Writing · Free lesson
Marketing English: write a clear localization brief
“Make it sound local” leaves a translator guessing about the limits. A useful brief names the audience, the flexible wording and the facts that must stay.
Professor Scott MendozaThe short answer
“Please adapt the headline for customers in Spain. Keep the 15% discount and November 30 end date unchanged.” This gives freedom over wording without changing the offer.
Adapt the expression; preserve the specified meaning.
Keep X unchanged means X must remain the same. Feel free to adapt Y gives permission to change Y within the brief. Localization can include wording and date formats; changing how a date is written does not change which day the offer ends. In this fictional brief, 15% and November 30 are fixed. Ask the translator to flag any proposed change to those facts.
Compare the examples
Please adapt the headline for customers in Spain.
Keep the 15% discount and November 30 end date unchanged.
Feel free to adapt the wording, but flag any change to the offer’s meaning.
Adapt is not permission to invent a larger discount or a later deadline. Unchanged applies to the named facts, not necessarily every word.
Build the meaning step by step
Name the audience
for customers in Spain
Protect the facts
keep the discount and end date unchanged
Allow useful adaptation
feel free to adapt the headline wording
Try it now
Check the brief
Read all answers and explanations
What does keep the discount unchanged require?
Use the same discount amount.The fixed item is the discount, not all the wording.
Which change fits the supplied brief?
Rewrite the headline naturally while keeping the offer facts.Wording is flexible; the discount and actual end date are fixed.
Does writing November 30 as 30 de noviembre change the actual date?
No, it changes the presentation, not the day.Both name the same day. A local date format can preserve the fixed fact.
Put it into practice
Improve the translator’s brief
Ask the translator to adapt the headline naturally for customers in Spain. Keep the 15% discount and November 30 end date.
Make this offer sound local.
See a model answer
Please adapt the headline for customers in Spain. Keep the 15% discount and November 30 end date unchanged.
Clear constraints let the translator improve the expression while preserving the offer.
A little more clarity
Common questions
A few useful details before you move on.
Does unchanged require a literal translation?
Not here. It applies to the named discount and date. The brief explicitly allows the headline wording to change.
Keep the discount unchanged; adapt the headline wording.
What does flag a change mean?
Draw attention to it so it can be discussed, rather than silently making it.
Please flag any change to the offer’s meaning.
Take it into your day
Name both what can change and what must stay.
English for Careers · Coming Soon
Practice English for marketing teamwork.
English for Digital Marketers: Career Simulation is coming soon. Its planned work scenarios include audience research, content, campaign coordination and reporting. Sign up on the course page for its launch news.
Get launch updatesDigital Marketers · Career Simulation
Your next step · Available on Udemy
Strengthen your English foundations.
The available English Grammar and English Speaking Master Course develops broader grammar, sentence-building and communication foundations. Clear requests and conditions help you write usable briefs.
Explore the course English Master Course: English Grammar and English Speaking