Poll: Have you adjusted your rates in 2022? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Have you adjusted your rates in 2022?".
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What do you mean by adjust? Adjust my price structure to the inflation rate? I haven’t touched the rates I apply to my long-standing customers since 2016 when I last raised them, but for some time I've been applying either a higher rate or a per project rate to my new clients. That’s what I intend to keep on doing. Let’s say also that for the time being instead of raising my rates (I’m already on the higher side) I prefer to (try to) cut down on some spending…
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 22:20
Spanish to English
+ ...
| No, but thinking about it | Sep 8, 2022 |
I usually try not to succumb to the temptation to raise my rates in times of economic crisis or inflation. However, the other day the author of an academic text I was translating told me that my services go above and beyond mere translation, as the original Spanish was poorly written, and I had consulted them about several deficiencies in the text and possible room for improvement.
That gave me pause for thought, and I'm currently considering raising my rates for this type of client... See more I usually try not to succumb to the temptation to raise my rates in times of economic crisis or inflation. However, the other day the author of an academic text I was translating told me that my services go above and beyond mere translation, as the original Spanish was poorly written, and I had consulted them about several deficiencies in the text and possible room for improvement.
That gave me pause for thought, and I'm currently considering raising my rates for this type of client, as their texts often leave much to be desired and appear to have been written in unseemly haste or as an afterthought.
However, I will do my best to keep my rates as they currently are for my two or three main (non-agency) clients, since I have been working them for over 20 years now and we have a very good relationship. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kay Denney 
France
Local time: 22:20
French to English
I'm kinda in the process of doing it.
Now that the pandemic seems to be over, I'm getting more and more work, mostly in the fields I'm most interested in. There's a chance I might be getting even more from one great client.
So I've upped my hourly rate to reflect the fact that I hate proofreading and most other stuff that I bill by the hour, which may deter some, and those who are not deterred will pay more and that hopefully will motivate me a bit more.
And I'... See more I'm kinda in the process of doing it.
Now that the pandemic seems to be over, I'm getting more and more work, mostly in the fields I'm most interested in. There's a chance I might be getting even more from one great client.
So I've upped my hourly rate to reflect the fact that I hate proofreading and most other stuff that I bill by the hour, which may deter some, and those who are not deterred will pay more and that hopefully will motivate me a bit more.
And I've decided to raise the rate for some of those who pay my lowest rate, starting with the woman who can't ever be bothered to give me the wordcount, is generally unpleasant to work with, doesn't take the time to let me know when there's a mistake in my bill, with the result that it then takes me months to get paid, and sends the most boring work.
I'm not firing her outright because she has sent some great work to me, but I'll be raising the rate in the hopes that she'll find someone else at least for the boring stuff. ▲ Collapse
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But due to the inflation I am considering to raise my rates at the turn of the year 2022 / 2023
| | | | | Higher And Higher... | Sep 9, 2022 |
...as one famous American soul artist (right now his name escapes me, but the catchy tune and most of the lyrics have not) used to sing in one of, if not his biggest 1960s hit. After all, in post-pandemic 2022, I have to pay twice as much for lawn care, and twice as much for fuel for my car, and will have to pay much more for just standard, routine maintenance on the latter. And food, esp. meat, is turning, with each passing day, into an almost unaffordable luxury for many Americans. The paper a... See more ...as one famous American soul artist (right now his name escapes me, but the catchy tune and most of the lyrics have not) used to sing in one of, if not his biggest 1960s hit. After all, in post-pandemic 2022, I have to pay twice as much for lawn care, and twice as much for fuel for my car, and will have to pay much more for just standard, routine maintenance on the latter. And food, esp. meat, is turning, with each passing day, into an almost unaffordable luxury for many Americans. The paper and ink I use for my printer has gone up quite a bit over the last year, too. So I feel quite justified in raising my rates, After all, every other business around here, which I now have to pay much higher prices to for necessary goods and services, has certainly done that. And equally, if not more important as far as I'm concerned, is that with all my education, most of it language- and translation-related, which I undertook and carried out in the most assiduous way, and because of the massive amount of professional experience I have accumulated in this field, over a large number of years, by participating on some very prestigious projects, there is no way that I should not keep raising my rates (even while taking into consideration the size of any given project)!
[Edited at 2022-09-09 07:58 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Colin Smith
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:20
French to English
+ ...
My translation rates are 10% lower (at clients' "take-it-or-leave-it" insistence) in nominal terms than 15 years ago, so adjusted for inflation I now earn a fraction of what I did back then. Most of my work is now PEMT which is reasonably lucrative depending on the subject matter, but of course the volumes are 50% less in terms of earnings.
