How to save precious time, when posting a translation request in BR

[miiila]

Please state at least (apart from the languages, but that´s obvious, isn´t it) the approximate number of words you want translated, better still, state the kind of text, and your timeframe, even better still, add the text or a sample (of course the latter is optional, do it only if you don´t mind x people reading it, completely fine to only tell/show that to one or several sellers you are considering after you got some offers).

If you don´t, you a) won´t get offers from some sellers who might do the job, and do it well, at all, because, while they all might be psychic, surely aren´t all mind-readers and if they are good, they usually got better things to do than potentially waste good time

or b) it might go like this:

B: posts request: I need a translation done.
S: Huh.
S: looks for tags finds language tags Ah cool, so yeah, that´s up my alley.
sighs Now if I at least knew how many words. I could do a thousand right now even.
types up a nice offer, telling B the offer is valid for 1000 words, else they can´t reply to BR, and to please contact them if interested, and tell them how many words, what kind of text, and until when
B: Oh, like 20K. I thought around 3-5 days.
S: I see, I´m sorry then, I can´t take as many ATM. Maybe next time, have a nice day 🙂
B: - (no reply from B) (probably B is too busy with too many offers from sellers who either ask them for the word count and kind of their text, some percentage having to say ‚I’m sorry then‘ too, cause it´s too many words right now, or a text they don´t do, or cause they aren´t in the mood to translate the Encyclopaedia Britannica for a fiver until the day before yesterday, or with scammers who use Google Translate anyway and don´t care how many words and until when.
Result: A lot of time wasted. The buyer’s, and that of some varying number of sellers.

Now imagine this:

B: posts request: I need a translation done. It´s an Amazon product description, ca. 1500 words, I´d pay an extra, if you include some research for the best keywords for your country too. I need it in 3 days maximum.
S1: Oh, great, 1500, I can fit that right in today. sends offer
B: reads offer, looks at profile, gig, reviews of the first 3-5 Ss who send an offer nods contentedly as he finds one he likes accepts offer attaches file to meet the order requirements clock starts ticking
S1: does a good job, delivers
B: receives their translation, done well and even in the same day, who´d have thunk

Result: B happy, S1 happy, and even an unknown amount of Ss happy, cause they saved time as they didn´t send an offer in the first place, cause they couldn´t have done it in max 3 days, or don´t do Amazon, or are allergic to keywords or something, SC (random scammer who might have gotten that job) not so happy, but meh.
A lot of time saved.

Yeah, I know, but still.
🙂

[eoinfinnegan]

I would have thought it was obvious that a buyer should clearly state what they want done when they want something done. Unfortunately many don’t and so, as you say, the responses they get are from incompetent sellers who don’t even read the request.
BUYERS: You can be detailed in requests and even include an attachment with more details if you need to.
If you want an accurate price and delivery time then give accurate descriptions of what it needed - it’s not rocket science…

[mariokluser]

And then there are the buyers who tell you their word count and when they send you the file to have a look at it the word count is of course higher. Get this all of the time. Therefore my requirement with the PDF-confirmation file we were talking about the other day.

However, you actually described perfectly why I don’t even bother looking at BR. They don’t explain what they want and if they do they think you translate the War And Peace for 5 dollar with one day delivery. Manually of course.

[miiila]

laughs Yes, there are, I even encountered one who forgot a zero at the end of the number, though I think that might have been an honest typo in that case 😉

[djgodknows]

Mario would you translate War and Peace for 5 dollar but with 30 day delivery? Manually of course! 😛

[miiila]

U mad bro? 5$ for just a translation? Just throw your text into the google box, “everyone does that anyway”, and let him do a narration, 5$ is plenty for that, it´s just one lousy book after all. Try to offer another 5$, if he does a video too.

[djgodknows]

Ok Mario, I’m throwing in another $5 at you. Better catch it and include a video as well please!

lol 😃

[mariokluser]

Maybe I will find Morgan Freeman willing to be a subcontractor and read it to you if I give him half of my earnings, what would be, errrr $2,-.

[djgodknows]

hahahaha… 😛

[miiila]

Sounds fair to me - don´t forget to tell him he´ll have to declare it in his income taxes though!

[ladybugbusy]

I get some of those. I usually send an offer with extras to translate the full document.