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Poll: How do you usually react when a client asks for a lower rate?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Apr 4

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How do you usually react when a client asks for a lower rate?".

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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 01:56
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Negotiate? Apr 4

In principle, I don’t accept to lower my rate. Most of my clients have come to me via word of mouth and in general they already have a rough idea of my rates, but if they don’t, I’ll try to negotiate, unless the difference is too big, then I close my eyes, sigh deeply, count to 20 and try to remain as calm as possible…

Lingua 5B
e_marisa
Philip Lees
Maria Laura Curzi
 
Lingua 5B
Lingua 5B  Identity Verified
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 02:56
English to French
+ ...
Special folder Apr 4

I send their email to a special folder in my Inbox named “Clients with no budget”.

e_marisa
Gregor Trebec
Ines Radionovas-Lagoutte, PhD
Philip Lees
Maria Laura Curzi
 
Philip Lees
Philip Lees  Identity Verified
Greece
Local time: 03:56
Greek to English
Cheap Apr 5

I wish them good luck finding somebody cheaper.

Liena V.
 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 02:56
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
I'm flexible Apr 5

I have a range of rates that I find acceptable. I do not quote my lowest acceptable rate. So, if a client requests a lower rate, and that rate is still in my range, then I accept.

So e.g. if for a given job I'll accept anything between EUR 1000 and EUR 1500, I'm not going to quote EUR 1000 -- that would be silly. Instead, I quote EUR 1500. And if the client requests EUR 1000, then I would accept it.

Michelle den Boer
 
Liena V.
Liena V.  Identity Verified
Latvia
Local time: 03:56
Member (2014)
French to Latvian
+ ...
usually Apr 6

I can be flexible and also agree to a lower fee through negotiation if I still find it worth my time, but it rarely works these days. My rates have already been effectively reduced by inflation as I haven't raised them in a while, which is also how I usually respond to such requests.

It also depends on who is asking that, how they do it and what grounds they state. 11k words of UI strings with incomplete structure and no context at MT rate because it will "help to speed it up"? Than... See more
I can be flexible and also agree to a lower fee through negotiation if I still find it worth my time, but it rarely works these days. My rates have already been effectively reduced by inflation as I haven't raised them in a while, which is also how I usually respond to such requests.

It also depends on who is asking that, how they do it and what grounds they state. 11k words of UI strings with incomplete structure and no context at MT rate because it will "help to speed it up"? Thanks, but no, thanks.
I also had a client asking me to drop my minimum fee because of their "profitability goals", threatening to resort to "other vendors" if I don't. I said I have profitability goals of my own and they can come back when they have something that aligns with them. They still send me jobs, by the way (and pay the minimum fee). ▲ Collapse


Michelle den Boer
Anna Jaffe
 
Michelle den Boer
Michelle den Boer
Netherlands
Local time: 02:56
English to Dutch
I used to be flexible Apr 9

In the past, sometimes I accepted a lower rate while warning the client that it would affect my availability. Which would have almost the same effect as declining, without burning any bridges. I learned this strategy from a copywriter in advertising who charged high hourly rates and had a cheerful attitude to life in general. In today's translation market, this wouldn't work; I'd get stuck working for low rates.
 


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Poll: How do you usually react when a client asks for a lower rate?






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