4 common mistakes buyers make when hiring a translator or copy-editor
If you’re looking for advice on how to ensure you achieve the right results from hiring* a translator or copy-editor, you’re in the right place.
I love providing INGOs, foundations, non-profits and publishers with engaging English content that helps them reach a wider audience while protecting their reputation.
Whether you’re publishing a report or getting learning materials fit for purpose, getting your documents translated or edited can become a stumbling block when you have so many other things to do.
But before you jump in and hire a freelance translator or copy-editor for your next project, be sure to check that you’re not falling into the trap of making some of the costly mistakes others can make when buying professional language services.
We’ve all seen funny translation fails and hilarious misspellings, but a lack of planning and clarity about a translation or editing project can actually cause big problems. If you’re not careful, these problems could cost you, time, money, or reputational damage. Translated or edited English content should always solve problems, not create them.
Read on for how to ensure you don’t make these mistakes.
If you’re not careful, these problems could cost you, time, money, or reputational damage
Mistake 1: Lack of planning
You’ve spent ages putting together a report or other publication, and now you need to make sure it’s published on time. But oh wait, doesn’t it need to be translated and/or edited, too?
Have you allowed enough time to get the translation and/or editing done before the publishing deadline? For translations from French, Spanish and Portuguese (and other Romance languages) into English, the English word count may be at least 20% shorter. And even if only a light copy-edit is required, the changes required could affect the layout of the English version, and not realising this in time will create stress later.
How you can protect yourself
You can avoid these stresses by taking the translation and editing process into account earlier in the publication workflow, instead of making the mistake of finding an English translator or editor as an afterthought.
Be sure to ask them how long the translation or edit will take, to avoid any nasty surprises, and so you don’t miss your deadline.
If you book the translation or editing project with the translator or editor in advance, then you’re more likely to find a translation or editing professional who can dedicate enough focused time to producing something you’ll be proud of. Someone with the time and experience to spot all the errors. Be sure to ask them how long the translation or edit will take, to avoid any nasty surprises, and so you don’t miss your deadline.
With a bit of forward planning and discussion with the translator or editor, you may even realise that those hundreds of pages don’t all need to be translated or edited in full. Another cost saving!
Mistake 2: Sending an unfinalised version of the document to the translator or editor
At the opposite end of the scale, you may be under pressure to just get the text published. Waiting for the final text to be ready may just feel like another obstacle in your way.
So you just send the translator a draft or unformatted version of the text, telling yourself you can just add changes, styles and updates later on. But this won’t actually save you any time or money – it only makes the task more time-consuming for the translator (which will in turn cost you money). It also runs the risk of losing coherence and consistency in the text as the different versions float around.
Watch out for the risk of losing coherence and consistency in the text as the different versions float around.
A translator or editor will probably be more than happy to accommodate minor changes, but updating or deleting large passages of text will only end up wasting you money on the time spent on work they’ve already completed that’s no longer needed. Imagine asking a builder to build you an extension but then telling them it’s no longer required once it is half done. I’m willing to bet they’d still charge you for their work (and for undoing that work, too!).
How you can protect yourself
You’ll definitely save yourself time and stress in the long run if you are able to send the final, formatted and styled, version of your text to the translator or editor.
Before being tempted to jump ahead to translation or copy-editing your text, be sure to ask all stakeholders whether they have any final changes they wish to make to it.
Before being tempted to jump ahead to translation or copy-editing your text, be sure to ask all stakeholders whether they have any final changes they wish to make to it.
If you really must send a draft version of a text to a translator or editor, at least measure that you name each version, that you time- and date-stamp each version and clearly mark the changes you have made.
If the version you send to the translator or copy-editor is fully formatted and contains all images, figures and tables you intend to include, this will help them see how the final product will look and for them to visualise the content in its proper context. The result? English content that speaks authentically to its intended purpose and audience.
Mistake 3: Not providing a brief
Think specifically about why you need this text translated or edited. If you’re not sure, how can the translator or copy-editor be sure? Published materials are more than just words on a page; they usually serve a specific purpose or a specific audience. Assuming you want your English materials to have the same impact and outcome as the original source language materials, you need to provide a brief.
If you do know the purpose, target audience, and objective of the English text, don’t forget to tell the translator or copy-editor! If you don’t spend a little time on this, you’re much less likely to achieve what you want. You may end up with a literal translation or an edit that does not reflect your messaging.
