| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] | Agency pays 1/6 of actual time spent Thread poster: Frank van Overveld
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| Only translations | Dec 23, 2023 |
Yasutomo Kanazawa wrote: Frank van Overveld wrote:
So this will be the last revision job I've done for them unless they change their approach.
Wishing everyone happy holidays and a successful 2024.
[Modifié le 2023-12-22 18:42 GMT] Do you think it is a wise idea to resume working with them again after all this mess? They tricked you once (intentionally, no doubt), and there is no guarantee that they will pull the same trick again with a different reason.
The regular translation jobs are alright, even though their fuzzy rates are abysmal. So I avoid jobs with high fuzzies.
Any other type of job (MTPE, revision, proofreading etc. usually entails some sort of shenanigans.
Honestly though, I've been receiving less and less work from them the past year, while moving on to more interesting clients. They used to be my biggest one cause they would send me plenty work, but I think I've simply outgrown them and their ways. It allows me to develop my relationships with other agencies and improve my working conditions. We'll see how things go.
[Modifié le 2023-12-23 16:19 GMT]
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Charlie Bavington wrote: Christopher Schröder wrote:
Although quite how you’d spend more than 2.5 hours firing off a few stern emails I don’t know… Frank has also spent a fair while discussing the issue on here, and doubtless pondering his responses. It all adds up. Ten minutes here, 10 minutes there. I was including that time. And yup, there was the implication that this was time that could otherwise be spent earning money elsewhere. If it's the last €100 Frank's ever gonna earn, naturally he could devote the rest of his life to hunting it down, if he saw fit 
If you calculate it like this, any time not working is a waste of time.
But of course I also think of these things. It's also what bothers me with this agency: i end up spending a lot more time on frustrating exchanges, haggling, explanations, etc. while things could just be clear from the beginning. That is what I have been trying to make them understand. They expect me to accept or refuse the jobs they offer on their platform rapidly, but their conditions are often too vague. When I am busy working, I often don't have time to check the documents, negotiate the rate and the deadline, ask for more info etc. It's all a waste of time for me if they could simply provide all the necessary info from the beginning, like: this is the amount of time we allocate for this task. How would this be too complicated for them to clarify? Why would I have to ask for it?
But time can also be an investment.
I think it's time invested wisely, as it allows me to think about these things strategically and determine how to tackle similar issues in the future.
I received helpful feedback from kind colleagues.
In the best case scenario they think about the way they handle things and make changes, with positive outcomes for me.
All these things will help me to make the right decisions now and in the future.
[Modifié le 2023-12-23 16:18 GMT]
[Modifié le 2023-12-23 17:20 GMT]
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Frank van Overveld wrote:
If you calculate it like this, any time not working is a waste of time.
Maybe not entirely - if you get the money with minor effort well, OK, maybe it reduces your earnings per hour for that particular job, but it also sends the message you are not to be trifled with. I'd never recommend not trying at all. Just consider if there is a point when it is more appropriate and useful to stop.
Frank van Overveld wrote:
But time can also be an investment.
....
All these things will help me to make the right decisions now and in the future.
Absolutely. What's done cannot be undone, so it is always (IMHO) more beneficial to see what can be gained or learned from a situation, even tangentially.
| | | | Inge Schumacher 
France
Local time: 19:57
Member (2023)
French to German
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| 1600 reviewed words per hour? | Dec 26, 2023 |
Hi everyone,
I think we all have seen that kind of "revision" where the whole translation needs to be EDITED!
Also, having done revisions for very good (end) clients, I think a normal hourly number of words is more around 1000 words/hour. This is only possible if the translation is good.
I think we should really (try) stop working for all these "fast and cheap" labour lovers. We are not machines yet!
Kind regards,
Inge
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Inge Schumacher
France
Local time: 19:57
Member (2023)
French to German
+ ...
| Sometimes it may be necessary to take a fresh look | Dec 26, 2023 |
Frank wrote:
"But time (not spent on work) can also be an investment.
I think it's time invested wisely, as it allows me to think about these things strategically and determine how to tackle similar issues in the future."
I think you're right! From time to time, it's good to take a break and ask yourself "Do I really want to do this, do I really want to continue working like this or for this client?"
There is so much work out there, so many new... See more Frank wrote:
"But time (not spent on work) can also be an investment.
I think it's time invested wisely, as it allows me to think about these things strategically and determine how to tackle similar issues in the future."
I think you're right! From time to time, it's good to take a break and ask yourself "Do I really want to do this, do I really want to continue working like this or for this client?"
There is so much work out there, so many new opportunities, and only those who really know WHO they are and WHAT they are good at will succeed.
But we have to find out first.
I wish you good luck.
Kind regards,
Inge ▲ Collapse
| | | | Dler Piran
Iraq
Local time: 20:57
Member (2023)
English to Kurdish
+ ...
| This is happening to me | Dec 26, 2023 |
Hi,
I am doing a similar revision task that requires too many corrections. For a task that the client calculates as 8 hours work, I spend around 11 hours. It is my first time working on hourly rate, but I am sure this will be my last time.
So, my suggestion is: it is better to work on per word basis for translation as well as for revision. this is what I will do in the future. If I had taken this job on a per word basis, the payment amount would have been almost double the amount o... See more Hi,
I am doing a similar revision task that requires too many corrections. For a task that the client calculates as 8 hours work, I spend around 11 hours. It is my first time working on hourly rate, but I am sure this will be my last time.
So, my suggestion is: it is better to work on per word basis for translation as well as for revision. this is what I will do in the future. If I had taken this job on a per word basis, the payment amount would have been almost double the amount of the hourly rate I am doing now. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Zea_Mays
Italy
Local time: 19:57
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
| Charge editing always per hour | Dec 26, 2023 |
Dler Piran wrote:
Hi,
I am doing a similar revision task that requires too many corrections. For a task that the client calculates as 8 hours work, I spend around 11 hours. It is my first time working on hourly rate, but I am sure this will be my last time.
So, my suggestion is: it is better to work on per word basis for translation as well as for revision. this is what I will do in the future. If I had taken this job on a per word basis, the payment amount would have been almost double the amount of the hourly rate I am doing now.
Just calculate how many words you are editing per hour, and you know how many hours to allocate.
Same for new jobs, always check the file first, and then give the agency an hourly estimate.
Editing/reviewing/proofreading on a per word basis only works if you know the quality of the translations and can offer different rates per word depending on how good they are. Otherwise, you could end up losing money.
| | | | | Exactly. If they say it's doable in X hours, | Dec 28, 2023 |
then tell them: alright, I'll do what's doable in X hours.
Their problem.
Frank van Overveld wrote:
...My key tip would just be: don't spend more than 2.5 hours trying to get paid for 2.5 hours. Otherwise you can easily end up losing 5+ hours of money.
(Some people might even recommend a shorter cut-off period than that!)
Hope it works out.
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