The two sides of the coin - side by side Thread poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
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This post is dedicated to translation end clients - if any - who eventually read Proz forums.
All emphases here are mine.
Extracted from a translation agency's web site:
Each project is well researched, before we start translation by our experienced teams. After translation each project undergoes our formal proofreading procedure and then reviewed by an expert of that domain prior to delivery. By using our proprietary translator database we research and select the translators before we assign your project, we ensure the most qualified and suitable team of translators, proofreaders and reviewers work on your project. We take our clients' trust in us seriously and hold quality as our guiding principle. After all, it's not just gaining clients but keeping them satisfied, project after project, which counts. We strictly follow our quality control procedures.
Extracted from a job posted here on Proz by the same agency, today:
Please send your resume with best possible rates for initial collaboration for this langauge pair ASAP.
Resume with out price will not be entertained. The best price quote will get the project.
It's just one case, but extremely typical and elucidative on how some such companies work. Of course, there are the excellent, the good, the bad, and the really ugly among them.
All agencies say about the same, maybe some copy from each other. The challenge lies in finding the not so many ones that actually walk the talk!
| | | | | Just bla-bla-bla nobody believes anymore | Feb 27, 2009 |
The first block of text was the old-fashioned bla-bla-bla we see in so many websites. But end customers and many agencies are intelligent enough to look for results and don't trust the bla-bla-bla anymore. The future is for those who can provide results.
| | | | Silvia Barra (X) 
Italy
Local time: 22:36
English to Italian
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José you're right. Otherwise agencies would not answer to my quotes saying that they found someone else that can do the job for a lower rate!
I hope that Tomàs is right too.
Bye
Silvia
| | | | | Be sure they will! | Feb 27, 2009 |
Silvia Barra wrote:
José you're right. Otherwise agencies would not answer to my quotes saying that they found someone else that can do the job for a lower rate!
I hope that Tomàs is right too.
Bye
Silvia
Now that you have to spend your money wisely, don't you look for the best you can get at the price you can spend? Why should companies risk paying a bad translation? They must get effective translations with their budget too.
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| Nobody believes? | Feb 27, 2009 |
Tomás, I really wish you were right.
However if nobody believed that, we wouldn't see so many such agencies posting jobs every day, and we wouldn't be requested so often to "proofread" translations beyond salvage, nor to redo them from scratch.
It just happened that I found both sides of the same coin to put them side by side. Quite often they disguise the brighter side of the agency by posting the job ad under the PM's personal name.
Tomás Cano Binder, CT wrote:
Now that you have to spend your money wisely, don't you look for the best you can get at the price you can spend? Why should companies risk paying a bad translation? They must get effective translations with their budget too.
Of course! But when that agency's markup gets too thick, the company will never know what they are really buyng, even if it's within their budget.
| | | | Laurent KRAULAND (X)
France
Local time: 22:36
French to German
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| Janus... or Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde? | Feb 27, 2009 |
Anyway, José, and although this pointing at both sides of the 'agency coin' is not a revelation, my warmest thanks for making it public on ProZ in such an elegant manner!
I wish I could put this on my weblog...
Laurent K.
[Edited at 2009-02-27 13:39 GMT]
| | | | | Matthew 5:13 | Feb 27, 2009 |
ScottishWildCat wrote:
I wish I could put this on my weblog...
Laurent K.
Why not? I wouldn't have a problem doing so.
Take a look at the contact info and consider the source.
Cute little flow chart. But they need to lose that horrible animation. It hurts my eyes as much as their BS hurts my faith in business ethics.
| | | | Laurent KRAULAND (X)
France
Local time: 22:36
French to German
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Kevin Lossner wrote: ScottishWildCat wrote:
I wish I could put this on my weblog...
Laurent K. Why not? I wouldn't have a problem doing so. Take a look at the contact info and consider the source. Cute little flow chart. But they need to lose that horrible animation. It hurts my eyes as much as their BS hurts my faith in business ethics.
Done and published.
Laurent K
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Oleg Rudavin
Ukraine
Local time: 23:36
Member (2003)
English to Ukrainian
+ ...
Kevin Lossner wrote: Cute little flow chart. With a process like that the turnaround would be about a week for a three-pager, and they ought to be charging at least .50 - certainly not in rupees!
| | | | Vito Smolej
Germany
Local time: 22:36
Member (2004)
English to Slovenian
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SITE LOCALIZER | absolute metaphysical beauty | Feb 27, 2009 |
José Henrique Lamensdorf wrote:
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{quote] Resume with out price will not be entertained. The best price quote will get the project.
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[/quote]
Me Tarzan, you Jane.
Is there a way I could get the name of this agency? Would definitely like to subscribe. I want to be entertained too.
[Edited at 2009-02-27 21:21 GMT]
| | | | Marek Buchtel
Czech Republic
Local time: 22:36
Member (2005)
English to Czech
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER
Hello Vito,
Vito Smolej wrote:
Is there a way I could get the name of this agency?
Try googling the first line and ...
Marek
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I just wanted to point out that their instant quote form is made up of five fields in all, one of which is Budget. Hmmmm...
When I go to the liquor store and I name my price, the lower the price I name, the sourer the wine they sell me. Their promise sounds too good to be true, and you know what they say about things that seem to good to be true... Major credibility issue!
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| My hands are tied | Feb 28, 2009 |
Folks,
I wish I could say something, but my hands are tied....
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