The best way to thing about transcreation is as a cross between translation and copywriting. It’s usually used for promotional copy where you want to persuade and motivate an audience to take action. It’s more effective than traditional translation and more culturally sensitive than copywriting when you’re marketing to different markets.

Transcreation takes inspiration from the original copy but is not a faithful replica. The transcreator may need to change the content, style, or copywriting technique to make it work in the new market. Creative wordplay or cultural references will often need to be adapted and even the brand voice may need to change.

At every stage of the transcreation process, the transcreator will ask themselves whether the copy meets the brief. These skills take time to develop and fall closer to the remit of a copywriter.

It's true that some people use the term 'transcreation' when they just mean 'a really good translation that feels culturally appropriate and sounds like it was written rather than translation'.

Others use it to refer to a translation where an element of creativity is required.

I'd argue that neither of these definitions quite capture the true meaning of transcreation. A transcreation is primarily used for marketing purposes - or any situation where you need to convince and persuade people. A transcreator’s job is to hit the client's brief rather than stay faithful to the original text. Sometimes this means heavy adaptation, but sometimes a straight translation will do if it resonates with the new audience and feels culturally appropriate.

When choosing a transcreator, look for someone with translation and copywriting skills. Qualifications such as a Masters or Diploma in Translation or copywriting training show you a professional knows how to take a source text and turn it into copy in their native language.

Many transcreators will also have a publicly available portfolio where you can see samples of their work.

Transcreation is suitable for any text that needs to sell or persuade, including adverts, taglines, straplines, press releases and SEO-friendly websites. In the past I’ve even transcreated whimsical wine labels!

Yes, and if your Italian website is SEO-friendly I would strongly recommend that you optimise your English one too. Simply translating your website from Italian to English doesn’t mean it’s optimised for search.

Search behaviour differs between countries and languages. Users may not use the same phrases to search for the same products and services. Keyword research identifies terms which your customers are searching for and your competitors may have missed.

If you or your SEO agency has already identified your English keywords (with keyword research tools, not a simple translation) then I can use them to optimise your copy. Or I can carry out the keyword research myself.

I love working with Italian copywriters! Having access to the brief they were given gives me a strong understanding of what they were trying to achieve with the Italian copy, and helps me link it to the goals for the English copy.

Firstly, product descriptions should be SEO-friendly so your target audience can find them either through traditional search engines or generative AI. Once the user has clicked through to your product, you want them to stick around long enough to read it. You’ll need to sell the benefits of the product, not just the features and ideally make the reader understand how the product will improve their life. Features can come later and it’s often a good idea to list them as bullets for scannability.

These days, we’re seeing a lot of AI-generated product descriptions. They’re popping up everywhere, from professional websites to reseller platforms (where AI removes a barrier to use so not necessarily and negative). If you’re able to infuse your product description with a bit of brand personality and a distinct brand voice then you stand a higher chance of converting and making that sale.

For this reason, I’d recommend transcreating product descriptions to make them truly captivating for international audiences.

A traditional Italian-to-English translation won’t be SEO-friendly. For SEO translation, your translator needs to carry out keyword research using an SEO tool and weave the keywords into your copy. They may need to adapt parts of your text to make it more culturally appropriate to the new market..

People search differently depending on the language they speak and the country they live in. They may not use the same words or phrases to search for the same products and services. Similarly, your competitors might be different, so the keywords that worked in one market might be too competitive in the new one.

Proper keyword research allows you to identify the terms your audience is actually searching for so your audience finds you.

Good question! Whether you start with English or Italian depends on a few factors, including your goals, audience, and how you plan to grow.

If your main audience speaks English (either natively or as a second language), it makes sense to start there. You can always add Italian or other languages later.

But if your main clients are based in Italy, then I’d advise you to write or refresh the copy in Italian first before working on the English version. That way, you can fine-tune your positioning and messaging for the home market in your most comfortable language before addressing an international audience.

I don’t write copy in Italian, but if you need a recommendation for an Italian copywriter then I can refer a trusted colleague!

Not necessarily! Your English website doesn’t have to be a mirror image of your Italian website (plugin-dependent).

Your English audience may not have the same motivations, goals and relationship with your product or service as Italian customers. Perhaps you can only ship certain products to international customers.

Translating only the necessary pages of your website can be a cost effective way to reach English customers.