7 ways to fix rates for urgent and weekend work

7 ways to fix rates for urgent and weekend work Translators worldwide charge differently for urgent/weekend translation jobs. 1. Some translators do not charge more and work for the usual price. 2. For new clients, some translators increase their rates. 3. Sometimes it depends on the day of the week. If a client specifically asks to translate a fairly large document between Friday late afternoon and Monday early morning, some charge a rush rate. 4. Some do not like working on weekends, therefore they intentionally charge higher rates to discourage clients. 5. Some freelancers take leave on days other than weekends and hence for them weekends are no different and hence they charge the same. 6. Some charge a higher rate for anything that forces them to work outside office hours. 7. Some are very flexible with clients who give them steady, high volume work and do not charge more. Some clients tend to call everything urgent, so one has to be careful. There is also a view point that whether it is urgent /weekend or not, translator has to take the job or refuse. All rights belong to ostom, Use of this post is allowed provided this link is present at the end of the article http://getdirectclient.blogspot.com

Basic question for fixing rates

Photo Credit josef.stuefer Freelance translators worldwide debating how much to charge. There is no fixed rate. Experience shows in general rate does not depend on language, country, voulme. It is something you negotiate. You have to ask for the rate you want and consider apprpriate. The question is not how much the translators should charge, but how much are clients willing to pay. Do your home work and get to know how much the client is willing to pay and then charge accordingly. All agencies ask the translators to state their rates in their CVs, and that is very wrong. Never give your rates in your first mail or CV. Let them ask it from you. The clients should tell the translators how much they want to pay, and then the translators decide whether to accept it or not. Rates are bound to go up if the translators let the clients struggle to get their attention, instead of the opposite. Factors Influencing Freelance Translation Rates Freelance translation rates Why translation rates are under pressure? Rates: Do you have a strategy for rates highly complicated texts? What are the Factors that Influence rates? Basic question for fixing rates

Rates: Do you have a strategy for highly complicated texts?

Rates: Do you have a strategy for highly complicated texts? Over a period of time Translators can develop a strategy for rates. The strategy could be based on any and all of the items mentioned below. They all require more time. 1. Highly complex texts 2. Heavily formatted files 3. Rush jobs 4. Jobs that require research 5. Jobs that require special software’s 6. Translation of additional texts 7. ……(you may fill this) If you translate well and in time soon you may be offered more complicated jobs but at the same rate. Consider a rate strategy for complex documents. Inform the client that your rate will be different for complex documents. Or charge an hourly rate, and see their reaction. Factors Influencing Freelance Translation Rates Freelance translation rates Why translation rates are under pressure? Rates: Do you have a strategy for rates highly complicated texts? What are the Factors that Influence rates? Basic question for fixing rates

Overcoming Pricing Issues as a Newcomer

Photo Credit bbalaji http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbalaji/560844967/ Overcoming Pricing Issues as a Newcomer A dilemma that is most definitely faced by every person that comes into the translation field is to decide upon what rates to quote while taking up projects. The difficulty lies in not knowing whatever the price you have zeroed upon is too high, too low or the right one. So how does one go about fixing a price for the services offered such that it is not too high or too low? One method to know more is to become a member of the various translation websites that are available. Being a member helps you access details about other members in the website and can give you some know-how about the average pricing of the others. There are even some tools on certain websites that will help you calculate the price that you need to quote keeping in mind some important factors while deciding. Some even suggest you to think of a figure that you would like to earn in a month to which certain expenditure like taxes that need to be paid are added. This figure is then compared with the amount of work load that you can complete in a working day of around 8 hours. This comparison can help you arrive at a rate that you need to charge per word to reach your dream figure every month. But, some argue that the above method could not be a right indicator for pricing the services offered as it is valued at expected monthly earnings which may or may not be at realistic levels. The following url http://www.translatorsbase.com/statistics/rates.aspx contains a big list which shows rates for many languages. Another factor to be remembered while taking up work through translation websites is that many a times there is a chain of outsourcing of work before it reaches you. So chances are high that the price at which you are offered work may be very low. Also, another point to remember is that agencies generally offer work at much lower prices than when you get work from clients directly. So, a good option to get good pricing for your services is to look for direct clients to provide you work. But, this may be easier said than done for which you might need to compromise and not be too rigid in selecting work initially.

Why translation rates are under pressure?

Photo Credit Thiru Why translation rates are under pressure? 1. Very high competition- more and more translators in the field due to internet 2. Poor negotiation tactics of freelance translators(They are poor in doing business negotiations). 3. Tougher stand of project managers to squeeze more and more at the cost of translators. 4. Declining rates of dollar. 5. Globalisation leading to single marketplace. These are my views. Do you agree? More on rates in future posts. Bookmark this blog and leave your comments. Factors Influencing Freelance Translation Rates Freelance translation rates Why translation rates are under pressure? Rates: Do you have a strategy for rates highly complicated texts? What are the Factors that Influence rates? Basic question for fixing rates