If you do know the purpose, target audience, and objective of the English text, don’t forget to tell the translator or copy-editor!
Without specific instructions – even down to which spelling you prefer to use (-ise or -ize) and which style guides you follow – the translator or editor has no parameters for the project.
How you can protect yourself
Once you’ve grasped that translation is more than replacing English words with equivalent target language words, you’ll grasp why even a short translation or editing brief will get you better results. For example, translated or edited learning materials will not only teach the same content but will elicit the same response in the learners, while a consumer browsing a website for a health supplement will be just as likely to buy the product whether they are an English speaker or a Spanish speaker.
Mistake 4: Choosing the cheapest service
You may be short on time and just want to tick another job off your to-do list. The temptation to place your translation or copy-editing project with the first and/or cheapest translator or copy-editor you stumble upon may be strong, but it could cause big problems later on. You may find yourself with a text that’s still unclear, full of grammatical errors, typos and clumsy phrasing, or terminology that’s way off the mark.
At a low price, they may be working so hard to make ends meet that they forget about a deadline.
Choosing the cheapest translation or editing service will probably work out being more expensive in the long run, since you’ll probably end up having to correct mistakes. Or, worse still, you may not realise the translator or editor has created or missed problems with the text until the publication is out in the wild and your reputation is already damaged.
The cheapest translator or copy-editor is unlikely to be the most experienced one. At a cheap price, they will not have the latitude to specialise in a particular field. At that low price, they may be working so hard to make ends meet that they forget about a deadline.
How you can protect yourself
Ask these questions:
Is the translator or copy-editor accredited with any professional body. Examples in the UK are the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI), the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL), and the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP).
Does the translator translate only into their native language? (more here)
Does the translator or copy-editor specialise in a specific field?
What now?
Now you understand some of the costliest mistakes when buying translation or copy-editing services, make sure you avoid them to save yourself time and money.
And remember, forward planning and communication are vital!
If you would like my help to produce English language materials you can be truly proud of, and which get more eyes on your cause, click the link below to book a call.
I enjoy troubleshooting and making people’s lives easier.
I specialise in international development, education and governance, so I know the terminology used in those sectors inside out.
I’m experienced and reliable. I’ve been doing this for years, so I know when to ask the right questions.
I love making the written word more engaging and purposeful.
*When I say ‘hire’, take this to mean shorthand for commissioning, engaging or contracting translation services. I don’t mean ‘employ’ in this context.
How much do professional English translation services cost?
What budget will you need if you’re buying professional translation services?
Are you looking to commission a translation of your valuable, high-profile documents? Not sure where to start? I know it can be stressful to navigate the maze of information online to decide which service is right for you. It’s hard to know if a translation service provider is going to be reliable or knowledgeable enough to deliver the high standards you need.
You might have done your research and found a selection of translators you would be interested in working with. Yay! But now that big deadline is looming and it’s time to talk costs and get that translation done.
2. How to understand the varying costs of document translation
One of your obvious first questions might be ‘How much is it going to cost to get this translated?’. Because of the huge variation in prices you may be quoted, it’s wise to also spend a bit of time considering a) what exactly you want to achieve with the translated text, and b) how much budget you are willing to invest.
You could save money by commissioning a different service
Few things are genuinely free in this world. If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys…. I’m sure you’ve heard all that before. In this post I’m going to provide as much information as I can to explain the levels of investment you can expect to make, depending on your needs and requirements. I’ll even explain how you could save money by commissioning a different service with me.
So let’s get down to it.
3. How are translation services priced?
Translation services are usually priced by the word, or sometimes per standard page, or per hour. On some occasions, you may find that the translator quotes you a project price. This could be because it makes sense for the particular requirements of the translation service you need.
The price of the translation reflects the time and expertise you are benefiting from.
The price of the translation reflects the time and expertise you are benefiting from. Most translators will tend to translate around 2,000 words per day. But, similar to copywriting, sometimes a particularly thorny text comes along and a lot of back-and-forth is needed before the best term or phrase is pinpointed and the most compelling copy is achieved.
4. What different translation services are available and what benefits do they offer?
Option 1:
Machine translation
*A disclaimer: I’m not talking about free services like Google Translate that you might use to understand a street sign, but instead more context-aware, AI-driven, paid-for services such as DeepL, ModernMT.
What you need to decide is whether the initial cost savings of using machine translation will actually pay off, and whether any benefits outweigh the risks.
Pros:
o Low-cost and quick when you just want to get a ‘gist’ of what something says.
o You don’t even need to bother interacting with a human to explain your needs.
Cons:
o First up are accountability issues – you’re sending your valuable data into a machine, so who is accountable for any mistakes it makes?
o Next is voice. Because a lot of machine translation content draws on past translations, conveying the right tone of voice and unique personality is beyond its capabilities in creative, persuasive, complex or high-stakes copy.
o Even with post-editing by a human translator, the resulting copy will almost certainly read like robotic writing. For the obvious reason that it was translated by a machine.
o Oh, and watch out for random inaccuracies, inexplicable mistranslations that were somehow ‘missed’, language bias, and be sure to check whether it knows the difference between language varieties such as Mexican and European Spanish.
Cost: Low, but DeepL and ModernMT are subscription-based services. Based on my research, translation agencies offer machine translation services from as low as £0.03 per word.
What you need to decide is whether the initial cost savings of using machine translation will actually pay off, and whether any benefits outweigh the risks.
Option 2:
(Large) agency translation services
Pros:
o They can probably handle multilingual projects, so if you need one document translated into more than one language at once, they are often a great choice.
o Agencies often offer more of a full-service solution that could include transcription, voice-over or DTP (although many freelancers also offer these services alongside translation).
Cons:
o Large agencies don’t often specialise in a particular area – if you’re looking for someone who knows your industry and/or organisation inside out, a full-time specialist in that area is probably a better fit.
o Lack of consistency – you may find that your translations are outsourced to different freelance translators each time.
Cost: I’m not totally sure what a translation agency would charge these days, but agencies do have overheads and staff to pay, so you should expect to pay quite a bit. And certainly much more than a machine translation service. I do know that prices vary hugely between countries, and the price is also quite likely to reflect the translation quality you’re getting.
Option 4:
A specialist freelance translator
Pros:
o A specialist freelance translator will work with you as an expert partner to understand what you need.
o They will possess the human experience and judgement needed to carefully adapt cultural references and nuances.
o As a one-to-one partner, they can be flexible enough to accommodate specific requirements and offer a highly customised service.
o If you’ve found a good translation partner, that freelancer will already have invested considerable time specialising in your particular field. So they’ll know the sector’s terminology inside out.
o Consistency: this is a big one. You get to work with the same person every time, which means your tone of voice and brand values remain consistent. Hooray!
Cons:
o Capacity – a freelance translator usually works alone and will translate only into one target language, so they would probably struggle to accommodate a huge multilingual project. However, if they are well connected to their professional network, I bet they’ll be able to refer you to someone who can help you if their own capacity is maxed out.
Cost: You probably know what I’m going to say – ‘it depends’. But if you are looking for a reliable freelancer who can provide premium translations of your important publications, the fees will reflect their expertise, so beware of any quote that comes in at less than something in the region of £100 per thousand words.
Fees will reflect expertise
5. What about hidden costs in translation?
There are sometimes extra costs involved in a translation service, but the translator should always explain these to you in advance. For example, the document you need to get translated might be in PDF format and need to be converted using OCR software. Or, if you’re in a big hurry, an urgency charge may apply. This sort of cost might not add a lot to the total bill, but it’s still worth taking into account in your planning. If you plan your publications with enough time set aside for translation, then you’ll save money on urgency charges.
6. Why is translation so expensive?
As you can see, the cost of translation can vary a lot.
There’s no denying that it will cost more to choose me as your translation service provider over running your document through machine translation. But as a human, I’m accountable for my work. If I mess up, that’s on me (spoiler alert: I won’t mess up).
By working in partnership with you, you also get a more personalised service from me. I will dedicate time to researching your values, your tone of voice, target audience, and the nuts and bolts of what you actually want to achieve by translating your documents.
I’m always happy to discuss your individual requirements when it comes to cost, too. Perhaps it’s not necessarily a ‘full’ translation that you need: could a summary translation/précis fit the bill? I also support multilingual authors with my copy-editing services. This could be another option that might save you money.
What are the next steps?
After reading this blog post, I hope you have a much better idea of how much translation costs.
