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Poll: Do you offer discounts for repetitions? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Do you offer discounts for repetitions?".
View the poll results »
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This poll seems very familiar
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neilmac
Spain
Local time: 09:02
Spanish to English
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I may grant discounts if I feel like it, for various reasons, often unsolicited. I'm not usually willing to haggle about my rates though.
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Thayenga 
Germany
Local time: 09:02
Member (2009)
English to German
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neilmac wrote:
I may grant discounts if I feel like it, for various reasons, often unsolicited. I'm not usually willing to haggle about my rates though.
Yes, this is my procedure as well.
Could it be that this poll had shown up before?
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Michael Harris
Germany
Local time: 09:02
Member (2006)
German to English
In the technical field, this is normal and understanding.
[Edited at 2014-06-09 20:07 GMT]
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For the simple reason that a volume of words is indicative of the time it takes to translate a document and the basis upon which many if not most translators invoice. Other invoicing bases will be in reference to the number of lines, whatever.
I have had clients request that I take account of repetitions to reduce the amount invoiced. When I suggest that I invoice for the time spent detecting the repetitions, or that the client points out which sections were repeated, then they tend... See more For the simple reason that a volume of words is indicative of the time it takes to translate a document and the basis upon which many if not most translators invoice. Other invoicing bases will be in reference to the number of lines, whatever.
I have had clients request that I take account of repetitions to reduce the amount invoiced. When I suggest that I invoice for the time spent detecting the repetitions, or that the client points out which sections were repeated, then they tend to drop the issue.
Here's the "but": obviously, if a document contains large sections which have been copied and pasted, that's a different matter. However, I will still ask the client to indicate the sections concerned and authorise me to do a copy/paste of the first appearance of the text in question. I have found out that the client sometimes thinks there is copy/paste where in fact the repetitions contain certain crucial modifications.
Common sense is required, but as professionals, we do need to cover ourselves! ▲ Collapse
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Tim Drayton
Cyprus
Local time: 10:02
Turkish to English
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Chris S wrote:
This poll seems very familiar
Perhaps we should be given a discount for repeat polls?
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Marjolein Snippe
Netherlands
Local time: 09:02
Member (2012)
English to Dutch
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| Yes, when asked | Jun 9, 2014 |
I usually agree to discounts for repeated sections when asked; questionnaires and IFUs from the same company often have large sections repeated either within the same document or between documents (included in the TM for that project). I am happy to apply a discount, as my CAT-tool will tell me whether this is an exact repeat and usually the TM has been filled with my own translations or previous good translations. I will let the client know and (try to) renegotiate if the translations in the TM... See more I usually agree to discounts for repeated sections when asked; questionnaires and IFUs from the same company often have large sections repeated either within the same document or between documents (included in the TM for that project). I am happy to apply a discount, as my CAT-tool will tell me whether this is an exact repeat and usually the TM has been filled with my own translations or previous good translations. I will let the client know and (try to) renegotiate if the translations in the TM are of low quality, but this has only happened to me once or twice so far. ▲ Collapse
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Tim Drayton wrote: Chris S wrote:
This poll seems very familiar Perhaps we should be given a discount for repeat polls?
From memory, I would say that yes, we have certainly had this poll in the past.
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Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 03:02
English to Spanish
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| Discounts for repetition | Jun 9, 2014 |
Come again?
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Sheila Wilson
Spain
Local time: 08:02
Member (2007)
English
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| Not CAT-style discounts | Jun 9, 2014 |
But if a regular client sends a text that will clearly be speeded up by the number of repetitions and matches from my own TM then I may offer a discount so we both win.
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if requested and if I can use my CAT tool.
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I prefer to bid a total price for the project, based on my per word rate. If there are a lot of repetitions, I will offer a discount on the overall price.
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It's a slippery slope. While a certain technical word or phrase might repeat several times in a document, a less technical word or phrase might be translated different ways depending on the context. It's part of the translator's contribution to know when the translation varies and when it doesn't. Where do you draw the line?
Also, that technical word or phrase may require some research that's not otherwise compensated for, so the repetitions help to amortize that investment of time.... See more It's a slippery slope. While a certain technical word or phrase might repeat several times in a document, a less technical word or phrase might be translated different ways depending on the context. It's part of the translator's contribution to know when the translation varies and when it doesn't. Where do you draw the line?
Also, that technical word or phrase may require some research that's not otherwise compensated for, so the repetitions help to amortize that investment of time. We often fail to recover the investment we make in research. It's rare that a client will recognize and cover the cost. So why should they have it both ways - get off the hook for repetitions and overlook the extra time spent on research?
If I'm translating from a PDF (as I am right now), I still have to type the word/phrase regardless of how often it's repeated.
The bottom line is that I always have to look at the word/phrase and think about it, and my judgment is a skill that I have honed and am being paid for. ▲ Collapse
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Rosa Paredes
Canada
Local time: 03:02
Spanish to English
+ ...
Well said Muriel; that is exactly my position regarding repetitions. We are not translating words.
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