Surveying the economics of transcreation from the perspective of language professionals

Abstract

Transcreation is a creative adaptation service that has been studied from the perspective of the language services industry and academia. Despite broad interest in the topic, little is known about the perceptions individual professionals have of this practice. To fill this gap, this paper aims to provide information from this point of view and focuses on the economic characteristics of transcreation. For this purpose, a sociological study based on a survey has been carried out. A total of 360 professionals from all over the world participated in this initiative. The results show that transcreation is considered as a hard-to-automate service. The practice is perceived and paid as a value-added one, and it can be defined as a form of qualified craftsmanship. Likewise, it seems to be a better-paid service than others. Finally, transcreation is demanded not only by language service providers but also by companies in industries such as marketing, advertising, public relations, and communication.