With transcreation, the aim is that the meaning of the text is translated with consideration to the cultural context of the target audience, resulting in a translation that provokes the same emotional response to the text in the target-language country. As such, a good transcreation may be very different from the original text. Often, these kind of adaptations are used for marketing or advertising texts.

Translators who create effective marketing transcreations must be highly qualified. They have professional experience in the language and subject area of the target text and have native-speaker mastery of the target language. They also need to have a good sense of stylistic subtleties, a creative approach and a good knowledge of puns, idioms and proverbs.

In addition to all of the above, these language experts are highly skilled in intercultural communications and have an in-depth understanding of the target groups. It requires similar skills to those of advertising specialists or copywriters in communications agencies.

It is these factors that separate a transcreator from a conventional translator. Transcreation is more a marketing exercise than a translation task, because the adapted text always tells a story and sells an idea.

You wouldn’t expect a marketing agency to work without any kind of brief and it’s the same for transcreation. The professionals tasked with transporting your texts into the target languages need to be aware of certain information and ‘guardrails’.

At the start of every project, the following information should be made available:

• Description of the target audience
• Brainstorm about style, tone and message
• Defined objectives (clicks, subscriptions, market recognition, direct sales, etc.)
• Analysis of the values and emotions conveyed as well as any cultural background
• Information about the context as well as the type of media used and platform for publication
• If necessary, special considerations regarding slogans, claims, word plays or images
• Any important restrictions or notes from a marketing perspective
• Language guidelines or corporate identity information
• Information about project timelines

Transcreation is not a linear translation process. Instead, it is a collaborative process between the client and linguist. Close communication between the two is therefore key.