Marketing Translation
What do successful international brands like Dyson, NARS and Haribo have in common?
They invest in localising their marketing content.
Why? To inspire and connect with their audience and turn them into loyal customers and brand advocates.
This is where marketing translation comes in.
It’s about transporting the brand’s essence to a new target market in the local language.
My approach always results from your requirements or brief. I use a combination of translation and transcreation, depending on the persuasion power of your content.
According to CSA Research findings...
“76% of online shoppers prefer to buy products with information [presented] in their native language." And another "40% will never buy from websites in other languages.”
Let me give you some examples:
News articles and blogs are meant to inform the reader, which means that a straightforward translation will do the trick in most cases. I say most because even blog posts contain some persuasive elements like a call-to-action section that needs a more ‘creative’ approach where bits of text may need to be re-created in the other language (= transcreation) to take effect.
Marketing materials have the primary goal of persuading the reader and motivating them to take some form of action. Examples include landing pages, newsletters, social media content, product descriptions, taglines, slogans and ad banners. These usually call for a more creative approach in the form of partial to full transcreation, giving the result a local and authentic flavour.
And this is exactly what will make your ideal customer feel understood and valued. In return, they’re far more likely to trust your brand and keep coming back to it.
Enough of the theory. Now for the practice:
Case study 1:
Here’s how I contributed to a 30% sales increase for e-commerce retailer Hudson Reed by re‑translating some product descriptions:
Issue
Hudson Reed was experiencing a dip in sales: some products within their heating range weren’t performing well in Germany. That meant re‑translating old German product descriptions that hadn’t been updated in years. A simple touch-up wouldn’t have sufficed because we also needed to consider the brand’s new Tone of Voice.
Outcome
Following several weeks of hard work to re‑create these product descriptions, the merchandising department reported a 30% increase in sales for this particular product group. The new Tone of Voice and style also matched the rest of the website better once the re‑translation project was complete.
Process
The challenge was handling high volumes of content in a short time frame. I re‑wrote the product descriptions and worked with a company-internal proofreader to make sure the result was of high quality as well as accurate from a product point of view. We met the tight deadlines and achieved consistency across all the content.
“Belinda reviewed and improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase for this product group. Key to us is her ability to understand technical products quickly with minimal instruction and produce high-quality content with a local flavour rather than a purely literal translation from English. She hit all deadlines, and her friendly and helpful nature blended seamlessly with the existing team.”
Richard, Hudson Reed (Burnley, UK)
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda reviewed and improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase for this product group. Key to us is her ability to understand technical products quickly with minimal instruction and produce high-quality content with a local flavour rather than a purely literal translation from English. She hit all deadlines, and her friendly and helpful nature blended seamlessly with the existing team.”
“Belinda reviewed and improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase for this product group. Key to us is her ability to understand technical products quickly with minimal instruction and produce high-quality content with a local flavour rather than a purely literal translation from English. She hit all deadlines, and her friendly and helpful nature blended seamlessly with the existing team.”
Hudson Reed was experiencing a dip in sales: some products within their heating range weren’t performing well in Germany. That meant re‑translating old German product descriptions that hadn’t been updated in years. A simple touch-up wouldn’t have sufficed because we also needed to consider the brand’s new tone of voice.
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Case Study 2:
Here’s how I helped Urban Outfitters target their trendy and self-expressive consumer base in Germany:
Issue
Urban Outfitters UK needed a German translator with copywriting skills to localise emails, web copy and app notifications. The English original copy was great for spreading festive cheer – but its puns and cultural references only worked in the UK.
Outcome
I’ve worked with Urban Outfitters several times since 2020 and enjoy translating their fashion-forward content. By giving UO’s festive marketing content a creative adaptation into German, I helped the brand delight their German-speaking customers.
Process
To catch the attention of German trendsetters, I relayed the English copy for a German-speaking audience. Deadlines were tight, but between the on-point organisation of the UO team and my translation and transcreation method mix, we hit the mark.
“Belinda was an absolute star and helped us out at short notice when we needed German translations at Urban Outfitters. She came in with an amazing can-do attitude and was a joy to work with. She translated emails, push notifications and web copy to an exceptional standard without any grammar mistakes and in a tone that sounded natural to our audience. We were so happy with her copy and can’t wait to work together again in the future."
Lizzie, Urban Outfitters (London, UK)
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
“Belinda translated content for new products in a style that works with the current tone of our website. She also improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase.”
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
Richard, Commercial Manager at Limitless Digital Group, owner of Hudson Reed (Burnley, England)
“Belinda reviewed and improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase for this product group. Key to us is her ability to understand technical products quickly with minimal instruction and produce high-quality content with a local flavour rather than a purely literal translation from English. She hit all deadlines, and her friendly and helpful nature blended seamlessly with the existing team.”
“Belinda reviewed and improved existing listings that have resulted in a 30% sales increase for this product group. Key to us is her ability to understand technical products quickly with minimal instruction and produce high-quality content with a local flavour rather than a purely literal translation from English. She hit all deadlines, and her friendly and helpful nature blended seamlessly with the existing team.”
Hudson Reed was experiencing a dip in sales: some products within their heating range weren’t performing well in Germany. That meant re‑translating old German product descriptions that hadn’t been updated in years. A simple touch-up wouldn’t have sufficed because we also needed to consider the brand’s new tone of voice.
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Want to see more?
Request translation samples or case studies by email.
1. Contact
Email me the content you’d like me to translate as an MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel or InDesign file along with a brief. Check out my free e-book to find out what to include. If this is your first time working with me, you might want to jump on a quick call, so we can get to know each other.
2. Sign-off
As soon as I've had a look at your requirements, I'll be in touch to confirm the project deadline, rate and any other specifics. If this is our first project together, I'll also ask you to sign my Terms of Business so we can enter our business relationship stress-free.
3. In the zone
Lean back while I work on your content. That includes editing and reading the translation out loud to make sure it flows and ‘snaps’. If you like, I can also arrange for a second linguist to proofread my work. In case I need to clarify anything along the way, I'll get in touch with you via email.
4. Time to shine
At this stage, the translation sounds smooth, natural, on‑brand and ready for your target audience to enjoy! You'll receive the translation in the same format in which you sent it to me. This is when I encourage you to share any final feedback. When you're happy, I'm happy!
My rates for translation:
I price all translation work by project to match your needs.
Here are some ballpark figures to give you a starting point:
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Hourly rate from €55
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Product description (around 300 words) from €70
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1-pager website (around 500 words) from €110
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Blog post (around 700 words) from €160
VAT is added on top where relevant. The prices I charge include any check-in calls, research, one round of revision and the tech and tools I use to get the job done. If the work ends up being more intense and expensive than we thought, I’ll let you know ahead of time so you’re not surprised by any extra costs at the end of the month.
I work with the translation software memoQ, and I’m a member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists as well as the Institute of Translation and Interpreting’s Beauty, Fashion, Luxury Network.