I don't see any possibility of raising my rates. While my operating costs are non-existent (we heat our home and have internet anyway), I no lo... See more My translation rates are 10% lower (at clients' "take-it-or-leave-it" insistence) in nominal terms than 15 years ago, so adjusted for inflation I now earn a fraction of what I did back then. Most of my work is now PEMT which is reasonably lucrative depending on the subject matter, but of course the volumes are 50% less in terms of earnings.
I don't see any possibility of raising my rates. While my operating costs are non-existent (we heat our home and have internet anyway), I no longer regard translation as a viable means of making a living. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Hayley Wakenshaw
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:20
Member (2018)
Dutch to English
| I've actually reduced my prices! | Sep 9, 2022 |
For years, I stubbornly adhered to the average rate according to Proz.com and got no work. When I approached agencies, they told me that I was charging much more than other linguists for my language pair, Dutch to English. I was asking €0.01 per word.
Before now, it didn't matter so much if I didn't get a lot of work. Now I'm having to get serious about making an actual living from translation. The only way I've been able to get work is to lower my per-word rate by about 20%. I h... See more For years, I stubbornly adhered to the average rate according to Proz.com and got no work. When I approached agencies, they told me that I was charging much more than other linguists for my language pair, Dutch to English. I was asking €0.01 per word.
Before now, it didn't matter so much if I didn't get a lot of work. Now I'm having to get serious about making an actual living from translation. The only way I've been able to get work is to lower my per-word rate by about 20%. I have one agency I've worked with for a few years that still pays me €0.01 a word as I'm their preferred linguist for creative translation.
I don't have a specialist subject, so I can understand why the average rates don't apply to me so much. Specialist knowledge costs more, I suppose?
I'm hoping to slowly increase my rates as good clients discover that the skill of creating a native-English text that flows well and is pleasurable to read is worth paying more for. But for now, if I want to eat, I have to charge less.
And yes, I know that lowering my rates is bad for the industry as a whole; I've argued that myself for years. But now I can't afford the luxury of sticking to that principle. Bracing myself for the flack... ▲ Collapse
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Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 23:20
Member
English to Turkish
| Am I reading this right? | Sep 9, 2022 |
Hayley Wakenshaw wrote: For years, I stubbornly adhered to the average rate according to Proz.com and got no work. When I approached agencies, they told me that I was charging much more than other linguists for my language pair, Dutch to English. I was asking €0.01 per word. Before now, it didn't matter so much if I didn't get a lot of work. Now I'm having to get serious about making an actual living from translation. The only way I've been able to get work is to lower my per-word rate by about 20%. I have one agency I've worked with for a few years that still pays me €0.01 a word as I'm their preferred linguist for creative translation. I don't have a specialist subject, so I can understand why the average rates don't apply to me so much. Specialist knowledge costs more, I suppose? I'm hoping to slowly increase my rates as good clients discover that the skill of creating a native-English text that flows well and is pleasurable to read is worth paying more for. But for now, if I want to eat, I have to charge less. And yes, I know that lowering my rates is bad for the industry as a whole; I've argued that myself for years. But now I can't afford the luxury of sticking to that principle. Bracing myself for the flack...
Do you mean €0.10 per word? I don't think you can go any lower if you're actually charging €0.01?
| | | | Edwin den Boer
Netherlands
Local time: 22:20
Member (2009)
English to Dutch
Charging less because you need to earn more is a dead-end strategy. I'm not worried about you ruining the market, but I'm going to give you some condescending advice, because there's clearly something going wrong which I've seen before.
- What Baran said.
- You do have a specialization, which is called transcreation and can be paid well when the clients are advertising agencies. You also have experience in several business-related fields. Try to emphasize the most lucrative to... See more Charging less because you need to earn more is a dead-end strategy. I'm not worried about you ruining the market, but I'm going to give you some condescending advice, because there's clearly something going wrong which I've seen before.
- What Baran said.
- You do have a specialization, which is called transcreation and can be paid well when the clients are advertising agencies. You also have experience in several business-related fields. Try to emphasize the most lucrative topics.
- Please remove "– you'll find my rates fair but reasonable. (And if you don't, they're also negotiable!)" from your profile. You're inviting clients to exploit you. On ProZ, you'll find agencies who won't hesitate to do that rather than timid end clients worrying about the cost of translation. You don't need to encourage them.
- Stop translating books unless royalties or subsidies compensate for the low word rate. Avoiding the most interesting jobs is the sacrifice you'll have to make in order to do this for a living.
- Have you tried to work as a reviewer/proofreader or as a copywriter? Translators usually have talents which can help you branch out to other jobs, which are almost automatically an improvement. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Michele Fauble
United States
Local time: 13:20
Member (2006)
Norwegian to English
+ ...
Baran Keki wrote: Hayley Wakenshaw wrote: For years, I stubbornly adhered to the average rate according to Proz.com and got no work. When I approached agencies, they told me that I was charging much more than other linguists for my language pair, Dutch to English. I was asking €0.01 per word. Before now, it didn't matter so much if I didn't get a lot of work. Now I'm having to get serious about making an actual living from translation. The only way I've been able to get work is to lower my per-word rate by about 20%. I have one agency I've worked with for a few years that still pays me €0.01 a word as I'm their preferred linguist for creative translation. I don't have a specialist subject, so I can understand why the average rates don't apply to me so much. Specialist knowledge costs more, I suppose? I'm hoping to slowly increase my rates as good clients discover that the skill of creating a native-English text that flows well and is pleasurable to read is worth paying more for. But for now, if I want to eat, I have to charge less. And yes, I know that lowering my rates is bad for the industry as a whole; I've argued that myself for years. But now I can't afford the luxury of sticking to that principle. Bracing myself for the flack... Do you mean €0.10 per word? I don't think you can go any lower if you're actually charging €0.01?
Her profile and website indicate €0.10 per word.
| | | | Hayley Wakenshaw
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:20
Member (2018)
Dutch to English
| You read it right but I wrote it wrong! | Oct 10, 2022 |
Baran Keki wrote:
Do you mean €0.10 per word? I don't think you can go any lower if you're actually charging €0.01?
Yes, it's €0.10 per word. A silly mistake. I don't want other linguists to think that anyone is charging that rate. I've actually been offered that rate, so it's not beyond belief. But unfortunately I can't change my post.
[Edited at 2022-10-10 15:34 GMT]
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Hayley Wakenshaw
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:20
Member (2018)
Dutch to English
| That's all good advice, Edwin. | Oct 10, 2022 |
It's very useful to have input like this, and I appreciate it. Thank you.
I have a proofreading qualification from the PTC and do revision and review on occasion, but I find it very stressful. I spend far too much time checking texts to make sure I've really caught everything, which makes it a low-paying task.
You're right about the niche and branching out. Transcreation is where I'm starting to pitch myself. I'm studying copywriting now to improve my marketing transl... See more It's very useful to have input like this, and I appreciate it. Thank you.
I have a proofreading qualification from the PTC and do revision and review on occasion, but I find it very stressful. I spend far too much time checking texts to make sure I've really caught everything, which makes it a low-paying task.
You're right about the niche and branching out. Transcreation is where I'm starting to pitch myself. I'm studying copywriting now to improve my marketing translation, but also with a view to writing copy eventually. But translation is what I love, and unless I actually turn out to be an ace copywriter, it will remain my focus.
Since I wrote this post, I've put a lot of effort into finding clients, and business has improved. I have some clients who appreciate what I an do and are happy to pay €0.10 per word. Most of the others insist that everyone else charges eight cents for the same work. There's even one agency in the Netherlands that pays four cents a word, although they pay the same whether it's untranslated or a 100% match.
I'll remove the offending phrases from my profile and see if it makes a difference.
As for book translations, I find that the lower rates are pretty much compensated for by the considerable reduction in the unpaid time spent doing things like invoicing, finding work and emailing clients.
Edwin den Boer wrote:
Charging less because you need to earn more is a dead-end strategy. I'm not worried about you ruining the market, but I'm going to give you some condescending advice, because there's clearly something going wrong which I've seen before.
- What Baran said.
- You do have a specialization, which is called transcreation and can be paid well when the clients are advertising agencies. You also have experience in several business-related fields. Try to emphasize the most lucrative topics.
- Please remove "– you'll find my rates fair but reasonable. (And if you don't, they're also negotiable!)" from your profile. You're inviting clients to exploit you. On ProZ, you'll find agencies who won't hesitate to do that rather than timid end clients worrying about the cost of translation. You don't need to encourage them.
- Stop translating books unless royalties or subsidies compensate for the low word rate. Avoiding the most interesting jobs is the sacrifice you'll have to make in order to do this for a living.
- Have you tried to work as a reviewer/proofreader or as a copywriter? Translators usually have talents which can help you branch out to other jobs, which are almost automatically an improvement. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Hayley Wakenshaw
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:20
Member (2018)
Dutch to English
| That's all good advice, Edwin. | Oct 10, 2022 |
Hayley Wakenshaw wrote:
As for book translations, I find that the lower rates are pretty much compensated for by the considerable reduction in the unpaid time spent doing things like invoicing, finding work, and emailing clients.
Plus, I have proof that being able to include books by some big Dutch names in my portfolio has attracted some clients, so I would be reluctant to turn this work down in the future despite the lower rates.
[Edited at 2022-10-11 07:22 GMT]
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