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Reaching New Markets through Transcreation
Keywords

Transcreation, international marketing, cultural adaptation, marketing translation, advertising translation, content, quality, translation, crowdsourcing

Abstract
As companies attempt to sell their products and services to more and more demographics in more and more markets around the world, they are discovering that they must adapt or recreate their messaging and content through a service called transcreation. Based on data collected from a survey of approximately 400 people and interviews with thirty companies, this report covers what transcreation entails and how it differs from translation, along with insights into the ecosystem, workflow and quality recommendations that enable a shorter learning curve.

Benefits
In General: Readers of this report will learn to recognize when transcreation – rather than straight-forward translation – is required, and why the sector is poised for growth. We also outline the steps for building a transcreation ecosystem, along with guidelines for adapting the workflow and quality metrics necessary to accommodate it.
For Buyers:
  • Uncover the areas where your company is throwing money down the drain.
  • Learn how to be an informed buyer of transcreation services.
  • Apply the right profiles when qualifying partners.
  • Discover how crowdsourcing can be leveraged to improve transcreation quality.
  • Find out why RFPs and SLAs do not apply to transcreation.
  • Enable procurement to be your friend when contracting transcreation services.
For Suppliers:
  • Discover how to compete effectively in this space.
  • Evaluate whether less automation is better.
  • Determine the best sources for finding transcreation talent.
  • Understand how to deal more effectively with monolingual decisionmakers.
  • Learn how to decrease transcreation pain.
  • Enable your customers to take quality metrics to the next level.

Physical Details
Authors: Rebecca Ray and Nataly Kelly
Date: 30 March 2010
Pages: 47

Companies
Acclaro, Alpha CRC, Conversis, Estudio Ray, Global Studyo, Hakromedia, Locasis, Milengo, NCS Enterprises, One Planet, PB-Translations, Risdall Advertising Agency, Sajan, SDL, Space360, Siemens, TripleInk, Trusted Translations, Welocalize, The Word Gym, Wordbank.

Table of Contents

  • Topic. 1
        Taking a Closer Look at What Transcreation Means. 1
        More Research Related to This Topic. 3

  • Vox Populi 4
        Industry Players Define Transcreation in Very Specific Terms. 4
            Existing Suppliers Believe that Transcreation Differs from Translation.. 4
            Buyer Definitions Focus More on the End Result. 5
            The Larger Market Defines Transcreation in Similar Ways. 6
        Transcreation Touches Nearly Every Vertical Market. 9
            Marketing and Advertising Materials Reign Among Content Types. 9
            Demand for Transcreation Continues to Grow... 11
        Content Type and Languages Guide the Transcreation Decision.. 13
        Transcreation Requires Extensive Customer Education.. 13
            Client Education Approaches Depend on the Stakeholder. 14
        What Transcreation Costs, and Who Pays for It. 15
            Budget Ownership Depends Largely on Content Type. 17
            RFPs and SLAs Add No Value in Transcreation.. 18
        Relationships Drive the Transcreation Ecosystem... 19
            Transcreation Requires a Team Mentality. 20
        Transcreation Demands a Workflow of Its Own.. 21
            The Creative Brief Is Critical for the Transcreation Team... 21
            Transcreation Means More Iterations and Stakeholders. 22
            Buyers and Suppliers Customize Their Workflows for Transcreation.. 24
            Transcreation Processes Differ from Translation for Several Reasons. 26
            Humans Still Rule in Transcreation Projects. 26
        Transcreation Can Be a Painful Endeavor. 27
        Talent and Proximity to the Customer Determine Transcreation Quality. 30
            Getting the Right Talent on Board Is No Easy Task. 30
            Early Buy-in from Local Markets Is Vital 31
            In-Country Reviewers Can Make or Break Quality. 31
            Crowdsourcing May Eventually Help to Ensure Transcreation Quality. 32
        Summary of Our Transcreation Interviews and Survey Data. 33

  • Analysis. 35
        How You Define Translation Determines How You View Transcreation.. 35
            There Is Just One Problem with Straight Translation: Culture. 36
        Recognize That There Are Many Drivers for Transcreation.. 36
        Determine Your Transcreation Strategy from the Onset. 37
        It Takes an Ecosystem to Achieve Transcreation Success. 38
            Engage the Right Players Upstream... 38
            Finding, Qualifying, and Vetting Transcreation Providers. 39
        Buyers Have Several Options for Transcreation Quality Improvement. 41

  • Implications. 45
        Expect the Demand for Transcreation to Continue Growing. 45
        Vendor-Buyer Collaboration Is Critical for Transcreation.. 46
        It’s Time for Buyers to Stop Throwing Money down the Drain.. 47
            It Isn’t Enough to Consult Local Resources Just Once. 48
            Client Organizations Must Learn to Live with Procurement. 49
        LSPs Should Acknowledge the Transcreation Adoption Cycle. 50

  • Appendix. 52
        About Common Sense Advisory. 53
        About Common Sense Advisory. 53
        Future Research.. 53
        Applied Research and Advisory Services. 53

  • Figures

        Figure 1: Pharmaceutical Transcreation in Practice. 2
        Figure 2: The Majority of Respondents Do Not Use the Term “Transcreation”. 7
        Figure 3: Transcreation Is a Relatively New Phenomenon.. 8
        Figure 4: Terms Used to Define Transcreation.. 9
        Figure 5: Most Popular Content Types for Transcreation.. 10
        Figure 6: Industries Requiring Transcreation Services. 11
        Figure 7: Transcreation Is Poised to Grow... 12
        Figure 8: Transcreation Requires an Ecosystem... 19
        Figure 9: Creative Briefs Are Often Unavailable for Transcreation Projects. 22
        Figure 10: Typical Supply-Side Transcreation Workflow... 24
        Figure 11: Typical Buy-Side Transcreation Workflow... 25
        Figure 12: Buyers Try to Shield Themselves from the Many Transcreation Pains. 29
        Figure 13: Remedies for Transcreation Pains. 42
        Figure 14: Localization Managers Struggle with Transcreation Pains. 47
        Figure 15: Signposts on the Road to Transcreation.. 48

  • Tables

        Table 1: Diverse Definitions of Transcreation.. 7
        Table 2: Budgetary Models for Transcreation.. 18
        Table 3: Transcreation Pain Points Caused by People. 27
        Table 4: Transcreation Pain Points Caused by Process. 29
        Table 5: Transcreation Drivers and Implications. 37
        Table 6: Transcreation Partner Scenarios. 41
        Table 7: Transcreation Provider Interviewees. 52

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