How to buy a good translation

Your cooperation with a freelance translator will be a smooth and gratifying experience if you make sure to:

Scrutinize your source text

Translating poorly worded language can be a real pain and the result will never compare to the translation of a well written text. Whenever possible, have the source text proofread and commented on by someone you trust before having it translated.

Specify the target language

This may seem obvious, bur I do get requests along the lines of “Hi, I need 10 pages translated. How much do you charge?”. Please be as specific as you can. I will provide translations from and into German, English and Czech.

Specify purpose and target group

Is it for your eyes only? Is it for your clients? Is it a publication? A brochure? Web content? Different target groups and channels require different modes of written communication.

Be supportive

If you have glossaries, terminology lists, or reference materials of sorts at your disposal, make these resources available to the translator to speed up and support the translation process.

Chose the right format

A source text must be a computer file before a translator will be able to work on it. It takes minutes to supply a quote for the translation of a .txt or .rtf file. It takes a long time to scan 30 pages of paper and then OCR the images into .

Schedule wisely

On average, it is an accepted standard among professional translators to complete volumes of around 2000 words per day. If you leave the translator with enough time to research, re-word, re-read and tweak, then you are sure to purchase a top quality translation for your money. Do not promise your own client to deliver a German version of their website by the end of the week – and then start looking for a translator.