Page 287 - DLIS402_INFORMATION_ANALYSIS_AND_REPACKAGING

Information Analysis and Repackaging

Notes Patent Abstracts: A type of structured abstract used primarily for patent application documents.
As with structured abstracts, these are characterized by defined structures and elements.
An abstracting service involves reading content from various publications, such as professional
journals and magazine articles. The content is then summarized in a short synopsis of 10 to fifteen
sentences. These summaries are saved to a database for convenient storage and retrieval. Abstracters
often index the articles they summarize by keywords to help the computer find them quickly. They
are hired for freelance work both by large database publishers and individual corporations.
Starting an abstracting service requires very little financial investment. The materials you will need
are probably things you already have at home. You‘ll need reliable computer with a multi function
printer, and as with any business, you should have both a land line and cell phone so that your
customers can always reach you.
You don‘t need any formal training to start an abstracting service. However there are skills which
are essential. First and foremost, an abstracter needs to read both quickly and with excellent
comprehension. In addition to thoroughly understanding the material you read, you must also be a
concise and efficient writer, with the ability to extract and clearly explain the main points of each
article.
Much of the material abstracters work with is highly technical and/or specialized, so it helps to
have a good working knowledge of the field you are reading about. To become an abstracter, you
also have to be organized, and have the temperament to meet tight deadlines without becoming
overly stressed. And in order to work with keywords and computerized storage and retrieval, your
computer skills will need to be strong.
Whenever you start a home business, it is a good idea to draw up a business plan. The plan will
cover what areas of abstracting you plan to work with, what you‘ll charge, how you plan to build
your clientele and your estimated income and expenses. Business plans usually detail monthly
activity for the fist year and more generalized annual goals for 5 years thereafter. A business plan
helps a new business owner to stay focused on goals and to know what to expect.
An abstracting service business offers a great deal of flexibility in terms of hours. As long as you
meet your deadlines.
An abstracting service business offers a great deal of flexibility in terms of hours. As long as you
meet your deadlines, it doesn‘t matter if you work during the days, evenings, or weekends.
Depending on your desire and availability, this is a business that can be quite successful either full
or part time. It is also something that you can start on a part time basis and expand to full time when
you are ready.
The income potential for abstracting services is promising. You can expect to be paid handsomely
for per article with index included. The more specialized article topics, particularly scientific
disciplines such as chemistry will bring in the best pay. Your quick reading and writing ability will
have a huge impact on your earning potential. If you can complete only one article per hour, you‘ll
be earning $6 to $20 per hour, however if you can complete as many as 3 articles in an hour, you
could easily find yourself bringing in as much as $45 per hour.
Of course to earn all that income, you‘ll need customers. Database publishers can be contacted
directly with your resume and writing samples. You might want to consult the Ebsco Index or the
Abstract Directory, or the Gale Directory of Online Databases to id potential customers. Corporate
work is also an option, and you can contact the technical writing department or corporate librarian
of the companies which interest you. Occasionally you will find ads looking for abstractors in
newspapers and online.
You should have a portfolio or samples prepared to show at an interview, and be sure to always
present a professional appearance. As your reputation grows, finding work will get easier and

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