How NOT to write to your translators July 23, 2015
Posted by Jill (@bonnjill) in Business practices.trackback
I apologize for the mass e-mail, but as I am dealing with a large number of languages, I thought it would be easier to send out a message this way.
Can you please provide me with your rates and also let me know if they are negotiable for a longer-term project. Kindly include your language in the message.
Thank you and best regards,
At least the PM didn’t ask me for my “best rates”. I hit Ignore for the send receipt request and sent it straight to the trash.
Musings from an overworked translator 
Lovely email. And “best rates” always frosts my shorts, too.
Hear, hear. And why should our rate be “negotiable for a longer-term project”. It doesn’t reduce our workload!
Because the enthymeme (unsaid part of the logical train of thought) is that otherwise you’d have no work to fill that time. Which is obviously not true for established translators, only for beginners.
Because you are incompetent?
“Frosts my shorts” – love it, can’t wait to use it!
Lazy git without proper workflow management. Or perhaps s/he is only lacking education. I can never remember my “best rates”, so if I quote at all I take my average and add 50%. That’s my “good enough” rate 🙂
And I don’t see the problem with negotiating the surcharge for a long-term project….
Quintessential bulk market, I guess.