
Local time: 06:36
francés al inglés
I haven't been freelancing all that long and so far so good.
It helps that I already knew most of my contacts beforehand.
I do look at the Blue Board and conduct a general internet search for each new client.
I have only worked with clients in the euro zone for the moment, mostly because I don't want any hassle with currency exchange rates but also because I feel that EU clients are "within reach". I haven't worked very much for the non-French agencies either.
<... See more I haven't been freelancing all that long and so far so good.
It helps that I already knew most of my contacts beforehand.
I do look at the Blue Board and conduct a general internet search for each new client.
I have only worked with clients in the euro zone for the moment, mostly because I don't want any hassle with currency exchange rates but also because I feel that EU clients are "within reach". I haven't worked very much for the non-French agencies either.
Thank you @Teresa Borges for the other tips, I have duly made note of them. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Martin Riordan
Brasil
Local time: 02:36
Miembro 2010
portugués al inglés
+ ...
| LWA and basic common sense | Feb 4, 2019 |
I check the new client's LWA. Anything below 4, I ignore immediately. I also check their web site. If it is reasonably sophisticated, it indicates to me a committed client. If the job offered is big, I make direct contact by phone to be sure that the client actually exists and ask for references.
My one "sting", when I was a rookie, was a French language student who started sending me his course exercises. After two jobs and no payment, he disappeared. Luckily, the material was the ... See more I check the new client's LWA. Anything below 4, I ignore immediately. I also check their web site. If it is reasonably sophisticated, it indicates to me a committed client. If the job offered is big, I make direct contact by phone to be sure that the client actually exists and ask for references.
My one "sting", when I was a rookie, was a French language student who started sending me his course exercises. After two jobs and no payment, he disappeared. Luckily, the material was the in-house magazine of a large French-based shipping company, so I knew who to contact. I discovered that the scammer was a student of a course given by the in-house translator, who opted to pay me 90% of the total price to keep his nose clean! ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Screening new clients | Feb 4, 2019 |
I'm actually not very good at it...Making lots of mistakes. Agencies often use recruting agents and they can't answer the questions you are asking about the agency's process, or they provide an incorrect answer. For 2019, I want to focus on my specialization and search for direct clients myself. That self-marketing process will take time on my working hours, but at the end, it might be worth it and should avoid me so much frustrations dealing with agencies.
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