Kill KudoZ
A few days ago I was asked for an opinion on what was wrong with ProZ.com's directory of translators and what could be done to avoid the same issues on another translation website. I believe the industry would benefit hugely if more players took a moment to consider the underlying dynamics of that system, so I am posting most of my reply below. To agree, disagree, give me a hug or tear me apart, please @NadVega me on Twitter, get in touch on Skype (ID: nad_vega) or email me at nadvega@nadvega.com. Enjoy!
So, regarding ProZ: the KudoZ system is arguably the most harmful thing being done to the translation industry. While I understand Henry's desire to maximize his advertising income by attracting as many users as possible to the site, I would really prefer him to stick to certain values, such as the reputation of our profession and the quality of translation in general.
It is all good and great in theory: a bona-fide tranlator accepts a job she reasonably believes she can do, runs into an unfamiliar term, looks it up in dictionaries, reference materials, on the Internet, but it's nowhere to be found, so the next logical step is... yes, to contact whoever wrote/provided the document, but if she doesn't have enough grey matter to figure that out, she can ask the KudoZ crowd instead.
The system would work just fine if it stopped there and let the market handle the rest. Being simply nice would buy you some contributions from those who have spare time and know more than you do. Being helpful in return would buy you everything you need. You could pay cash to have others work instead of you, too. After all you do get paid for that translation. Attempts to parasitize would be ruled out the natural way.
Clients would benefit: their translations would be taken care of by qualified individuals. The qualified individuals would obviously benefit, too. Who wouldn't? The helpless wannabees (lack of work) and Henry (far less activity on the site).
So he came up with an artificial incentive available to all in unlimited quantities: points that determine answerers' placement in the directory. And that completely changed the game. The problem with the points is that askers don't need to do anything to earn them. It was a switch from "sorry to have to bother you, guys, but I have tried everything else and failed" to a situation where you no longer need any skills or abilities whatsoever to pretend you can translate.
Think I am exaggerating? Here are some of the extremely puzzling terms I see on the KudoZ page in my language pairs right now:
* Fiduciario
* Comisión de gobierno
* Appartamento in villa
* Mobile synchronization of data
* nei limiti dell'etica
* terapie fisiche oncologiche
* eases operation
* world’s longest established
That's all on one random page. You know what else? Eleven questions in five hours from one person.
Now feel free to disagree if you can justify that, but I say you are not qualified to do the job if there are 11 terms you can't find anywhere, with all the reference materials at your disposal. I mean you are not qualified to do any job involving any kind of research at all, considering that others magically find the answers within minutes. If you don't know what 'mobile synchronization of data' means, BUY THE EFFING DICTIONARY! If you can't figure out what 'eases operation' means, maybe buy yourself a new head.
The rules technically demand that you consult every other source before asking, but we are not allowed to point that out. Love it!
The rest is pretty obvious. (Well, the above is in fact obvious, too.) A project becomes available, on ProZ or elsewhere. Bids are submitted -- or maybe you answer an email or a phone call. You no longer need to compete on real skills, you can declare yourself an expert in anything because KudoZ point hunters will get you out of trouble. (Surprise, surprise: the lady who asked what 'terapie fisiche oncologiche' means specializes in medicine.) So you compete on price. Lowest bidder gets the job: his CV looks fabulous — he just declared himself an expert, remember? — and he is cheap. The qualified guys now have plenty of time to work for free. The "I can English" guys are too busy to use the basic dictionary.
A handful of correct terms doesn't make a decent translation out of a crappy one? True, but the client likely is not going to notice any time soon. Moreover, when she does, you can always say this is all preferential. That is a profound issue that lies in the nature of our profession: if you can judge whether a translation is good, you probably don't need a translator. The popular plumber analogy doesn't work: you don't need to know how plumbing operates in order to see if the faucet is leaking. Add to this the fact that there's nearly always more than one way to correctly translate a sentence, and we are totally stuck.
Answerers end up at the top of the directory, which would be great if it resulted in more paid jobs for them. In reality though, they line up to work for free and are invariably available as a substitute for a dictionary at a minute's notice. Make your own conclusions. Mine is they have nothing better to do.
So, from problems to solutions before you fall asleep reading this endless rant. First, I suggest you should avoid artificial incentives. Let the market do its job. Letting people ask and answer questions is fine. Adding an extra variable to the equation devastates the image of our profession in the long run. Second, a carefully thought-out social platform for clients might do wonders. On ProZ, all they can do is leave positive feedback. Provide them with a convenient way to talk to each other instead. Transparency is key. Keep your target audience in mind and make them happy. If you choose to make it about translators, protect our interests on all levels. If you choose to make it about clients, help them make the right choices. Better still, make it about both. Announce your intentions clearly and stay faithful to the people who trust you.