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Newcomers: translation tests and (potential) scams
Thread poster: Rita Pang
ysun
ysun  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 13:39
English to Chinese
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按常规出牌 Feb 5, 2014

Ying Wang wrote:

前段时间，我也收到过连说明带测试内容加起来长达11页的免费测试稿，拒掉，没商量。

另外有一家客户，测试稿长达两三千字，但是这家客户主动提出支付试译费。我当时就意识到，这就是传说中的优质客户了。事实果然如此！所以，刚入门的新朋友们要有耐心，是你的就是你的。

长达两三千字的测试稿通常是翻译社到最终客户那里去竞标用的。所以，翻译社主动提出支付试译费，那是理所当然。对于这种项目，我会付出额外的精力。我仍按平常价收费，并不要求翻译社额外付我报酬，那已经是很够意思的了。免费测试，当然绝对没商量。

有时候你帮翻译社争来项目，他们却找别的价格较低的翻译去做。这种做法虽然缺德，但也可以理解。因此，唯有收费试译，才是正确做法。我并不反对别人接受免费试译。如果有些人抱着“闲着也是闲着”的心态，倒也不妨一试。但如果到头来竹篮子打水一场空，那也就不要抱怨。
 
ysun
ysun  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 13:39
English to Chinese
+ ...
为什么战战兢兢 Feb 5, 2014

Ying Wang wrote:

最后，ＰＭ把译审的意见发回来，说我的译文“impressive”。接着说：你开价吧！多爽快！结果我还是战战兢兢，不敢开高价......

为什么战战兢兢？实事求是、理直气壮地开一个对得起自己的价。如果 PM 嫌高，他会与你商量，除非双方的距离实在太远。如果你这次开得太低，以后再想提就很难。
 
Ying Wang
Ying Wang  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 14:39
English to Chinese
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报价是门学问 Feb 5, 2014

ysun wrote:

Ying Wang wrote:

最后，ＰＭ把译审的意见发回来，说我的译文“impressive”。接着说：你开价吧！多爽快！结果我还是战战兢兢，不敢开高价......

为什么战战兢兢？实事求是、理直气壮地开一个对得起自己的价。如果 PM 嫌高，他会与你商量，除非双方的距离实在太远。如果你这次开得太低，以后再想提就很难。


这大概是新入行的人都会有的问题吧，就是吃不准报什么价合适。要说对得起自己，我自然觉得越高越好，才对得起我这些年的辛苦付出。然而，事实是，市场自有它的定价标准。我猜，每个翻译公司，对自由译者都有自己的一套或明或暗的评价标准，也有与之对应的价位。我之所以战战兢兢，就是不了解这个市场标准，或者具体到某个公司的标准，甚至具体到每个项目的标准。我要是能知道对方手里的牌，那就好办多了。

您的方法很好，开一个对得起自己的价格，双方再讨价还价，如果差距太大，自然说明对方不在自己的客户范围之内。报价像是一次考试，而且是双向的，三两封信，就能传递很多信息。我正在学习中。
 
wherestip
wherestip  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 13:39
Chinese to English
+ ...
Objectivity Feb 5, 2014

I agree with the both of you. IMO, it's a matter of having an objective self-awareness of where one stands in the market regarding one's language ability and professional knowledge. To err on either side of the price/quality equation IMO is doing oneself a disservice in the long run. What Yueyin said is very true, one needs to correctly align oneself with the market reality in order to neither overcharge nor undercharge.

BTW, I think it's a lot easier to evaluate what one brings ... See more
I agree with the both of you. IMO, it's a matter of having an objective self-awareness of where one stands in the market regarding one's language ability and professional knowledge. To err on either side of the price/quality equation IMO is doing oneself a disservice in the long run. What Yueyin said is very true, one needs to correctly align oneself with the market reality in order to neither overcharge nor undercharge.

BTW, I think it's a lot easier to evaluate what one brings to the table as a freelancer compared to an individual's contribution to the organization in a corporate environment. The market is able to provide immediate feedback to a freelancer who is almost always wholly responsible for the quality of a piece of work. Of course there is the problem of dealing with the occasional PM that really doesn't know what he or she is doing, and much worse, the cheats and the scam artists. But IMO that's a related but separate issue.


[Edited at 2014-02-06 00:43 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Lifeng Yang (X)
Lifeng Yang (X)  Identity Verified
China
Local time: 02:39
English to Chinese
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200 词以上的不做 Feb 25, 2014

还有上千词的 。。
 
Jing Li
Jing Li  Identity Verified
China
Local time: 02:39
English to Chinese
感谢Rita的善意提醒 Feb 26, 2014

Rita Pang wrote:

The purpose of this post is to warn the newcomers the following:

- only work on translation tests if the word count is "reasonable". Some may argue what "reasonable" entails. For me, anything up to 300 words/characters are reasonable.

- a truly reputable company will PAY you for translation tests if they think you are worthwhile. In that case, you might expect a longer translation test.

- do not be fooled by all the fancy admin word play - "deadlines", "48 hours", etc. Think: are you willing to commit to the test? If something smells fishy, say no.

- do not randomly sign documents unless you are fully aware of all legal implications. Watch out for words like "indemnify" - know what it means.

- consider using the option of protecting your work by making a file "read only" when sending it back.

As for other regularly seen scams in the translation community- all newcomers should check out the "scam" forum here at Proz and learn to protect yourself.



非常有用的建议，谢谢 ：）
 
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Newcomers: translation tests and (potential) scams






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