Problems arise when clients request – and pay for – a translation but actually expect something that a copywriter would have written. That’s where transcreators come in.
A transcreator needs deep expertise in translation and deep expertise in strategic copywriting. Expertise in both of these fields is indispensable.
I bet that you have read somewhere that transcreation is a kind of “creative translation.” In fact, judging by Google results, “creative translation” appears to be the most commonly used term to describe transcreation.
Yet “creative translation” is a misnomer. Misleading at best.
What exactly do I mean when I refer to transcreation? What makes it so different from translation? I define transcreation as a unique type of service in the field of multilingual communication.
It is important to stress that there may be situations in which transcreations are necessary, but won’t be possible. That is the case when:
