If you are a business that deals with different nationalities or operate in ares of the country with different languages and policies regarding language then you probably know that translating your documents is not a cheap affair. Depending on the company, the document type, length of the document, and the due date your translation can be charged in a variety of ways. To make matters worse a technical document and basic communications document may be the same length but one will be charged higher than the other. It can be very confusing for someone to decide on who to use for translation based on the document in English. In our translation business we see many mistakes made that companies could save themselves money by thinking ahead. So here are some ways that you can do that.
As I said at the end of the last paragraph thinking ahead will save you money right off the bat. Many of the documents we get from clients are last minute rushes. Due to the workload of our company a rush charge may be charged if the timeframe is too tight or we have to move another project off the board. If you deal with the Quebec market on a regular basis you will need your documents translated into French. Many times this is an after thought, instead as a document is created it should be sent for translation. That will save you surcharges saving you money immediately. A second great way to save money is to deal with the same company all the time. If you are happy with their translation service by going to the same company you will save money as ourselves at least give a discount to returning clients therefore saving you money. You will also gain priority on the list by being a regular client helping you meet your deadlines. One way of roughly estimating your job can be done by yourself. A quick way to do so is to count the pages you have and divide them by ten. If you have a three hundred page manual it will take roughly thirty business days to translate. Of course that may change based on technicality of the subject matter and other factors specific to your document. Determining up front how you are charged for your document is also important to determine how to save money. These factors are basic but could save you money in translating documents. Remember that not all French is the same, so make sure the business you are dealing with handles the type of translation you want. Many companies translate but don’t handle certain document types. It is important to know who your dealing with.
About the Author
Carmen Outridge is owner and translation expert of Outridge Translation Services offering French/English translation services for the Quebec market. For more information on Outridge Translation Services please visit their website at www.outridgetranslation.com
