Transcreation goes beyond translation; it truly brings your message to life. We adapt content so it feel natural in every market, fits the culture and carries the same energy as the original. Your message should sound as if it was created right there. You can almost hear the heartbeat …
What exactly happens during transcreation?
That depends on the type of text. We usually start with a briefing: you tell us your communication goals, target audience, preferred tone, available text space, layout details and more. All of this helps the expert picture the final result in context. For claims and slogans, we often create several versions. Our creative translators think carefully about which puns work well and which ones don’t in the target culture. They provide you with several options, which can be refined in feedback rounds – until you find the one you love.
Sometimes, cultural references appear repeatedly in a text, but don’t make sense in the target language. Here, too, transcreation is needed. This often happens in film dubbing or subtitling, for example, when references involve concepts or products that are not understood in the target language.
We’re all familiar with slogans from famous international brands that have been carefully adapted. But even simple puns often need to be transcreated. Take this example: if a British umbrella manufacturer were to use the literal translations “es regnet Katzen und Hunde” or “piovono gatti e cani” as slogans on the German or Italian versions of its website, many readers would be baffled. Some might recognise it as a poorly translated English idiom – but that won’t improve their opinion of the brand. It becomes even more complicated if the umbrella website also features images of cats and dogs. In that case, comprehensive cultural advice for the entire site would be a smart move.
