DTP Rate Thread poster: Tiến Anh Lê
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Tiến Anh Lê 
Vietnam
Local time: 00:07
Member (2007)
English to Vietnamese
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Does anyone know what is the normal rate for DTP design (using Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, FrameMaker)? With all templates provided.
Thank you
| | | | Alexey Ivanov
Russian Federation
Local time: 20:07
English to Russian
| Charge by the hour | Dec 20, 2007 |
If you can, charge by the hour. Or ask to send you all the pages and estimate how long one page/the whole job will take you. Even with all the templates (I assume you mean the source exchange format files) time one page may take varies greatly, depending on the complexity of the graphics. Usually after a look at the pages I tell the client the final price based on the above.
| | | | NMR (X)
France
Local time: 19:07
French to Dutch
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Alexey Ivanov wrote:
If you can, charge by the hour. Or ask to send you all the pages and estimate how long one page/the whole job will take you. Even with all the templates (I assume you mean the source exchange format files) time one page may take varies greatly, depending on the complexity of the graphics. Usually after a look at the pages I tell the client the final price based on the above.
DTP is always charged by the hour; with the same rates as translation or more. DTP specialists always make estimations before and don't begin before they have a signature. One page can take five minutes or two hours, depending on all special features required. You'll have to test the lay-out and font compatibility before you begin (in fact I stopped DTP for this reason, my PC files gave not the same result on a Mac, and I could not print the Mac fonts properly).
| | | | Tiến Anh Lê
Vietnam
Local time: 00:07
Member (2007)
English to Vietnamese
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you very much for your recommendations.
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NMR wrote:
DTP is always charged by the hour.
I don't use such practice. As "smiles" is asking about different DTP programs, I assume s/he (which one in the photo?) will receive PDF files, and is expected to deliver translated PDF files.
I have been using successive versions of PageMaker for some 15 years already. V6.52 hasn't yet prevented me from doing anything for lack of features (but Adobe must keep selling upgrades to InDesign to pay their bills). PM V7 is somewhat worse; I uninstalled it.
One prospect asked me about translating a large batch of technical catalogs in FrameMaker, which I don't use. I discovered that the few existing FrameMaker users in Brazil charge much higher prices to compensate for their dislike of the program. They'd do it for half with InDesign. But that client doesn't even seem to want me with PageMaker, though in any case the resulting PDF would be identical.
I developed an electronic price estimator for DTP. Useless to give the link here, it's in Portuguese and in Brazilian currency - reais. The key features I take into account are: page size, number of pages (B&W/color separately), number of pages with illustrations, tables (large/med/small - qty. of each), fonts (common, provided, or requiring a resemblant match), illustrations (qty. of no editing, minor editing = erasing & replacing text, tough editing = needs rebuilding background). A quick tally count leads me to filling the form and having an estimate. But it took me a while to get the cost elements right.
| | | | Tiến Anh Lê
Vietnam
Local time: 00:07
Member (2007)
English to Vietnamese
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
I received the InDesign and FrameMaker templates and must deliver pdf files.
Thank you for your suggestion about rate estimation. However, can you make a comparison between your translation rate and your DTP rate assuming that DTP is in the easiest case (i.e. illustrations minor editing = erasing & replacing text...)
P.S: I (Smiles) am the ones who are smiling in the photo:)
| | | | | Two different things | Dec 22, 2007 |
Translating and DTP are two different things. They can be done at the same time, but in this case usually without CAT tools, if you use them.
There is no comparing rates between one and the other, however I do lower somewhat my DTP prices when the translation is mine. The reason is that doing DTP is an excellent chance to proofread my text (not only because PageMaker's spellchecker is much better than Word's), so I do it then. Also, I won't have to implement DTP corrections, ... See more Translating and DTP are two different things. They can be done at the same time, but in this case usually without CAT tools, if you use them.
There is no comparing rates between one and the other, however I do lower somewhat my DTP prices when the translation is mine. The reason is that doing DTP is an excellent chance to proofread my text (not only because PageMaker's spellchecker is much better than Word's), so I do it then. Also, I won't have to implement DTP corrections, if e.g. I have to check later what some other DTP artist did with my translation (misplacement, wrong hyphenation etc.) OR if I'm just doing DTP and, after I'm finished, the translator will spot some of his/her mistakes and ask me to implement corrections. So I transfer this time savings to the client.
I only translate EN-PT, but I do DTP for translations in any pair among PT-EN-IT-FR-ES. However unless otherwise instructed (and then I'll charge for proofreading), I won't even add a missing period to a phrase. If I do it, I might later correct a typo, then I'll find a poor word choice, some grammar mistake... there will never be an end to it! So I must draw the line somewhere.
It's not a matter of making a bundle from the client nor giving disconts just to get the order. It's about charging only for the work actually done, avoiding rework by all parties involved, and performing one's assigned role completely. ▲ Collapse
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