Transcreation services
Transcreation services that make your message land in every language
A message can be translated perfectly and still fail to connect. Our transcreation services adapt campaigns, websites, and public outreach so they sound natural, keep your brand voice, and move each audience to act.
The problem
Accurate isn’t the same as convincing
Translation carries meaning across. Persuasion, humor, and trust don’t always come with it.
Wordplay that falls flat
Puns, rhymes, and double meanings rarely survive a literal translation. The line is correct, and the spark is gone.
With transcreationWe rebuild the idea so it plays naturally in the new language.
References that don’t travel
Idioms, holidays, sports, humor, colors, and images carry different meanings, or none, in another culture.
With transcreationWe use references your audience recognizes and trusts.
A tone that reads wrong
Friendly can sound careless and formal can sound cold. The right register depends on who is reading.
With transcreationWe match the voice your audience expects from you.
A message people don’t act on
When outreach doesn’t feel written for its audience, people skim past it and never take the next step.
With transcreationWe make the next step clear and natural to take.
Transcreation vs. translation
What transcreation is, in plain English
Transcreation, sometimes called creative translation, recreates a message for a new audience. It adapts meaning, tone, cultural references, and creative intent, while protecting what the original was meant to achieve.
An illustrative example: a flu vaccine campaign line, adapted for Spanish-speaking families
Original (English)
Don’t let the flu call the shots.
The play on “shots” is what makes the line memorable.
Literal translation
No dejes que la gripe tome las decisiones.
Back-translation: “Don’t let the flu make the decisions.”
Accurate, but the wordplay is gone and so is the reason to get vaccinated.
Transcreation
Que la gripe no te gane la partida. Vacúnate.
Back-translation: “Don’t let the flu win this round. Get vaccinated.”
A familiar Spanish idiom keeps the energy, and the call to action is now explicit.
Which service fits your content?
Choose by what the content has to do. If it has to persuade, reassure, or move people to act, it needs transcreation.
Translation
Carry the meaning accurately.
- What can change
- Wording, as little as possible
- Best for
- Contracts, instructions, reports, and regulated text
- You receive
- A faithful, accurate translation
Best for persuasive content
Transcreation
Create the same effect on a new audience.
- What can change
- Wording, references, tone, even the headline
- Best for
- Campaigns, taglines, social media, scripts, and public outreach
- You receive
- Adapted copy with a back-translation and notes on every choice
Localization
Make a product or site work in a market.
- What can change
- Language, formats, layouts, and technical details
- Best for
- Websites, apps, software, and e-learning
- You receive
- A market-ready product or website
Most campaigns combine all three: transcreation for the headlines and calls to action, translation for the supporting copy, and localization for the website or app that carries it. One team handles every part.
What we transcreate
Where transcreation earns its keep
For any content that has to persuade, reassure, or prompt action, whether you are launching a product or reaching a community.
Campaigns and taglines
The lines your campaign is built on, rewritten to land with the same force in each language.
Social media content
Posts written for how each audience talks online, within each platform’s limits.
Websites and landing pages
Key pages and conversion copy that read as if they were written for the market.
Video and audio scripts
Scripts adapted for timing, voice, and on-screen text, ready for voiceover or subtitles.
Public outreach and health campaigns
Cultural adaptation of public information, so communities understand it, trust it, and act on it at the right reading level.
Brand and product names
Names and slogans checked for meaning, sound, and associations before you launch.
What you gain
Messages your audience believes and acts on
The point of transcreation is the response, not the word count.
- TrustAudiences engage with messages that feel written for them, not translated at them.
- ClarityPlain, natural wording people understand the first time they read it.
- EngagementCalls to action that feel natural, so more people take the next step.
- Brand consistencyOne voice across every language, from headline to fine print.
- Fewer revisionsAgreeing the brief and rationale up front means less rewriting late in production.
Our process
How a transcreation project works
A clear brief, creative adaptation by people who know the culture, and review you can follow even if you don’t speak the language.
- Understand the brief and the audienceWe start with what the message must achieve, who it is for, where it will run, and what must not change, then confirm the plan with you.
- Adapt the message with qualified linguistsNative-speaking linguists with creative writing experience recreate the copy. For headlines and taglines, we can provide more than one option.
- Check cultural and brand fitWe review each option for cultural references, tone, sensitivities, and consistency with your brand voice.
- Explain the choicesEach adapted line comes with a back-translation into English and a short note on why it was written that way, so your team can judge it without speaking the language.
- Refine with your feedbackYou and any in-market reviewers comment, we discuss the feedback with you, and we refine the copy until it is approved.
