Frequent questions around transcreation

How to get a captivating marketing translation

Over time I have addressed many questions around “marketing translations” aka transcreations. The questions I receive typically come from corporate marketing managers, project managers at translation companies, in-house translators at companies large and small, and freelance translators.

The following question is representative of issues that both project managers at translation companies and corporate marketing managers have reported:

Question:

“We recently had one of our freelancers translate a marketing text. They submitted a normal translation, it was correct and all that but very literal and rather dull and clumsy, not at all what we needed. We did not have the budget nor the time to have it redone. How can we solve such dilemmas?”

Answer:

What do you think? What would you recommend?

Here is my take:

You, or the end-client, needed and expected a transcreation — that is, a text that sounded as if it had been written by a copywriter in the target market — not a technically true-to-the-source translation, as produced by AI or translators without adequate transcreation expertise. That is the root cause of the problem.

The service was sold and paid as a translation and that‘s exactly what you got.

It probably was an accurate translation (although with AI tools, even that is not a given). It was likely not a text that would fascinate, engage or motivate readers to action.

Think of it like this:

You expected to get a sleek, fascinating sports car, but actually got an upcycled (or, at best, a solid no-frills) Dacia. You probably paid only for such a basic model, so it would seem fair. With cars, we all know that what we pay and what we get is directly proportionate, but with language services there is a tendency for people to think they can get Porsches at the price of Dacias.

The answer to the above question is that there is not much you can do to resolve the dilemma in cases like these. And certainly not quickly. Some last-minute cosmetic touch-ups to the translation won’t turn it into an adequate transcreation. You risk damaging your brand’s reputation, and miss the opportunity to generate interest and sales.

Here’s what I recommend doing:

If you are a project manager at an agency, get back to your client, ask for an extension, and invest the time to redo the target copy by a professional transcreator.

Say there was some misunderstanding along the way and the project should have been placed with a transcreator, and that you, as the project manager in charge, are having it redone at your own expense, that is, at no cost to the client this time around.

You can use the opportunity to explain transcreation to the client, including why, in the case of marketing communication texts, it is in their best interest to pay for a transcreation rather than a technically true-to-the-source translation.

Next time around, be prepared to submit a transcreation quote instead of a translation quote and place the text with a transcreator rather than a translator.

If you are unsure how to come up with an adequate proposal, check with a professional transcreator. They will know what to do and how to proceed.

If you are a marketing manager, get in touch with a transcreator — they will guide you and save you lots of time and headaches.

 

The above question and answer is one of many that you will find in Nina’s book “TRANSCREATION The all-in-one handbook and workbook (2026 edition)“.