Getting paid as a translator
The price one pays for pursuing any profession
If a freelancer translator's hardest task was translating, the translation profession would be a cinch. Translating is nothing compared to some of the other aspects of the business that freelancers have to deal with. One of the hardest things is... ...getting paid. :( Why does getting paid from someone have to be so hard? You would think that everyone would live up to the contract (whether spoken or written) and get you the payment they owe you. But if you've been translating for any amount of time, you know that this isn't always the case. There are many reasons why getting paid can be a pain. First of all, it takes time to keep emailing or calling people and letting them know that, hey, they still owe for that job you did two months ago. Secondly, when you don't get paid right away, there's always that lingering thought in the back of your mind that maybe, just maybe, your client will try to stiff you and not pay you. And last, but not least by any means, is that as a freelancer, we need to eat. And when we don't get paid, we can't eat (or by that new language translator). So what can you do to get paid? Well, I've had my own experience with clients that for whatever reason take their time to get me my payment(s). I've been lucky in that I've never had a client who has initially tried to rip me off, but it can still be frustrating.
One thing that I try to remember with when dealing with clients about payment is that the delay is often something that they haven't realized has happened. More than once, I've had to let a client know that I was still waiting for payment and the client has been apologetic, and simply forgot. Other times, the delay has been caused by a lack of communication between the client and the accounting office. Sometimes communication gets lost or misunderstood between the two sides and it takes a while for these messes to get sorted out. Luckily, I've never had to sue a client or take any similar drastic action. Usually I find that trying to be understand to what might be going on with the client has helped me get the payments I'm owed. There are a couple of things that you can do, though, that help clients get your payments to you on time. First of all, we all know that contracts can be a good thing. Do I use contracts on every translation I do? No, I don't, but for jobs that have the potential of involving lots of money, I'd recommend one. Another payment system that can be helpful is a Paypal account. Paypal is a great way for people to send you a payment. The best thing is that the client doesn't have to be a member of Paypal in order to send you payments. The downside? Paypal takes a small percentage of the total. Still, if you're getting paid, you can't complain much. Plus, Paypal payments are processed pretty quickly, especially when compared to other payment systems like wire transfers, for example. Collecting monies owed will always give freelancers headaches, but choosing a payment system that works for you will go a long way to helping you get what you deserve.
How do you make sure you get paid?Every translator has his/her techniques. How do you make sure that clients pay you? Here's what other translators doClick below to see ways other translators make sure they get paid...
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