It’s easy to understand why translation rates are an often-debated subject in the world of translation, maybe now more so as ‘La crise’ certainly hasn’t been helping anyone’s bottom line. Professional translators and translation companies:
1. know what they need to charge in order to make a profit/living; and
2. understand that they are trained professionals with a skill that is both in demand and valuable.
Clients who don’t understand point number 2 and are content to settle for poor translations (for want of money or indifference to quality) are themselves poor professionals, as I’m sure they take their own services quite seriously.
However, regardless of my opinion on the professional practices of some, the fact remains that there are translators (accredited or not) and agencies (or sometimes ‘factories’ for that matter) able to put translations out for very low rates; and clients who are willing to bypass translation professionals altogether.
Reasons for this?
Access to Automatic Translation software. Google translate, reverso, babelfish, wordlingo and a preinstalled ‘widget’ in our macbooks: you know them, have used them and it’s very hard to argue against them absolutely. Maybe the small restaurant owner in a touristed locale would have offered a free meal to someone who was willing to sit down with a menu and work it out for them. Now you have the aforementioned AT tools and maybe cork listed on a Turkish menu instead of mushrooms (according to a friend trying hard to learn the language in the country).
Someone translating in a country with a very low cost of living. They might be able to shave several cents per word off of a rate that would be an absolute minimum in Western Europe or North America;
Bilingual or multiple language speakers offering translations and charging less than a translator with proper training. A client who sees the bottom line first and who maybe won’t understand the final product anyway might be inclined to take the cheaper rate over one that reflects the work of a professional;
Agencies employing an army of people in a country with a low cost of living or very low minimum wage standards. With many people dedicated to translating texts and therefore working on quantity, the business can charge lower rates and rely on volume to turn a profit.
Are we overreacting? Are there a plethora of reasons we're ignorant towards? Let us know what you think.
In the next instalment of the translation rate saga we'll outline some rates in Canada as identified in a survey conducted by an association of professional translators.
1. know what they need to charge in order to make a profit/living; and
2. understand that they are trained professionals with a skill that is both in demand and valuable.
Clients who don’t understand point number 2 and are content to settle for poor translations (for want of money or indifference to quality) are themselves poor professionals, as I’m sure they take their own services quite seriously.
However, regardless of my opinion on the professional practices of some, the fact remains that there are translators (accredited or not) and agencies (or sometimes ‘factories’ for that matter) able to put translations out for very low rates; and clients who are willing to bypass translation professionals altogether.
Reasons for this?
Access to Automatic Translation software. Google translate, reverso, babelfish, wordlingo and a preinstalled ‘widget’ in our macbooks: you know them, have used them and it’s very hard to argue against them absolutely. Maybe the small restaurant owner in a touristed locale would have offered a free meal to someone who was willing to sit down with a menu and work it out for them. Now you have the aforementioned AT tools and maybe cork listed on a Turkish menu instead of mushrooms (according to a friend trying hard to learn the language in the country).
Someone translating in a country with a very low cost of living. They might be able to shave several cents per word off of a rate that would be an absolute minimum in Western Europe or North America;
Bilingual or multiple language speakers offering translations and charging less than a translator with proper training. A client who sees the bottom line first and who maybe won’t understand the final product anyway might be inclined to take the cheaper rate over one that reflects the work of a professional;
Agencies employing an army of people in a country with a low cost of living or very low minimum wage standards. With many people dedicated to translating texts and therefore working on quantity, the business can charge lower rates and rely on volume to turn a profit.
Are we overreacting? Are there a plethora of reasons we're ignorant towards? Let us know what you think.
In the next instalment of the translation rate saga we'll outline some rates in Canada as identified in a survey conducted by an association of professional translators.
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