Why word-for-word translations don’t always work
When working for a global company with different markets that require multiple languages, you’re very likely to face issues with translation sooner or later. For me, it started rather sooner than later when I first started as a German copywriter at Wayfair. With its headquarters in Boston and later expansions into the UK and the German market, the main focus always lay in the English language — obviously. So for me as a German copywriter, this meant a lot of either translating existing copy, or taking an idea that was created in English and making it work in German. I stumbled upon some interesting (Google translated) copy suggestions, and while a simple word-for-word translation might work for certain areas, it sure can make things just sound ‘off’ in others.
Communication between a brand and its customers is key, and so is getting the right message across — whether it’s the overall brand voice, a compelling sale strategy or a ‘simple’ product description. And while technological advances such as translation tools can make things easier, faster and more efficient, they can also cause meaning to be lost, and with that also the copy’s purpose. Languages are much more complex than translating a word from English to German. So when you hear questions like “Can’t we just translate it?” You need to consider more than just word-for-word translation — and here are some reasons why.
Same words, same message?
Definitely not. As I mentioned, languages are complex, and simply translating one word to another often doesn’t work. To begin with, one word in the source language can mean different things in the target language. Google translate or any other translation tool respectively offer plenty of evidence for this — and I know we have all been there, pasting a phrase into the tool to get a translation and the result was, well, entertaining! The same would happen if I directly translated the briefs I get for our major promotions, email banners and subject lines or social media posts. When stakeholders request messaging approaches such as ‘Final Hours’ or ‘Storage solutions for less’, I can’t just simply write ‘Finale Stunden’ or ‘Stauraumlösungen für weniger’ in German. Although it might be grammatically acceptable, It just sounds wrong. By simply translating words from one language into another we completely exclude the most obvious factors: grammar structures and differences, linguistic roots and, of course, context. Let’s use another example. If you are sitting in a meeting with your colleagues and one of them says, “Gotta run,” as they leave for another meeting, do they really run? Hopefully not. And would you say, “Ich muss rennen,” in German? Absolutely not. Which brings me to my next point.
Words need context
Without context, words are just words without much meaning. Take phrases or idioms as an example and translate them from one language to another. ‘The train has left the station’ might not sound familiar to you, but when ‘a ship has sailed’ you know the meaning behind it, right? So essentially, you are looking for the same meaning when translating, but not necessarily the same words. And that’s exactly what translation is all about: conveying the meaning behind words. Speaking of which, as I mentioned before, when translating words from, say, English to German, we need to be aware that one word can have several meanings, which in a translation could lead to misleading messaging or misunderstandings. Take the word ‘right‘ as an example. It can be translated as the opposite of left, as something that is correct or as a state-established norm. So how do you know which meaning to translate to? As you can see, understanding the context of the words becomes more than essential.
And that is where my challenge at work starts. When our team works on a campaign that runs in the UK and in Germany, we use the same design, the same layouts and have the same amount of space for copy. So when we think about urgency messaging, and my design colleagues see ‘Final Hours’ for English and I suggest the German equivalent ‘Nur noch wenige Stunden’, I either get a silent smile or a, “Could we make this shorter, somehow?”. Maybe it’s because if you don’t speak the language, you only see the length or number of words but not their meaning. So being flexible and not sticking to the same wording but the same meaning helps a lot when coming up with alternatives.
Different markets, different cultures, different customer needs
When writing copy for a campaign that launches in different markets, sticking to the exact same wording shouldn’t be the main priority in the first place. And although it may make comparison and analysis between markets and their performance easier, it completely excludes cultural differences and with them different customer needs. Take urgency messaging again as a good example. While in the UK, ‘Last Chance’ may not perform as well as other messaging approaches like ‘Final Hours’, the German equivalent ‘Letzte Chance’ may still work well for our German audience. Or using all caps for email subject lines may be appealing to English-speaking customers, but it may come across as offensive or intrusive to German customers. But why is that? Maybe it’s because the same approach can be perceived differently, or maybe because customers in different markets are used to different advertising and marketing strategies — there can be many reasons. The fact is, culture and language are deeply intertwined and influence each other on a daily basis. Different cultures include different histories, different belief systems, and different morals and values, just to name a few. They shape different people and therefore different customers and customer behaviours that need to be factored in when translating a message.
The question is, how do we make sure we get the same message across while keeping different customer needs and cultural differences in mind? Transcreation is the key word.
Transcreation as the way to go?
We know that when translating copy, we need to factor in the context and cultural embedding of a message. The idea of transcreating copy is to be able to translate a concept, an idea or a pun from the source language to the target language without compromising on its key message, rather than sticking to the same wording. Specific rhetorical devices such as alliteration or metaphors, catchy wordplays or references to cultural events are sometimes not translatable due to certain nuances or atmosphere. So when translating copy, requested briefs or ideas, you need to adjust the messaging accordingly and think about the meaning or intention behind the message.
This becomes especially important when talking about a global brand’s tone and voice for example. If you are working for a company that is all about furniture and décor, you will come across certain phrases that might work well in one language but have a totally different tonality in another language. Let’s say you have to translate a phrase like ‘home sweet home’ from English to German. Of course there is a similar saying in German, which would be ‘Trautes Heim, Glück allein’, but where the English version is still used day to day, the German equivalent sounds rather oldschool. So what do you do? Do you use the more literal translation that doesn’t match the tone of voice, do you stick to the English version and don’t translate at all, or do you come up with a different messaging that conveys the same meaning? It only becomes more complicated with something like a global tagline or a global brand book. Understanding how messaging can be different to convey the same or at least a similar meaning is essential when working in multiple languages.
Long story short — I think we can all agree that, especially in copywriting, when you are facing projects that involve more than one language, word-for-word translations are not the way to go. You need to be able to understand more than just the words you read. You need to comprehend the meaning behind the letters to be able to get the message across. So, essentially, as a copywriter working for a global brand, you become more of a “cultural ambassador”, delivering meanings rather than words.