To find out more about how to work with me for your French, Spanish and Portuguese into English translations, click the link below and let’s schedule a chat.
How did I get here? How and why I became a specialist French, Spanish and Portuguese into English translator
As a boutique translation business owner who thrives on solving problems, it’s usually my clients I want to know more about. I’m usually asking what do you need; what are your values and your goals? After all, when it comes to getting the job done, it’s really not all about me.
But maybe you want to discover more about my background, to work out whether I’d be a trustworthy partner. And so, you may ask yourself (as that Talking Heads song goes), ‘Well, how did I get here?’. Or you may be someone interested in finding out how on earth someone might end up becoming a translator. Reader, you’re in the right place.
An intentional path
Almost every day, I’m immensely grateful to have discovered translation as a career. My journey to becoming a translator was very much deliberate and planned.
It all started with GCSEs in French and Spanish back in the 1990s. When it was time to choose my A-levels, those two languages seemed a natural choice because I was getting good grades in them. But by then it wasn’t only about the grades – I was starting to think more about my future study and subsequent career. For me, I loved the fact that taking A-levels in languages opened up doors for me. I learned so much about other cultures and histories, and this gave me a fresh perspective on the world. I cherished that.
I spent a long time researching the right university, and I definitely made the right choice. I had a fantastic four years at Cardiff University/Prifysgol Caerdydd, studying for my BA in French and Spanish. Translation was an integral part of my degree course, and it was at Cardiff that I received some of my most valuable tuition as a fledgling translator. Fun fact: my other favourite modules focused on Spanish history and French literature.
Full immersion
In 2001, my third year, I went to live in Nantes, France, and then Barcelona, Spain. I studied at the universities there and experienced the countries’ language and culture in real life. This was when things really took off and I truly felt confident in my second languages. Ever curious, while in Barcelona I couldn’t resist taking a part-time course in Catalan. This year was also when I fell hook, line and sinker for France and Spain as countries, and I’ve tried to return as often as I can ever since.
Linguist on a mission
It was at Cardiff that I first learned about translation as a profession, and I knew right away it was the one for me. There was something about it that appealed to all my skillsets and interests. But four years at university were not enough, I decided! I was incredibly eager to learn more about translation theory and practice, and about linguistics in general. So I applied to study an MA in Translation and Linguistics at the University of Westminster.
At Westminster I began learning Portuguese as a cognate language of Spanish. I loved Portuguese immediately, and found that, with my knowledge of Spanish, Catalan and French, I could soon read it with relative ease, and took additional evening classes to top up my speaking and listening skills.
Stumbling upon a niche
For my MA dissertation, I did a 15,000-word translation about women’s rights in Nicaragua, with an extended linguistic commentary, in coordination with the charity Womankind Worldwide. This was how I discovered and explored my first subject area niche. Westminster University had great links with the translation industry, so I felt ready to go out into the ‘real’ world once I’d completed my fifth year of study.
Picking up the pace
I was lucky that, living in London, there were some in-house opportunities around. Someone pointed out an advert for translators at INTERPOL’s bureau in London, so in 2004 I applied, got an interview, passed the entrance test and got the job.
I’ll always be so grateful for these first few years in-house as a newbie translator finding my feet. I was able to access training, development, and real-world experience that I wouldn’t otherwise have gained. My work at Interpol was – naturally – focused on legal translation, so that also gave me a solid specialism to focus on. But it also introduced me to how international organisations function and interact. It is hard to find translators with a genuine background in international organisations, and that job gave me the grounding I needed.
Hitting my stride
It wasn’t long before I realised that I wanted to set up my own boutique translation business. The security of my translation day job allowed me the space to spend my free time honing some crucial business skills and building my network. I even brushed up my English grammar proficiency through a TESOL certificate at intensive evening classes, just in case things didn’t work out. But I didn’t need to worry. After six months of combining English teaching with my part-time translation business, I went full time.
Where I want to be
Setting up my own business in 2008 was one of the scariest, most exhilarating things I’ve ever done. I’ll never forget how that first week felt. Nearly 15 years later, my work days are varied and almost always fascinating and fulfilling. All thanks to translation. Who could ask for more?
Translation demands quite a niche set of skills. Beyond the obvious requirement to speak another language, you need an eye for detail and an aptitude for the rhythm and flow of writing, not to mention clarity, excellent grammar and punctuation, as well as deep subject-matter knowledge. Every step I’ve taken has led me to becoming the translator I am today, and oh, what a journey it has been.
