| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | What makes a translator accept a 5 cents a word rate? Thread poster: Lorraine Dubuc
|
|---|
Lorraine Dubuc 
Canada
Local time: 09:49
Member
English to French
TOPIC STARTER
David GAY wrote:
are those canadian or US cents?
I think it was maximum 4.5 Canadian cents.
| | | | | literary translation | Jun 23, 2016 |
In literary translation, rates are quite low as a rule.
| | | | | Translation agencies charge low rates just as often | Jun 23, 2016 |
Annamaria Amik wrote:
This has been discussed a thousand times... I really don't understand this debate... everyone works with the prices they choose...
+1
Below is a recent quote by a London-based translation agency in response to my call for Russian-to-English patent translators:
Here is what we can offer:
- Competitive rate: US$ 0.12 / word, this includes translation done by a native English linguist;
They offer volume discounts of between 3% to 15% for projects above 5,000 words. They offer discounts for fuzzy matches and repetitions.
Try and guess what rates they offer to their RU-EN translators...
Another quote by a UK-based agency:
For Russian to English language pair our services are:
· Translation: US$ 0.11 / word
I did send a paid test to the former agency (they were willing to take a sample test of up to 250 words for free, actually) ... and they failed it miserably. It was evident that their translator was unfamiliar with both patent translation per se, and the subject matter concerned.
This explains why serious clients still prefer to pay top dollar to top-notch language providers. And the latter explains why I am still in this business 31 years after graduation from a foreign languages school
| | | | Lorraine Dubuc
Canada
Local time: 09:49
Member
English to French
TOPIC STARTER | That's the spirit! | Jun 23, 2016 |
Vladimir Pochinov wrote: Annamaria Amik wrote:
This has been discussed a thousand times... I really don't understand this debate... everyone works with the prices they choose... +1 Below is a recent quote by a London-based translation agency in response to my call for Russian-to-English patent translators: Here is what we can offer:
- Competitive rate: US$ 0.12 / word, this includes translation done by a native English linguist; They offer volume discounts of between 3% to 15% for projects above 5,000 words. They offer discounts for fuzzy matches and repetitions. Try and guess what rates they offer to their RU-EN translators... Another quote by a UK-based agency:
For Russian to English language pair our services are:
· Translation: US$ 0.11 / word
I did send a paid test to the former agency (they were willing to take a sample test of up to 250 words for free, actually) ... and they failed it miserably. It was evident that their translator was unfamiliar with both patent translation per se, and the subject matter concerned. This explains why serious clients still prefer to pay top dollar to top-notch language providers. And the latter explains why I am still in this business 31 years after graduation from a foreign languages school
So I am an old school thinker after all
| | |
|
|
|
| No lower-paid jobs for me | Jun 23, 2016 |
Lorraine Dubuc wrote: I should have asked a question instead : would you refuse to work Under rate in order to saveguard your profession's standards?
Typically, I accept about 2-3 percent of jobs offered by new clients: it's either them disappearing after I quote my rates, or me declining jobs for various reasons.
I do refuse to lower my regular rates but, while doing this, I never think about it in terms of safeguarding my profession's standards. For me, it's just common sense...
[Edited at 2016-06-23 22:28 GMT]
| | | | | Old school thinkers | Jun 23, 2016 |
Lorraine Dubuc wrote: So I am an old school thinker after all
I may even be an old school st.nker ... but my existing clients seem to be quite happy, as some of them trust me with their translations since mid-2000s.
| | | | Lorraine Dubuc
Canada
Local time: 09:49
Member
English to French
TOPIC STARTER
Vladimir Pochinov wrote: Lorraine Dubuc wrote: I should have asked a question instead : would you refuse to work Under rate in order to saveguard your profession's standards? Typically, I accept about 2-3 percent of jobs offered by new clients: it's either them disappearing after I quote my rates, or me declining jobs for various reasons. I do refuse to lower my regular rates but, while doing this, I never think about it in terms of safeguarding my profession's standards. For me, it's just common sense... [Edited at 2016-06-23 22:28 GMT]
Common sense, yes this is what I think too and just like you, I refuse most of the jobs but I never have quiet moments. The customers who respect me always keep coming back.
| | | | Lincoln Hui
Hong Kong
Local time: 21:49
Member
Chinese to English
+ ...
You can't compare literary translation to business translation, things like contracts, manuals or even marketing text. The economics are simply not the same, especially if the target market isn't that big. How many novels sell in the five figures in, say, Romania?
As far as I'm aware, literary translators make much less per word than translators working with business documents. 5 cents a word is about on par with reported figures that I've seen for novel/manga translations in my pai... See more You can't compare literary translation to business translation, things like contracts, manuals or even marketing text. The economics are simply not the same, especially if the target market isn't that big. How many novels sell in the five figures in, say, Romania?
As far as I'm aware, literary translators make much less per word than translators working with business documents. 5 cents a word is about on par with reported figures that I've seen for novel/manga translations in my pairs. Might even be a little higher. I don't know whether there are royalties involved. These are not agencies but publishers that are contracting their own translators (who are credited). It's not like the rates used to be higher and these companies are recruiting through traditional channels, not newfangled curiosities like teh internet.
Really, if you asked me, 5c/word to translate a novel is much more attractive than 15c/word to translate a contract or EULA. Not that I've done it myself, because I can work just as fast in my current fields and get paid more per word, but I'd sooner stoop to this kind of job than to stoop to translating legal text for a mere 15-20 cents per word.
[Edited at 2016-06-24 02:19 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | |
|
|
|
Kirsten Bodart
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:49
Dutch to English
+ ...
| It's not what studies suggest | Jun 24, 2016 |
Lingua 5B wrote: Kirsten Bodart wrote:
Cost is not the only thing agencies go by. Easiest way to gauge this is by observing the work process and questions asked about me. Agencies commonly ask two questions only: what is your rate and how fast can you do it? Not a single question about me, my profile, my competences, etc. On the other hand, direct clients ask tons of questions about my background, how I will ensure the quality, my qualifications, etc. You can't expect the quality when middle men have other priorities. [Edited at 2016-06-23 19:41 GMT]
Obviously it will be the first thing they ask. If I go shopping, I think about what I want and then look at the price, because I can't buy anything that doesn't fit into my budget. But I won't buy something purely because it's cheap, regardless of the quality.
The truth is that there is quality to be had for low prices and there is for high prices. Unfortunately, while at some point in history, high price used to equal great quality, this is no longer the case.
And I also need to agree that commonly novel translations are not very lucrative per word.
| | | | | Responded in a different thread, sort of | Jun 24, 2016 |
Lorraine Dubuc wrote:
Hello everyone,
I just saw a posting for the translation of a novel offering 4 to 5 cents a word and at least 4 quoters to this job.
I believe, some of us do not realize that, by accepting to work under rate they bring our profession to a ridiculous status.
I keep refusing jobs that are unacceptable, precisely to protect the dignity of our work. I find it a shame when I see poor conditions accepted. Nothing will get any better if translators do not stand for their conditions. What do you think? Am I old school?
Read my response in a different thread for a description of the setting we're in. In short, big capital at play. Whether it's the typical dominant neoliberalism or some sort of a new deal, big capital gets its way and we're screwed.
By now, everything has been analysed and optimized to a point in which things are no longer just done, they are maximinized or minimized according to need. Big agencies are centralizing the profit out of the entire supply chain, and obviously they don't care much about translation itself, it's business to them.
Translators give in because in this model they don't have to do much — and, just like the agency line says, anyone can be a translator.
Except where anyone can be a translator, it becomes a low-skill job that doesn't deserve anything close to real money.
This is the ultimate result of our allowing agencies to take over the position of default LSPs with their fraudulent marketing (untrue assurances, promises, statements and descriptions), as well as allowing the tech to be cast in the position of the central moving force and quality driver, along with focus on management and other processes — the translator, instead of an independent professional alongside doctors, lawyers, architects and the rest of them, has become a low-skill CAT operator.
It's actually not even particularly low-skill, it actually requires significant monetary and educational investments, it simply has a low-skill perception and profile, which suits agencies.
***
On a different note, there are huge price differences even among the countries of the European Union. Everybody speaks English, often the same international/supranational legislative framework appplies in all those places, there is a fundamental similarity among the various societies of post-Latin/Greek civilization, but national economies are vastly different from one another. What's a starvation rate in one country can be a premium rate in another.
… Agencies, however, know this, and they try to centralize the profit from price differences in their own hands — or they pass it on to the customer, the customer often being a larger or at least a different translation agency. So for example a North-American client is charged 40 cents a word but a Slavic translator is paid 7 or even 4, according to rates prevailing in each country. The difference is retained in the agency supply chain, often consisting of a lengthy pipeline of multiple agencies.
[Edited at 2016-06-24 11:53 GMT]
| | | | | Cowardice and fear | Jun 24, 2016 |
and bills to pay
| | | | Daryo
United Kingdom
Local time: 14:49
Serbian to English
+ ...
| the crux of the problem | Jun 24, 2016 |
Lingua 5B wrote: Kirsten Bodart wrote:
Cost is not the only thing agencies go by. Easiest way to gauge this is by observing the work process and questions asked about me. Agencies commonly ask two questions only: what is your rate and how fast can you do it? Not a single question about me, my profile, my competences, etc. On the other hand, direct clients ask tons of questions about my background, how I will ensure the quality, my qualifications, etc. You can't expect the quality when middle men have other priorities.[Edited at 2016-06-23 19:41 GMT]
You can't expect quality when middle men have other priorities.
that exactly is the the crux of the problem, and incidentally the fundamental reason why all this outsourcing mania based on ideological claptrap will NEVER produce quality, nor anything resembling real value for money.
Back to why people accept rates that are low for their local market - few real reasons (nor good nor bad, or good or bad depending on your viewpoint)
- people bad at calculating the real cost of their work - they have no idea what is their own break-even point under which there is no point working
- people that have other sources of income doing translations for pocket money / to relieve boredom
- people too afraid to refuse any "offer"
and in some cases
- people acutely aware that offering low prices is their only available USP
| | |
|
|
|
| 4 quoters does not mean they accept that rate | Jun 25, 2016 |
That there are quoters on the job, does not necessarily mean that they accept that rate.
I sometimes quote but with a much higher rate.
I do agree with you though that there are certainly also people working for 4 or 5 cent, I do even know some in Germany who do and who are professional translators.
Why do they accept such rates? They probably have no specialisation, no direct customers and are afraid of not getting enough jobs.
In other count... See more That there are quoters on the job, does not necessarily mean that they accept that rate.
I sometimes quote but with a much higher rate.
I do agree with you though that there are certainly also people working for 4 or 5 cent, I do even know some in Germany who do and who are professional translators.
Why do they accept such rates? They probably have no specialisation, no direct customers and are afraid of not getting enough jobs.
In other countries 5 cent might seem a decent rate... ▲ Collapse
| | | | | I agree with Sheila, | Jun 26, 2016 |
the fact that someone quoted does not mean that they quoted the same rate. I often quote on $0.06-0.08 jobs but my rates are closer to $0.15 on average, sometime I can give a 10% discount.
It all depends on the country, the cost of living —what type of rates people accept However, it is not true that any translation in any language pair can be done by just about anyone in the world. Well, translation from Polish or Russian into English is usually done by the people living in Eng... See more the fact that someone quoted does not mean that they quoted the same rate. I often quote on $0.06-0.08 jobs but my rates are closer to $0.15 on average, sometime I can give a 10% discount.
It all depends on the country, the cost of living —what type of rates people accept However, it is not true that any translation in any language pair can be done by just about anyone in the world. Well, translation from Polish or Russian into English is usually done by the people living in English-speaking countries, with high, or very high costs of living, so I do not understand why the expected rates should be $0.06/word?
Someone who accepts $0.05 in a high cost of living country must be either insane or not really a translator—a teenager looking for some cash to go to the movies. I would just ignore ether, completely.
Sometimes they are just trying, the agencies, if they can catch someone for $0.05/word, who would do the job for that rate. If they can't, some pay just about any rate, so you can definitely quote your rates. I often got $0.12/word on $0.08 jobs, advertised as $0.08.
[Edited at 2016-06-26 08:24 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Agree with Lilian | Jun 26, 2016 |
I agree with Lilian.
Some are just trying if there are translator who are ready to work for that rate. If there are not, they do pay more. I once even had an Indian agency which to start off wanted to pay 0,04 € per source word and finally accepted 0,10 € per source word (still not really much but this shows that higher quotes can be accepted if there is nobody working for nearly free).
| | | | | Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » What makes a translator accept a 5 cents a word rate? | Protemos translation business management system | Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!
The system lets you keep client/vendor database, with contacts and rates, manage projects and assign jobs to vendors, issue invoices, track payments, store and manage project files, generate business reports on turnover profit per client/manager etc.
More info » |
| | TM-Town | Manage your TMs and Terms ... and boost your translation business
Are you ready for something fresh in the industry? TM-Town is a unique new site for you -- the freelance translator -- to store, manage and share translation memories (TMs) and glossaries...and potentially meet new clients on the basis of your prior work.
More info » |
|
| | | | X Sign in to your ProZ.com account... | | | | | |
Login to reply/comment 
Translation news
