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Transcreation

Content management1/5/2026Advanced Level

Transcreation is the process of adapting content from one language to another while maintaining its original intent, style, tone, and emotional impact.

What is Transcreation? (Definition)

Transcreation is a creative translation process that adapts content for a specific culture. It focuses on keeping the original message and emotional impact rather than just swapping words. This is important when a direct translation would lose humor or local idioms. Marketing experts and native speakers usually handle this work. They rewrite product descriptions and slogans to make them feel natural to a local audience. This process helps brands build trust in new markets. It ensures that marketing campaigns remain persuasive across different regions. Systems like WISEPIM help manage these different content versions for global webshops.

Why Transcreation is Important for E-commerce

Transcreation is a creative translation process that adapts content for a specific culture. It goes beyond changing words from one language to another. The goal is to keep the same intent, style, and tone as the original text. Standard translation often sounds stiff or misses local jokes and customs. This can make customers lose trust in a brand. Transcreation ensures your marketing feels natural to local shoppers. It helps your brand build a real connection with people in different countries. A PIM system helps manage this process by storing all your product data in one place. You can keep the original text alongside every local version. This makes it easy to track which cultural updates belong to which product. It ensures the right message reaches the right market. Using a tool like WISEPIM allows you to stay organized while selling globally. You can maintain a strong brand image while giving every customer a local experience. This approach helps increase sales and keeps international customers happy.

Examples of Transcreation

  • 1A luxury fashion brand rewrites its slogan for the Dutch market to keep the same high-end feel. A direct translation might sound boring or lose its meaning.
  • 2An electronics company changes its product descriptions for German customers. They focus on precision and durability because these qualities are important to that local market.
  • 3A food retailer updates dish names on its website for customers in Quebec. They use local food terms and cultural references so the menu feels natural to the region.
  • 4A beauty brand adapts its product descriptions for different Asian markets. They rewrite the text to make sure the focus on self-care and luxury connects with local shoppers.

How WISEPIM Helps

  • WISEPIM stores all language versions of your product data in one place. It links transcreated content directly to the right products to keep your global catalog organized.
  • You can store slogans and marketing copy next to standard product details. This helps you manage cultural adjustments for every item and keeps localized content easy to find.
  • WISEPIM uses workflows to guide teams through the adaptation process. These steps help you review and approve content to keep your brand voice consistent in every country.
  • Send specific content to different international sales channels. WISEPIM helps you meet the unique expectations of shoppers in every market so your products feel local.

Common Mistakes with Transcreation

  • Many people treat transcreation like a simple word-for-word translation. This ignores the need to adapt the message for a new culture.
  • Companies often forget to provide a clear creative brief. Without these instructions, the new content might lose the brand's original voice.
  • Some businesses do not hire native speakers or local experts. These experts understand the cultural details that make a message work.
  • It is a mistake to only change the text. You must also update images and colors to fit what the local audience expects.
  • Brands often skip testing their content with the target audience. This leads to messages that people might misunderstand or simply ignore.

Tips for Transcreation

  • Write a detailed creative brief. Include your goals, your audience, and the emotions you want to trigger in customers.
  • Use native experts who live in the target market. These professionals understand local slang and how culture affects buying habits.
  • Test your messages with local audiences before you launch. Use focus groups to ensure the content feels right and makes sense.
  • Create a clear process for feedback. Let local team members review the work to ensure it matches the brand voice.
  • Start transcreation early. Think about cultural differences while you write the original content instead of waiting until the end.

Trends Surrounding Transcreation

  • AI-powered initial drafts: AI tools assist in generating culturally relevant content ideas and initial drafts, which human transcreators then refine for nuance and emotional impact.
  • Integration with headless CMS and PIM: Seamlessly delivering source content from headless CMS or PIM systems to transcreation platforms and publishing adapted content across multiple digital touchpoints.
  • Data-driven transcreation: Utilizing audience data, sentiment analysis, and performance metrics to inform and optimize transcreation efforts for specific markets and campaigns.
  • Focus on sustainability messaging: Adapting sustainability and ethical claims to resonate authentically with diverse cultural values and consumer perceptions.
  • Automated workflow for content delivery: Streamlining the entire content lifecycle from creation to transcreation, approval, and automated publishing across various e-commerce channels.

Tools for Transcreation

  • WISEPIM: Centralizes and manages all source product information and marketing content, facilitating its distribution for transcreation and storing the culturally adapted versions for various channels.
  • Akeneo: A PIM solution that supports managing rich product content, including specific attributes and descriptions tailored through transcreation for global markets.
  • Salsify: A Product Experience Management (PXM) platform that helps centralize product content, enabling its adaptation and syndication for diverse sales channels and regions.
  • Contentful: A headless CMS used to manage source content, which can then be seamlessly delivered to transcreation teams and published as adapted content across various frontends.
  • Smartling: A translation management system (TMS) that provides robust workflows for transcreation projects, including linguistic quality assurance and project management features.

Related Terms

localizationchannel specific contentproduct contentcontent syndicationproduct detail page pdp

Also Known As

Cultural AdaptationCreative TranslationLocalized Marketing Copy