About Philippa
I take Spanish, French and Portuguese (and English!) content and transform it into snappy, fresh and 100% engaging English copy.
Want pithy English that gets straight to the point, while maintaining the ethos and impact of its original language? My clients rely on me for a genuine 1:1 working relationship, as a translation specialist who truly cares about your reputation. I think we could work well together, don’t you?
5 confidence-boosting tips for attending in-person industry events when you’re rusty
Read these five tips if you’re planning to attend an in-person event in your sector and you’re feeling rusty and lacking confidence
In 2022, the return of in-person events is gathering pace. Last week I attended the Cardiff Translation Unconference and, in a few weeks, I’ll be at the ITI Conference in Brighton.
For many of us this change of tempo is welcome, exciting, and terrifying all at the same time. It means moving out of our comfort zones and into the big wide world beyond the reassuring comfort and splendid isolation of our home offices.
Let’s face it, despite regularly attending industry events in the pre-pandemic years, it has been a while since most of us did this and we’re out of practice. Read these five tips if you’re planning to attend an in-person event in your sector and you’re feeling rusty:
1. Keep your adrenalin levels in check. 😰
Adrenalin (or ‘good anxiety’) can be your friend: it focuses your mind and you can channel the energy it creates. But when it tips you into overdrive, it can also be your enemy. To help quiet any negative anxiety before leaving for the event, spend one minute breathing in and out slowly – counting to six as you go and holding the inhale at the top before letting it go again. This should help to calm your nerves. For me, yoga offers another way of steadying myself and staying focused.
Before you leave, doing a bit of pre-conference research about who will attend and connecting with them in advance will also help you feel more prepared and at ease.
2. Don’t self-criticise. 🤟
Remember that most freelance linguists are probably just like you and me: keen to network and share ideas, but also pretty introverted. Just like you and me, they probably spend more time behind a computer screen than speaking to people face-to-face, and they probably don’t have any secret conversational superpowers that you mysteriously lack.
When you walk into a room at an event, remember that the other attendees are all there for the same reason. Keeping this in mind takes the pressure off.
3. Manage your expectations. 🚵
Networking is a journey, not a destination. You don’t know where that journey will take you and it will probably make you less nervous if you don’t have a fixed destination in mind. Especially if the networking is between peers and colleagues.
Think about building connections along that journey ̶ connections you may revisit in the future. Don’t bounce around the room for fleeting chats with as many people as possible. It’s not about promoting your business at every moment. Attend the smaller fringe events if you can, too. The fringe events are an ideal opportunity to engage with people in a more meaningful way.
4. Pace yourself. 🦥
Arrive early if you can. Arriving early means you can take stock of everything before it gets busier (and noisier). It might also enable you to locate a smaller group of peers and begin a conversation. Plus, others may notice you there early and approach you first.
For you, arriving early could even mean arriving one or two days early to settle comfortably into your groove, or adding an extra evening to your stay after the conference to bask in unbroken solitude.
5. Guard against overstimulation. 💫
Squirrel brain is real. I’m always keen to take absolutely everything in, even though it leaves me feeling shattered. I tend to be extremely comfortable with one-to-one connections, but burned out when there’s lots of noise and action coming from different directions. Especially when the networking continues into the evening at post-conference dinners – I know that’s my potential pain point.
To counteract this, try building in some buffer time to refresh ̶ time to retreat to your accommodation if you need to, so you’re not always in conference mode. Remind yourself that you do not have to be ‘on’ at all times. If you could potentially skip any sessions that aren’t as relevant to you, it’s OK to take a short walk in the fresh air to decompress.
Because you’re worth it
Even though in-person events and conferences can be daunting, they beat all other forms of professional networking hands down. So much of my work comes through referrals, and meeting someone in person helps to build trust.
I am actively engaged in my professional network the rest of the year, so these events offer a rare opportunity to meet all those names I usually only connect with online. And I always come away with fresh ideas and perspectives. In short, I couldn’t run my business without in-person events, even if my inner introvert tries to persuade me otherwise 😉
Want more?
Here are two book recommendations about this:
Hiding in the Bathroom: An Introvert’s Roadmap to Getting Out There (When You’d Rather Stay Home)
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking