Usually, when a company needs translation services, they research a few different providers and ask for a couple of quotes. Then, given that they are already on a limited budget, they go for the cheapest offer. I understand that it may sound logical for them, but let see together how this strategy can actually turn into a very bad choice and unforunately waste thousands of euros. They thought they were saving money and optimizing their budget, but in the end, they are just throwing money through the window and damaging their company’s reputation. For translation, buying cheap is actually expensive
Translation Is Not a Commodity,Buying Cheap Can Be Dangerous
First, keep in mind that when you are buying translation services, you are not buying a commodity, but you are advertising your brand on foreign markets. So, it is crucial for you that the messages conveyed in the translated material show the trustworthiness and all the values your company stands for. Let see what happens when the translated material does not meet your standards:
When you have your document or marketing material translated for a cheap price, you cannot expect the top quality, of course. You get what you pay for. If you realize that the quality is too low and does not fit the market you are targeting, you have no other choice than either re translate it from scratch using a different (and hopefully better) provider or pay to revise and edit the poorly translated material you got. Unlike translation, proofreading/editing is usually priced by the hour, the worse the quality, the more work is needed to reach a good quality. Unfortunately, it is often much more expensive to edit/correct a badly translated text than it is to have it translated by a skilled professional from the start. To be used by your foreign customers, your documents will need extensive reworking. Either way, it is an additional cost that adds up with the cheap price you paid.
Buying Cheap Translation Services Has High Hidden Costs
If you don’t have the budget to pay for the revision, or that you don’t realize the poor quality of the document before it is published, you have a risk of damaging your reputation. You’ve been working hard to build your brand and you invested a lot of money in marketing campaigns, unfortunately, your foreign customers will see nothing but the poor quality of the translation and the wobbly arguments. If you don’t provide your customers with good quality material in your product descriptions, advertisement and instructions for use, they won’t buy your product next time. It will result in a decrease of sales.
More than that, it will also damage your reputation and your company will have a hard time to regain the trust of the customers afterward. You’ll need to invest some more money again. When you add up the cost of the revision, plus the damage to your reputation you’ll have to fix, plus the loss in sales, to the initial “cheap translation cost,” you see it represents quite a lot of money now. Depending on the cases, you can easily pay about 10 times more than if you had selected a premium supplier.
We can see that “cheap translation” is a trap that can cost you a lot of money. If you choose your translator carefully from the start, you will be saving money in the end. Check my article on how to choose a translator. Even a price that you thought pretty high will never amount to the real expenses that a “cheap translation” can cost to your company. Read this article if you want some insights on how to understand pricing in the language industry.
If you are looking for a translator, and you have questions on your translation project, get in touch! I’ll be happy to help you make the right choice for your company and your brand. To find out more, get in touch!
