So someone in the marketing department speaks isiZulu, isiXhosa, Sesotho or any South African language, so the assumption is that they can simply translate the campaign.
But South Africa’s multilingual market demands more than a word-for-word conversion from English.
With the country’s official languages now including 12 languages, including South African Sign Language, language is an important part of how brands communicate with diverse audiences.
Advert translation requires an understanding of context, culture, tone, humour, idioms, consumer behaviour and the original campaign objective/s.
A pay-off line that works brilliantly in English may sound unnatural, overly formal or completely lose its intended meaning when translated literally.
Sometimes the best translation isn't the closest translation; it is the one that makes the consumer feel that the campaign was created for them, rather than translated for them.
Passing a translated script around internally to “the person who speaks the language” may seem like a cost-saving exercise.
But what happens when the person understands the language but does not understand Vernac advertising copywriting?
What happens when the translated line technically makes sense but doesn't sound conversational? Or when a culturally sensitive expression is used incorrectly?
The risk isn't simply a grammatical mistake. It can affect brand credibility, consumer trust and the effectiveness of the entire campaign.
Research into South African advertising has long highlighted the importance of moving beyond simply translating English advertising, with cultural nuances and the way communities actually communicate being critical to the impact of vernacular advertising.
That is why professional translation should not be treated as the final step in the production process.
The best results happen when translators and language specialists are brought into the creative process early.
They need to understand the campaign's objective, target market, key message, desired consumer action and brand personality before they begin working on the language.
I believe South African language translation should be part of the creative journey — not an afterthought.
Because your brand deserves more than a translation that is technically correct.
It deserves a message that sounds right, feels right and connects.
