We’ll answer this question with another one: Do you know who Santa Claus is? This is obviously a rhetorical question because—who doesn’t know this iconic Christmas character?
In case you didn’t know, his origin is estimated around the 17th century. However, back in those times he had nothing to do with the Santa Claus we know today, made up by the illustrator Haddon Sundblom in 1931, at the request of Coca-Cola’s advertising agency. This campaign's objective was to create a character that represented the Christmas spirit and the happiness the soft drink provides. And, they absolutely made it.
The image of a good-natured Santa Claus, dressed in red and white is a universal symbol. But, be aware! It’s just one of the many examples that have demonstrated the importance of transcreation in the advertising field.
The importance of transcreation in the marketing and advertising fields
Marketing and advertising change with the current times. If there is a word that defines them, that is globalization. It refers to the internationalization of marketing campaigns so that the message reaches all markets in which the product or service needs to be promoted.
In other words, it means giving the right message to obtain the desired reaction from the target audience, and that it is achieved in all the languages used to communicate it.
Transcreation is the key to opening the gates to different markets taking content translation a step further in order to understand the idea or concept that make the consumer feel something.
The benefits to transcreation in marketing are unquestionable. Here are some of the most relevant:
- The message delivered to all target audiences has the same intention as the original text.
- Transcreation in advertising uses the elements and cultural references of each country to transmit emotion, irony or the feeling caused by the content.
- The message is completely adapted to the target cultures, maintaining the brand’s vision and values.
- Transcreation helps to obtain good SEO ranking in each one of the markets.
Transcreation and copywriting go hand in hand when successfully internationalizing any international campaign. A copywriter creates a message adapted to the strategy developed by the marketing and advertising departments, and the transcreator translates the intention and idea so that the client grasps the message as if it were their own. This is why many times transcreation is defined as a broader concept, known as advertising translation, which you’ve probably heard about if you work in the marketing and advertising fields.
If there is no transcreation, there is no emotion
To ensure the success of an international marketing campaign, it is essential to collaborate with a company that has transcreation specialists who are expert transcreators capable of combining the necessary knowledge and creativity through the following skills:
- Good command of the source and target languages.
- Familiarity with the target culture, customs, codes of conduct, clothing, sense of humor... Generally speaking, of the entire socio-cultural context that define their values.
- Creativity when translating messages, even if this means having to completely change the content.
- Skills related with the marketing and advertising techniques used in different types of media to reach the goal established in the campaign's briefing.
At Linguaserve we are transcreation and advertising translation experts and we put all of our experience and know-how in the advertising and marketing fields at your disposal so that the internationalization of your company’s advertising campaigns are a complete success.
