Poll: Approximately how often do you raise your standard rates for your existing clients? Лице кое објавува дискусија: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Approximately how often do you raise your standard rates for your existing clients?".
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| | | | neilmac
Шпанија
Local time: 17:28
шпански на англиски
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When I consider it covenient/justified/doable.
| | | | raptisi 
Грција
Local time: 18:28
англиски на грчки
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| Inflation plays a part | Sep 1, 2015 |
With current inflation (at least in the European area and the USA) rates, practically 0) it is hard to justify rate increases. On the contrary the pressure is downwards...
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and adjustment at the beginning of every calendar year.
I might raise prices about every second year
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| They don't accept... | Sep 1, 2015 |
They generally don't accept a raise, anyway...
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Whenever I can
Wish there was an "Every other day" option
| | | | | Every other year | Sep 1, 2015 |
I started out cheap to get a foot in the door and then raised my rates by about 10-20% a year for a fair few years, gradually shedding cheapie customers and then all domestic customers and eventually also most Scandi agencies.
I can't really continue to raise my prices in nominal terms now as I don't want to lose the customers I've got, so I just put them up roughly in line with inflation every couple of years.
As for agencies who don't "accept" or "approve" rate increa... See more I started out cheap to get a foot in the door and then raised my rates by about 10-20% a year for a fair few years, gradually shedding cheapie customers and then all domestic customers and eventually also most Scandi agencies.
I can't really continue to raise my prices in nominal terms now as I don't want to lose the customers I've got, so I just put them up roughly in line with inflation every couple of years.
As for agencies who don't "accept" or "approve" rate increases, you don't want to work with people like that, your rates are your affair, tell them where to get off. Trust me, you'll feel so much better. ▲ Collapse
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Bora Tasdemir wrote:
They generally don't accept a raise, anyway...
In this case I suggest you to look for another client willing to pay the rate you offer, and if you find it you start working less for the old one until you eventually stop the collaboration. You have nothing to lose, really.
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Eszter Bokor
Австрија
Local time: 17:28
англиски на германски
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| Prices seem to be going down steadily | Sep 1, 2015 |
I find it extremely difficult to raise rates, my experience is that prices have dropped dramatically in the last few years.
| | | | Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 11:28
англиски на шпански
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| Raising rates & feeling much better | Sep 1, 2015 |
Chris S wrote:
I started out cheap to get a foot in the door and then raised my rates by about 10-20% a year for a fair few years, gradually shedding cheapie customers and then all domestic customers and eventually also most Scandi agencies.
I can't really continue to raise my prices in nominal terms now as I don't want to lose the customers I've got, so I just put them up roughly in line with inflation every couple of years.
As for agencies who don't "accept" or "approve" rate increases, you don't want to work with people like that, your rates are your affair, tell them where to get off. Trust me, you'll feel so much better.
I think I'll practice your advice in front of a mirror before telling those agencies to get off
| | | | Georgia Morg (X)
Обединето Кралство
Local time: 16:28
португалски на англиски
| Exchange rate | Sep 1, 2015 |
My problem is that, because of the loss of value of the Brazilian real, my Brazilian clients would have to pay twice as much as a mere 18 months ago for me to receive the same money, worked out in sterling (or euros). Some do, but most can't afford this and have moved on.
[Edited at 2015-09-01 15:30 GMT]
| | | | Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 11:28
англиски на шпански
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| Clients that move on | Sep 1, 2015 |
Georgia Morgan wrote:
My problem is that, because of the loss of value of the Brazilian real, my Brazilian clients would have to pay twice as much as a mere 18 months ago for me to receive the same money, worked out in sterling (or euros). Some do, but most can't afford this and have moved on.
[Edited at 2015-09-01 15:30 GMT]
That's one of the downsides of a global economy.
Only those with a vested interest will tell us about the wonders of a global economy. I'm not anticapitalism, but there are so many variables and inequalities across countries and continents, never mind natural misunderstandings and misaprehensions across peoples that a global economy is unlikely to succeed for everyone involved.
Just look at Greece.
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Mario Freitas
Бразил
Local time: 12:28
англиски на португалски
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| Same here, Georgia, | Sep 1, 2015 |
Georgia Morgan wrote:
My problem is that, because of the loss of value of the Brazilian real, my Brazilian clients would have to pay twice as much as a mere 18 months ago for me to receive the same money, worked out in sterling (or euros). Some do, but most can't afford this and have moved on.
[Edited at 2015-09-01 15:30 GMT]
I can count on my fingers how many times I was able to negotiate a readjustment with a positive result. I lost many clients that did not accept it (actually I consider they lost me). The very few that agreed to readjust the prices were outside Brazil.
My current (very few) Brazilian clients pay me half of what I earn from clients abroad, for the exact reasons mentioned by Georgia above. The problem is, in Brazil people raise their sale prices regularly, but no one accepts to raise the price they pay to their service providers, for some unexplainable reason.
I'm waiting till the end of the year to TRY to negotiate my rates with two Brazilian clients that send me a lot of work, but pay me 50% of what I earn from agencies in the US or Europe for the same volume of work. I intend to propose a new price as of the 1st of January, 2016, which will still correspond to about 75% of what I earn abroad. And, although I've been working for them for two years without any readjustment, I'm almost sure they will not accept it, and I'll have to say goodbye to them. The exact thing has happened with three clients (agencies) last year.
My plan is to have 100% of my clients in Europe and North America ASAP.
| | | | | Wish you were here :-) | Sep 2, 2015 |
Julian Holmes wrote:
Whenever I can
Wish there was an "Every other day" option
haha. Seriously: for certification - every third calendar year.
For translation? In my country the translatiopn rates are going just lower and lower...
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I answered "every year", because I only started six years ago and am still going through the initial phase that Chris described. My rates started in the middle (about 0.16 EUR per word for German direct clients), dipped down to the low-middle range (0.13/0.14 EUR per word for German direct clients plus an agency for 0.09 EUR per word), and have since gone up substantially to 0.20 EUR per word for new clients and with existing clients' rates raised more or less yearly to keep them at at least 90%... See more I answered "every year", because I only started six years ago and am still going through the initial phase that Chris described. My rates started in the middle (about 0.16 EUR per word for German direct clients), dipped down to the low-middle range (0.13/0.14 EUR per word for German direct clients plus an agency for 0.09 EUR per word), and have since gone up substantially to 0.20 EUR per word for new clients and with existing clients' rates raised more or less yearly to keep them at at least 90% of my new-client rate (no longer possible to work with agencies).
In Germany there may not be much more room to grow except among clients where translations are important but not a significant post in terms of a client's overall costs (= high quality sensitivity + low price sensitivity). However, because of the weak euro and strong Swiss franc and because of the situation in Switzerland generally, I certainly think that I could continue to raise my rates by shifting towards Swiss clients, but I never get around to marketing. ▲ Collapse
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