TRANSLATION IN THE MARKETING SPHERE AND ITS CHALLENGES
TRANSLATION IN THE MARKETING SPHERE AND ITS CHALLENGES
Unique characteristics, such as socio-cultural aspects, emerge as barriers when bringing a brand to a global concept, which requires a repositioning and thus a reinvention of its products and services through translation in the Marketing sphere. This often requires a kind of recreation of the material for a specific audience or country, at times even requiring a transcreation process. Taking the context and culture of the target language into account is essential for the translation to convey the same message as the original text.
OBJECTIVES
These specialties seek to overcome socio-cultural aspects that define the introduction of brands, products and services in a given region or country. New branding and redesigning of products and their marketing initiatives are some of the consequences of this process.
Unlike other specialties, translation for Marketing demands additional expertise on the subject, also requiring in-depth understanding of the brand in question. This means that in addition to translating content and adapting it to the new scenario, one must ensure that it is understood by the target audience.
CHALLENGES
Translation in the Marketing sphere, with elements of transcreation, entails synergy between the company’s marketing objectives, its local identity and culture, and then trying to cross over linguistic and anthropological barriers to adapt messages containing humor, puns, metaphors, colors, images, and even the name and visual identity of a brand.
Some companies in the global market have experienced complicated situations, such as a major automaker that launched a campaign featuring an actor who is an avid supporter of the Dalai Lama, then broadcasting it in China. The problem was that the automaker didn’t expect the commercial to be so poorly received by the Chinese, due to the historic conflict between the eastern giant and Tibet.
Take a look at some globally successful branding examples
Source:
Cultural Blunders: Brands Gone Wrong
