The global marketplace has become an attractive place for brands and businesses, where they strive to create a presence of their own. Words have cultural meaning and intent in addition to information. Whether you are launching a marketing campaign or adapting a product for an international audience, how your message is received can make or break your success. So when it comes to a global audience, representation of your content is the most important thing. Translation, the most sought tool, often falls short, and that’s when we bring the big gun, transcreation.
Both translation and transcreation involve crossing linguistic borders, but the impact they create and the way they do it is entirely different. Translation focuses on converting words from one language into another with clarity and accuracy. It’s essential for legal documents and manuals. But when it comes to engaging an audience emotionally, like with brand slogans, ad copy, or creative storytelling, a direct translation often falls short. That’s where transcreation steps in. It goes beyond words, blending culture, tone, and creativity to preserve the original message’s spirit while reshaping it for a new audience.
In this blog, we’ll explore how these two approaches differ, where each one excels, and why choosing the right one can elevate your global message. So let's get right into it.
Transcreation is a more creative approach to translation, focused on adapting content to resonate with a specific target audience's culture and emotions, while translation focuses on accurately conveying the meaning of a text from one language to another.
Transcreation is the process of creatively adapting content from one language to another while preserving its original intent, style, tone, and emotional impact. In simple words, transcreation is an amalgam of two words, translation and creation. This defines how transcreation is one step ahead of translation. This process adds further meaning to translation and makes the text more in resonance with the target audiences.
Here, the source text is used as an inspiration to create something that has the original intent of the text but is completely adapted to the needs and demands of the target audiences. The brand message remains the same; however, it is made more creative so that it can be completely understood by the intended audiences.
Transcreation is all about presenting the translated text in a creative manner so that the main goal of attracting the audience is fulfilled. It is all about providing the unique branding message by transcreating marketing materials.
Yes, transcreators are basically creative writers who know more than one language, which is why they are perfect individuals for the task. They are copywriters native in both source and target languages.
Transcreation is not simply just translating text creatively. No, it's more than that. The main difference between translation and transcreation is that the latter begins with a creative brief. It means that there is a document that enlists the outline and objectives of the creative project, such as a marketing campaign. This brief contains the concept that needs to be recreated in the target language.
Transcreation is done with planning. Here's a basic process:
This process helps make sure the message is right for the new audience.
Pricing in transcreation differs a lot from that of translation. Mostly, the pricing structure is based on a per-word basis in translation, and in some cases, it's per page. However, in transcreation, the pricing structure is per hour or per project. As it is a more creative task, like video production, graphic design, and copywriting, this hourly method is used.
Before changing anything, the transcreator reads the source text very carefully. This helps them see the message, tone, and purpose. The goal is to understand what the writer wants to say and how it should feel. It is not just about the words. It is about the emotion behind them.
The next step is learning about the people who will read the new content. What do they like? What words do they use? What makes them smile or feel excited? The transcreator is invested in the cultural habits, slang, and reading level. They also look at tone; some cultures like humor, while others prefer formality. Understanding this helps shape the new version so it fits the audience perfectly.
This brief contains the outlines and objectives of the marketing project so that the reader knows what they are getting into. A strong brief includes:
Now, the real transcreation work starts. This step involves rewriting, not just replacing words. The transcreator writes the message in a new way that makes sense in the new language. They use new expressions, stories, or humor. But the goal remains the same: keep the message strong and clear. Let us clarify here: these transcreators don’t use machine tools. Every word is chosen with care. Every sentence is checked to make sure it sounds natural.
Transcreation is a team job. The draft goes to editors, project managers, or brand leads. They check if the new content works. Sometimes, they suggest small edits. Other times, they ask for big changes. This step helps improve the content before it goes live. And at last, transcreators deliver the documents in the desired format, and the content goes live.
As the importance of translation has been established, we all know what translation is. Simply speaking, translation is the conversion of text from one language to another, ensuring that the meaning of the source text is retained in the translated one. Making sure that content makes sense in a second language in the same way that it does in the original is the primary objective of translation. For instance, businesses often need translation the most as they need to increase their audiences and cater to a global one.
Hence, regardless of linguistic barriers, translation allows diverse audiences to understand and make the right purchase choice.
