Poll: Have you ever received a project for an amount lower than 5 Euros?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Jun 16, 2018

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Have you ever received a project for an amount lower than 5 Euros?".

This poll was originally submitted by Irène Guinez. View the poll results »



 
Angus Stewart
Angus Stewart  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:18
Member (2011)
French to English
+ ...
Yes Jun 16, 2018

Yes, I have one particular client that only ever sends me projects with very low word volumes. Normally, I wouldn't accept such small projects, but this client automatically generates the invoice for me and I never have to chase them for payment so I don't mind.

Kaisa I
Mario Freitas
Julian Holmes
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 09:18
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Other Jun 16, 2018

I have three customers that have been sending me projects with very low word volumes and with each of them I have a different agreement: Client 1. I invoice monthly a minimum rate (15 euro) per project (she sends on average 6/7 projects per month); Client 2. I invoice monthly a minimum rate per project (10 euro) (he sends on average 9/10 projects per month); Client 3. I add all projects and invoice him when I reach a certain amount (he sends a project every 3 or 4 months).

P.S. As I
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I have three customers that have been sending me projects with very low word volumes and with each of them I have a different agreement: Client 1. I invoice monthly a minimum rate (15 euro) per project (she sends on average 6/7 projects per month); Client 2. I invoice monthly a minimum rate per project (10 euro) (he sends on average 9/10 projects per month); Client 3. I add all projects and invoice him when I reach a certain amount (he sends a project every 3 or 4 months).

P.S. As I’m not a native English speaker I call those “projects” as my clients do (one of them is British the other two are French and Austrian)

[Edited at 2018-06-16 12:00 GMT]
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Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 02:18
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
I have a minimum Jun 16, 2018

While I would be willing to do a small job for a regular client, I don't recall that the occasion has ever arisen.

If it's a one-off request from an agency I don't work with very often, I tell them that my minimum is USD $50.00. I prefer not to spend my time on anything smaller, given the record-keeping and invoicing involved as well as the possible need for research. I'd rather do something more rewarding with my time.

I might consider doing it for a direct client, th
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While I would be willing to do a small job for a regular client, I don't recall that the occasion has ever arisen.

If it's a one-off request from an agency I don't work with very often, I tell them that my minimum is USD $50.00. I prefer not to spend my time on anything smaller, given the record-keeping and invoicing involved as well as the possible need for research. I'd rather do something more rewarding with my time.

I might consider doing it for a direct client, though I usually turn down certificates, résumés, and academic records.

[Edited at 2018-06-16 09:33 GMT]
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Jennifer Forbes
Julian Holmes
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 10:18
Member (2003)
French to Italian
+ ...
1 or 2 Jun 16, 2018

If for regular clients I tend not to invoice (doing for free) if less than 5 euros, for other clients I have a minimum

Catalina Connon
 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 10:18
Spanish to English
+ ...
Other Jun 16, 2018

Not that I recall, but probably yes. Sometimes my regulars might ask me to translate something shortl, like an email or a headline, and I might not bill them for it. That's just the way I roll.

 
Andy Watkinson
Andy Watkinson
Spain
Local time: 10:18
Member
Catalan to English
+ ...
Project Jun 16, 2018

How can you possibly call half a dozen words "a project"?

A translation (which is what we do) is simply that; a translation, be it 10 words or 100,000.

Call it a "job" if you must.

But calling half a paragraph a "project" is like calling a Big Mac a 20-course state banquet.


Jeannette Issa
Mario Freitas
 
Debora d'Amato (X)
Debora d'Amato (X)  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 10:18
English to Italian
+ ...
No but... Jun 16, 2018

Never received less than 5 euros but I got many offers about sheer derisory amounts per word! :/

 
Julian Holmes
Julian Holmes  Identity Verified
Japan
Local time: 18:18
Member (2011)
Japanese to English
No Jun 16, 2018

Like Muriel above, I have a minimum of 5,000 yen which basically is $50.

You get a mail, they send you stuff to look at, your have to look at it, you have to send a mail back, and there's ensuing mails and this and that backwards and forwards. This all takes effing time, for Christ's sake. In the worst case, you have to download files, which can sometimes be up to 80 MB even for piddly little jobs.

Even my regular clients know not to do this shit and piss me off. So, 50
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Like Muriel above, I have a minimum of 5,000 yen which basically is $50.

You get a mail, they send you stuff to look at, your have to look at it, you have to send a mail back, and there's ensuing mails and this and that backwards and forwards. This all takes effing time, for Christ's sake. In the worst case, you have to download files, which can sometimes be up to 80 MB even for piddly little jobs.

Even my regular clients know not to do this shit and piss me off. So, 50 bucks is the minimum to cover for this hassle.
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Jennifer Forbes
 
Yetta Jensen Bogarde
Yetta Jensen Bogarde  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 10:18
Member (2012)
English to Danish
+ ...
No Jun 16, 2018

I have a minimum fee of 25 EUR / 25 USD, but if a client needs just a few words translated I'll do it for free.
Sometimes they insist on paying my minimum, anyway.

That said, I often get requests from Asian agencies, who offer 5 or 10 dollars for a small job.

Mostly (especially if the 'offer' is not addressed to my name) I don't bother answering, but sometimes I take the time and tell them that if I took on their job I would even lose money: 40% income tax, bank f
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I have a minimum fee of 25 EUR / 25 USD, but if a client needs just a few words translated I'll do it for free.
Sometimes they insist on paying my minimum, anyway.

That said, I often get requests from Asian agencies, who offer 5 or 10 dollars for a small job.

Mostly (especially if the 'offer' is not addressed to my name) I don't bother answering, but sometimes I take the time and tell them that if I took on their job I would even lose money: 40% income tax, bank fee, administration cost etc.
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Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 06:18
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
From regular clients, yes. I turn the other ones down. Jun 16, 2018

I regularly receive small files from regular (really regular) clients. Sometimes I don't even charge for these. But for new clients, with tiny proposals, I usually don't even reply the e-mail, unless I know for sure it's a big potential client and that small thing may be just a sort of test.

 
Maxi Schwarz
Maxi Schwarz  Identity Verified
Local time: 04:18
German to English
+ ...
No, because Jun 16, 2018

... I set my fees.
I have certainly encountered customers who had some odd ideas about what I should charge.


 
Marta Cervera Areny
Marta Cervera Areny
Spain
Local time: 10:18
Catalan to Spanish
+ ...
That's why minimum fees were invented Jun 18, 2018

I always set a minimum fee with my clients and I won't go below that because it's simply not worth it. Just think about all you have to do: replying to their email, tracking the project in whatever management system you use, issuing an invoice, keeping track of payment... and doing the job!

 
Noni Gilbert Riley
Noni Gilbert Riley
Spain
Local time: 10:18
Spanish to English
+ ...
Yes, and they ducked out of paying me for it. Jun 19, 2018

Out of bed for which I shall not get again...

 


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Poll: Have you ever received a project for an amount lower than 5 Euros?






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