What Is Transcreation of Marketing Content, and How Is It Useful?

Transcreation combines translation and content creation.

It requires the editor or translator to either edit the original marketing content, e.g., an advertisement, or update it to better resonate with consumers outside the home country.

Marketing or advertising strategy working in one country might not produce the same reaction in others.

Transcreation: Process of Connecting With an International Audience

There may also be a need for content to differ from country to country while remaining culturally appropriate. Transcreation is the best solution to accommodate the various cultural and language barriers.

It can be highly helpful if your business is operating on a global level. Also, transcreation eliminates the need to create new content from scratch.

Simply put, transcreation should be considered whenever a direct translation may not produce culturally relevant results.

Also, you should provide your transcreation specialist with all the guidelines and glossary necessary for editing the copy.

This would ensure that the updated marketing content relates better to the international audience while maintaining the context of the source.

For example, let’s say your business is located in the US, and you want to market your products in Spain.

A simple English to Spanish translation of existing marketing content might not yield the desired result.

But if the marketing campaign content is edited or re-phrased in a way that Spanish people can easily relate to, then you are already one step ahead of most of your competition.

The same goes for Businesses headquartered in Spain and willing to expand their operation to the US or UK.

A simple Spanish to English translation of the original advertisement simply will not be sufficient to achieve the desired results.

Difference Between Transcreation and Translation

Both transcription and translation are considered translations, but they are quite different in some aspects.

While working on a traditional translation task, a translator retains the word choice, style, and tone of the source text. Each translated sentence will mirror the precise meaning of the original text.

However, for a transcreation process, the translator uses their knowledge of the target audience and customizes these elements by adjusting to the target market culture and expectations.

Transcreation Content Marketing Campaigns

Professional translators are fully aware of the importance that a translated text might have for the international market.

Therefore, providing a localized translation service specializing in the transcreation of content can reach a bigger audience.

For instance, if your US-based company wants to expand in China, it would find ways to market its products that would bring in more traffic from its target source.

Therefore, if an existing marketing content is working in your home country, you might as well want to try to experiment with it on the international market.

For example, do you think that a generic English-to-Mandarin translation is enough to connect with the Chinese-speaking audience?

Generally, the answer to this question is no, absolutely not!

Doing so would lessen the impact of the original message. In cases like these, you would want to hire a translation service provider with a team of native Mandarin speakers who could transcribe your original content that would resonate with the Chinese audience.

Typically a transcreation marketing campaign requires the following information before being formulated:

• Target Audience: The target audience must be defined clearly because the content of the campaign is significantly impacted by the exact definition of the target audience.
• Objective: Before creating the content for the transcreation, the goal of the marketing campaign must be clearly defined.
• Benefits for Target Group: Another important aspect of a transcreation assignment is defining the benefits offered by the concerned product or service for the target audience before content creation. Once the benefits are properly defined, customized messages for each target market can be developed. However, remember that not all target markets can get the same set of benefits from every product. For example, unlike the US markets, the Nissan Pathfinder is marketed in the Middle East and Arabic-speaking markets as a family car, keeping with the collective mindset of the region.
• Communication and distribution channels: One must be aware of the choice of communication channel because this can impact the length of the material, the choice of words, the message tone, and the impact of the message. If multiple channels are being used, the content transcreation should focus on keeping the message uniform across all channels. If the content is meant for a website, then it should also include appropriate multilingual SEO information.
• Context: A typical transcreation assignment should have the maximum amount of information possible on the marketing campaign context. Additionally, it should include competitor market information, the word, imagery, color scheme to be used, and their relevance to the target market. The same product can have completely different promotional content for different markets.

Read Also: Building Profitable and Meaningful Connections For Your Growing Business

Benefits of Transcreation

Now let’s have a look at how transcreation can help your brand get better results from global campaigns.

Helps Adapt to Target Culture

Improving existing content for localized efforts gives it greater acceptance.

Consumers who relate themselves to the brand's message are the ones who are highly likely to buy your product. Transcreation can do this accurately for your business.

Increases Aptness for Global Market

You must have heard brand names like KFC, Magnum, or Starbucks. All of these brands are globally renowned and known to provide high customer satisfaction.

To remain apt with the local audience, these brands constantly adapt their marketing campaigns to local sensualities.

For instance, the brand name Mercedes-Benz launched itself as "Bensi,” which sounded extremely weird in the Chinese market, where “Bensi" translates to "rush to die".To rectify this, Mercedes rebranded its name to Benchi, which translates to “running quickly as if flying”.

Transcreation professionals specialize in knowledge, colloquialisms, and jargon used in the target language and local culture.

During the content transcreation process, they consider local cultural requirements, e.g., avoiding taboos and potentially awkward expressions.

Improves Brand Recognition

Marketing can make or break your company and its image. Companies are constantly in fierce competition to position themselves in the minds of the target audience.

If your business is respectful towards international culture, it would be better accepted, recognized, and recommended.

Conclusion

We at GMR Transcription Services, Inc. have evolved as a leading translation and transcription service provider in the market.

With our best-in-class translation services and our team of expert translators, we provide highly accurate and affordable video, audio, and text-to-text translation services within a quick turnaround time.

Also Read: The Subtle Differences Between Translation and Transcreation