- Finalize for the channelWe deliver copy that fits its destination, from character limits and on-screen timing to print layout, and can format files through our desktop publishing team.
Your brief
What to send us to get started
A strong brief is the difference between copy that is merely correct and copy that works. Here is everything that helps, and none of it has to be polished.
- No formal brief? We build one with you on a short call.
- Not sure what needs transcreation? We mark which parts need creative adaptation and which only need translation, so you pay for creativity only where it matters.
- The source contentCopy, scripts, designs, or links, in their latest version.
- Your audience and goalWho you want to reach and what you want them to think, feel, or do.
- Channel and limitsWhere it will run, plus character counts, timing, or layout constraints.
- Brand voiceStyle guides, approved terms, and examples of copy that sounds like you.
- What must not changeProduct names, legal lines, required statements, and claims.
- Your reviewersWho approves the copy, and any in-market colleagues who should weigh in.
Send what you have. We will ask about the rest.
Client results
Trusted with messages that have to land
Public agencies and brands rely on us when their message has to reach people in their own language.
Translation Excellence provided outstanding transcreation services during our COVID-19 outreach, effectively bridging language barriers and addressing cultural sensitivities.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority Health
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Retail and marketing AZDS Interactive Group
We provided professional translation and localization services, ensuring that the brand's messaging and aesthetic were maintained across different languages and cultures. Read the case study -
Finance and insurance Travelex
We provided comprehensive localization services, including translation, adaptation, and culturalization of marketing materials. Read the case study -
Retail and marketing Fast Track Marketing
We provided comprehensive translation and localization services. Read the case study
Related services
Services that work alongside transcreation
One team, one point of contact. Add any of these to your transcreation project.
FAQ
Transcreation questions, answered
Don’t see your question? A language specialist can answer it in one call.
Talk to a specialist
Get a straight answer
Tell us what you need translated or interpreted, and we’ll scope it with you.
Meet one-on-one with a language services expert, at a time that suits you.
What is the difference between translation, transcreation, and localization?
Translation carries your meaning accurately from one language to another and stays close to the source. Transcreation recreates a message so it has the same effect on a new audience, which can mean new wording, new cultural references, or a new headline. Localization adapts a whole product or website for a market, including formats, layouts, and technical details. Many projects combine all three: transcreation for the headline and calls to action, translation for the supporting copy.
When should we choose transcreation instead of translation?
Choose transcreation when the goal is a reaction, not just understanding: a tagline, campaign, social post, video script, or outreach message that needs to persuade, reassure, or move people to act. If the content must stay close to the source, such as contracts, instructions, or regulatory text, translation is the right service.
What do you need from us to get started?
The source content and a short brief: who the audience is, what you want them to think or do, the channel and any space limits, and your brand or style guidelines. Past campaigns, approved terminology, and anything that must not change, such as a product name or legal line, also help. If you don’t have a formal brief, we build one with you on a short call.
How do you protect our brand voice?
We start from your brand guidelines and the intent behind each message, not just the words. For headline-level copy, we can offer more than one option, each with a back-translation into English and a short note explaining the choices, so your team can see exactly how the voice was carried across before anything is approved.
How does review and approval work?
You review the adapted copy with its back-translation and notes, and share it with in-market colleagues if you have them. We discuss feedback with you, refine the copy, and finalize it once you approve. Agreeing on reviewers and rounds at the start keeps the schedule predictable.
Can transcreation help with public health and public information campaigns?
Yes. Agencies and community organizations use transcreation when outreach must be understood and acted on by people with limited English proficiency, such as health guidance, benefits information, and emergency notices. We adapt the message to the community’s language, reading level, and cultural context, in line with the National CLAS Standards’ call for easy-to-understand materials in the languages people use.
How long does a transcreation project take?
It depends on how much copy there is, how many languages, and how many review rounds you plan. A short set of headlines and calls to action moves much faster than a full campaign with scripts and web pages. We give you a dated schedule with the quote, including time for your review.
How is transcreation priced?
Because transcreation is creative writing rather than word-for-word translation, it is usually quoted per project or by the hour, based on the amount of copy, the number of languages, and how many options and review rounds you need. You receive a clear quote before work begins.
Do you use machine translation or AI for transcreation?
Not for the final copy. Creative messages are written by human linguists. AI can help with brainstorming or with large volumes of supporting content, but every headline, tagline, and key message is crafted and reviewed by people.
Tell us what’s at stake. We’ll show you how we’d handle it.
Send your files or describe your event. A language specialist replies with a fixed quote and a delivery date, with no obligation.
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