Translation works well for facts and instructions. For example, legal papers, menus, and manuals need accuracy. But when you're trying to connect with people, plain translation falls flat. So, while translation is about "what" is being said, transcreation is about "how" it’s being felt. When the focus is shifted to feelings, that's when the audience is more involved in your business. This is why sparking and invoking feelings in the target audience is an important part of business, and brands are trying their best to get their attention once and for all.
Transcreation and translation are both used to provide target audiences with the information that helps businesses sell their products and services. However, there are visible differences between the two that highlight their main areas.
| Aspect | Translation | Transcreation |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | To convert text accurately from one language to another | To adapt a message creatively for a different culture and emotional response |
| Focus | Accuracy, clarity, and consistency | Emotion, impact, and cultural relevance |
| Word-for-Word Fidelity | Often retains the original structure and phrasing | Freely changes structure, wording, and metaphors |
| Creativity Level | Low to moderate | High: Similar to creative writing or copywriting |
| Tone Adaptation | Preserves original tone as closely as possible | Adjusts tone to resonate with the target culture |
| Cultural Sensitivity | Minimal: Often literal | Essential: Adapts idioms, humor, taboos, and local values |
| Common Use Cases | CAT tools, translation memories, glossaries, and human translators | Rarely uses CAT tools, relies on creative briefs, cultural insight, and content creators |
| Translator Profile | Bilingual linguists with subject-matter knowledge | Bilingual copywriters with cultural and marketing expertise |
| Measurement of Success | Linguistic accuracy and consistency | Emotional and cultural impact on the audience |
| Approval Process | Often goes through a proofreading or QA step | Requires client collaboration, creative approval, and A/B testing |
| Role of Emotions | Secondary: May or may not influence decisions | Primary: Message must evoke the same feeling as the original |
| Output Type | Direct textual output | Rewritten, culturally appropriate content with new elements if needed |
| Time Required | Usually quicker, especially with tools | Longer due to creative thinking and testing |
| Cost | Generally lower | Higher due to creative skill and time investment |
| Risk of Misinterpretation | Moderate, especially if the context is missed | Lower because the message is reshaped specifically for the new audience |
| Examples | Translating a legal contract or user manual | Reimagining a slogan like “Just Do It” for a completely different market |
| Who Should Use It? | Businesses needing formal, technical, or standard global content | Brands aiming to connect emotionally and build local engagement |
By far, we have thoroughly discussed what both translation and transcreation are and how they differ from each other. We also know that transcreation is for presenting content creatively for a new set of audiences. What we didn't talk about earlier is that transcreation is best for creative marketing. This involves catering new strategies to grab the user's attention. This creative marketing is mainly to invoke the audience's emotions.
Transcreation gives the translator liberty to adapt the message, tone, and style of the content. Hence, your marketing material gets the attention from the audience that you were aiming for, such as
Transcreation is truly the right tool when you need to make an impact on your audience. This tool deals with marketing and advertising content to make sure it resonates with the audience linguistically, culturally, and emotionally. It is one step ahead of translation, creating new and adaptable content for your target audiences. And that’s exactly what MarsTranslation provides you with.
MarsTranslation is a translation agency catering to businesses all over the world for more than 2 decades now. We provide both translation and transcreation services tailored according to your demands that help you enhance your audience reach. Our transcreation team adapts your brand for real impact, market by market.
Our transcreation services adapt your message into 230+ languages. So are you ready to speak your brand’s heart in any language? Our transcreation services make your message unforgettable everywhere.
When it comes to making your brand message unique and compelling for the audience, transcreation is the right choice. This creative approach to translation transforms the way the audience views your brand.
If you need literal translations, such as for legal and financial documents, translation is the best fit for you. However, if you need to adapt your promotional content for the audience, transcreation is what you need.
Businesses that operate in many countries need transcreation. They want ads, slogans, and stories to sound natural everywhere. It’s used for websites, social media, product names, and marketing.
No. AI tools such as machine translation (MT) can only help with basic translation, but transcreation needs human skill. It needs emotion, humor, and cultural care, things MT cannot do well.
If your message includes feelings, jokes, or a strong brand voice, transcreation may be the better choice. It’s also best when the message needs to spark action in a new market.
Yes, it takes more time and skill, which is why it is expensive. But it gives better results when the message must feel natural and strong in another language.
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