Cheaper price+lower quality vs Higher price+high quality

We often hear from client newbies that our prices are higher than the others. They allege that if translation is the same, why we sell our services that high. But are they the same, I wonder? I believe not! Let me clarify:

It happens that when addressing a translation agency, the clients have no time to analyze and weigh all the pros and cons, choosing this or that company. And after the translation is ready, the question of the correctness of the choice ceases to be relevant. And this is the case if the order is executed on time, efficiently and with due respect to our wishes. And if not?

Customers usually have a rather ephemeral idea of the criteria for choosing a translation agency. And this is understandable. After all, in order to name them, it is necessary to understand what makes up that very quality. Therefore, the client’s two most asked questions are: “How much does it cost?” And “When will it be ready?”

Based on these not too intricate needs, small translation bureaus choose a very simple tactic: put a lower price and take any urgent orders.

Now answer the simple question: how can I make a translation for a penny? The bottom-rock price companies will put in the office just one employee with knowledge of English, who will take orders and translate them himself. And since there are few orders, it is quite possible to combine them. What about quality if there is no editor, no specialist to a given field?

 It is proven that even the most professional translator is not able to perfectly read his text: not only his eyes get tired, but also his brain is “blurred”. Thus, it is possible to say with absolute certainty that without proofreading there will be mistakes in a translation. And you know where most likely? Right! Dates, numbers, names, titles and of course decoded acronyms ...

In fact, the work of such bureaus is akin to the activity of travel agencies: they are simply intermediaries between the customer and the translator. But, unlike travel agencies, small translation bureaus do not have an executor selection system and influence on the quality of their work.

The approach to choosing a translation agency for domestic and foreign companies is radically different, but there are some pitfalls here and there.

Here is how most large enterprises work: the manager throws the search for a translation company on a subordinate, calling only the main criterion. And you know what? Naturally, the minimum price. And since in our companies they do not argue with the authorities, and the “I am the boss - you are a fool” scheme is widespread, the assistant is afraid of only one thing - that he will be reprimanded for the unfulfilled instruction. Therefore, he chooses a translation agency not according to the parameters of common sense: “Price \ Quality”, but according to who gives the price “tastier”.

In large Western companies, they say, having money, you can get quality. Is not it? But bad luck, money is evil, and how can you resist when you are so sweetly offered to keep a part for yourself. And here comes the notorious corruption. Yes Yes! It is in foreign enterprises!

You do not need to be especially informed to see that there are companies on the market of translation agencies that offer prices 2 times higher than what it costs. Nevertheless, all large Western firms order translations from them, not trying to find alternatives.

I remember a translation company in Baku once phoning a number of large foreign enterprises, contacted the managers distributing orders, and offered the following scheme: “When you have an order, we are ready to fulfill it. And if you are satisfied with the quality of work, then you will pay for it. "

The trick was that its prices were 2 times lower than the prices in the price list of the famous companies. Do you think they were interested? No, they reacted very aggressively. We would say, even too aggressively for such a simple sentence. The problem was that our proposal did not go further than a specific manager.

Can you always count on quality, if there were no breakdowns before?

It is usually considered that each translation agency has its own staff of translators, whose quality of work they are confident of. Of course, each company has a certain list of people with whom they cooperate and who are uploaded with work. They also have a list of freelancers to whom they periodically apply.

However, the trick is that freelance translators who do 80% of the work are actually only hypothetically co-workers. They are NOT required to take orders. They are NOT required to work at an agreed price. They do not bear any financial responsibility. And when a non-standard or too large order arrives, there are not enough translators. But the order has already been accepted. What to do?

Ask the bureau where you intend to turn: what quality guarantee do they give? Now you know about the main features of the work of a translation agency, so feel free to contact us and demand high-quality execution of your order!

Our guarantee is our clients who are mostly contractors of large oil and gas and other industries. And the answer is clear: once we translate a document, we proofread, edit it and ultimately show to a specialist who has decades-long experince on a given field. And all within a deadline agreed with a client. And once we return work, they will never correct the translation or lose time in reshaping it.