| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Do you give reduced rates for CAT tool generated fuzzy matches? Thread poster: Victoria Fletcher
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| Yes more money and no jobs | Nov 28, 2019 |
Nikolay Novitskiy wrote:
You should not, and there are 3 reasons for this.
1) Agencies don't give fuzzy matches discounts to their direct clients. They charge them full price - for repetitions, 99% matches, whatever! It means that accepting this policy you just give your earned money to your agency.
What agencies earn is none of my business, I am only interested in my own earning.
2) Buying and mastering a CAT-tool is an investment which boosts your productivity. Why should you reject a cash bonus this boost gives you? Investments should bring you profits, not losses
Unfortunately discount for reps (above 85% of course) is usual practice in the market, also buying a cat tool does not cost 2000 euros, and mastering it is very (very) easy.
3) Not giving fuzzy matches discounts gives you more money. More money is better than less money, isnt't it?
Yes and less or no jobs, because like other say (and I agree) it is usual practice in the translation business.
| | | | DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
| Competitive advantage in hindsight? | Nov 28, 2019 |
First of all--working with local direct clients, I'm sure CATs are but overrated, especially when misused as a hyped tool to trick the naive into the Underpay Game.
Second, there should be only (|) dedicated specialists [engineers, lawyers, doctors, designers etc] with (||) business awareness and (|||) foreign language skills--in this very order, no "pure" translators or bottom-feeding CAT operators.
Certainly, business skills is a must for a wannabe free*lancer for a start.... See more First of all--working with local direct clients, I'm sure CATs are but overrated, especially when misused as a hyped tool to trick the naive into the Underpay Game.
Second, there should be only (|) dedicated specialists [engineers, lawyers, doctors, designers etc] with (||) business awareness and (|||) foreign language skills--in this very order, no "pure" translators or bottom-feeding CAT operators.
Certainly, business skills is a must for a wannabe free*lancer for a start.
So, if you are a business lady who is interested in the earnings, then why offering "discounts"--getting what in return, except a funny chance to go cheap and losses?
Also for a sound decision one should (1) have the hard numbers/statistics, (2) know and (3) assess both pros and cons [2], do you? Indeed, you could just check some points here and there to balance your via-middleman philosophy.
Say what--a 'usual' approach for who, because of what, and to whose advantage, I wonder?
Keep thinking whose such a biz really* is and count what in a long run you really* lack and miss. (The minimum is $0.35/word flat and up--in advance or by installments--like agencies charge their clients.)
While a CAT tool may cost a little under $2000, yet after a year of direct or induced/imposed subscription--after all patches/ fixes/ SP/ updates/ upgrades/ offers/ webinars/ courses/ failures/ conflicts/ crashes/ outdates/ post-edit and so on, let alone "discounts"--it easily may turn out a way far too expensive.
Besides, how much is a software err which ruined the good name?
Though I occasionally use the tiniest, the simplest, and the most user-friendly WF Classic, it still has its peculiarities and a specific learning curve--not to mention monstrous suits like Trados, MemoQ, or DejaVu. Why, even certified specialists don't use all those price-blowing bell-and-whistle features.
Whatever the translator's policy, I do believe if s/he earns less than a McDonald's guy, then it's but a fancy hobby, a pocket-money jobbing, a disguised unemployment, or a sheer folly. ▲ Collapse
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