Language in Marketing: Transcreation and its Importance in Brand Expansion

Why is Transcreation Necessary For your Brand’s Global Expansion?

Are you working on expanding your brand? Let’s say you want to get going immediately. Deadlines are tight, stakeholders are demanding, and you need a solution. So, you decide to get your website’s content translated into your target region’s languages. The site goes live, weeks go by, and you realize that you’re not getting the results you want. Almost accidentally, you discover that your website’s copy falls flat. What was witty and engaging in your home country doesn’t resonate with the local humor. And your product’s competitive advantages don’t match what your target clients find necessary -or desirable.

Transcreation (also known as “creative translation”) consists of transforming a text, so it conveys its original meaning, in a way that resounds with its new target demographic.

Transcreation aims to preserve the original text’s purpose, style, tone, and context. The message and the “feel” of the text remain the same. But the means to achieve that effect have changed.

Transcreation is indispensable for international marketing campaigns. Without transcreation, there is no quality marketing. But don’t think that transcreation only involves the textual adaptation of a brand. It’s also the adaptation of images and other elements. Everything will be passed through the filter of the target culture. From the smallest details to the slogan, the color palettes, and even the brand name. Transcreation transcends language and cultural barriers. It puts heart and style into the technique. And it allows your brand to reach your local audience in a way that feels specially tailored for them.

Like most cross-cultural solutions, transcreation is the most effective when it’s complemented by other processes.

For instance, if your brand is online (which it should be), website localization is critical. Adapting your website and online content to your target culture will be essential. Think about culture and language. But don’t forget about technical matters, such as SEO strategy. Search engine optimization gives added value to transcreation. A beautiful work of cross-cultural adaptation is not useful if your target audience cannot find you online.

When expanding abroad, don’t forget that people spend a lot of time on social media. Your brand must be there too. Being present on the social media platform your customers are in is important for a complete marketing strategy.

The internet has given businesses like yours the chance to expand abroad with unprecedented ease. Why not make the most out of it?

In this free ebook, we will explore the practice of transcreation, and how it can make a difference in your expansion efforts. We’ll also examine how this practice relates to translation and localization.