Your questions.

Fifty questions I get asked by Swiss brands, agencies and founders, answered without jargon. If yours is missing, write to me.

01Transcreation

What is transcreation?

Transcreation is the creative adaptation of a message from one language and culture to another. The words can change completely; what stays is the effect on the reader. It is the craft behind slogans, campaign headlines, website copy and brand voices that work in German, French and English without sounding translated.

What is the difference between translation and transcreation?

A translation carries the words across and stays faithful to the sentence. A transcreation carries the intention across and stays faithful to the reaction. For a contract you need translation. For a claim, a landing page or a campaign you need transcreation, because a line that convinces in Zurich can fall flat in Lausanne or London.

When do I need transcreation rather than translation?

Whenever the text has to persuade, not only inform: slogans, taglines, headlines, ads, social posts, product names, website hero sections, email campaigns and brand manifestos. Technical manuals, legal texts and most internal documents are fine with a good translation.

Is transcreation the same as localisation?

They overlap but are not the same. Localisation adapts the practical layer: currency, date formats, legal mentions, units, images. Transcreation adapts the creative layer: tone, wordplay, cultural references, rhythm. A Swiss launch usually needs both, and I handle them together so the result reads as one piece.

Can you transcreate a slogan or a brand name?

Yes, and it is the most delicate part of the job. I deliver several options per language, each with a short rationale and a back-translation so you can judge them even if you do not speak the language. I also check that a name or claim has no unwanted meaning in the other national languages.

Do you also write original copy, not only adaptations?

Yes. Many projects start from a brief rather than an existing text: a new website, a campaign, a brand voice. I write in French, German or English first, then build the other versions in parallel so none of them is a second-class copy of the original.

Can you work from a German source into French and English at the same time?

That is my most common setup. Working from one source into two targets at once keeps the three versions aligned on message and structure, which is exactly what a trilingual Swiss website or campaign needs.

What do I receive at the end of a transcreation project?

A clean document per language, ready to paste into your CMS or layout, with alternatives where a line could go two ways, notes on cultural choices, and a short style guide so your team can keep the voice consistent after the project.

02Languages and Switzerland

Which languages do you work in?

French, German and English. I write directly in all three; I do not translate my own text from one into the others. For Italian I work with a trusted partner and keep the art direction and the brief consistent across the four languages.

Do you write Swiss German or standard German?

Written content is in Swiss Standard German, the written norm used by Swiss companies and media: no ß, Swiss spelling and vocabulary. Swiss German dialect is for spoken formats, and I can advise on when a dialect touch in a campaign helps and when it alienates.

Do you adapt messages for Romandie specifically?

Yes, and it is one of the reasons clients call me. A tone that persuades in German-speaking Switzerland can read as cold in Geneva or Lausanne. Romandie audiences expect more nuance, imagery and warmth. I write French for Switzerland, not Paris French with a Swiss flag on it.

Should a Swiss website be in three languages?

It depends on where your customers are, not on the national flag. A business selling across the country benefits from DE and FR at least; EN matters for international staff, expats and B2B. I help you decide which languages earn their place and in which order to launch them.

Should I use British or American English for Switzerland?

For a Swiss company, British spelling is the safer default: it matches most Swiss and European corporate communication. American English makes sense if your main market is the United States. The important thing is to pick one and stay consistent, which is part of the style guide I deliver.

Which language should be the default on a Swiss website?

Usually the language of your main market, with automatic detection of the visitor's browser language and a clear switcher. On this site, for example, each language has its own address, which also lets Google index the three versions separately.

Can you check a text that was already translated?

Yes. A review of an existing translation is a quick and effective way to fix the most visible problems: literal phrasing, wrong register, broken headlines. I return a marked-up version with the reasoning, so you learn what to brief differently next time.

03Websites and multilingual design

How much does a website cost in Switzerland?

A Swiss agency website typically starts around CHF 10,000 and goes well beyond CHF 30,000 for larger projects. Working directly with me, a trilingual site for a small company usually lands between CHF 6,000 and CHF 15,000, depending on the number of pages, the content work and whether photography or illustration is needed. I quote a flat fee after a first call.

How long does it take to build a multilingual website?

Count six to ten weeks from brief to launch for a trilingual site of five to ten pages. Most of the time goes into the content: writing it once well in the lead language, then building the two other versions. Design and development run in parallel once the structure is set.

Why does the layout change when the language changes?

The same sentence often takes thirty percent more space in German than in English, and French runs longer too. Buttons, headlines and menus that look perfect in one language break in another. I design the grid for the longest language from the first mockup, so nothing has to be patched after launch.

Do you redesign existing websites?

Yes. I have delivered more than one hundred website redesigns for Swiss SMEs. A redesign keeps what works, such as rankings and content that converts, and rebuilds the structure, the visual language and the copy around it.

Which platform do you build websites on?

The one that fits your team. For small sites that need to be fast and easy to maintain I favour lightweight static builds; for sites with frequent editorial updates I work with content management systems your team already knows. I do not force a platform on you to sell a licence.

Do you handle SEO for multilingual websites?

Yes, as part of the structure: one address per language, correct language tags, titles and descriptions written for each market rather than translated, and content that answers what people actually search for in German, French and English. SEO is built into the site, not added afterwards.

Can you prepare the content for my website, not only the design?

That is usually the best way to work with me. A site designed around real text, in all its languages, looks and converts better than a template filled afterwards. I write, structure and art direct the content as one job.

04Brand and art direction

What is communication design?

Communication design is the discipline that makes a message clear and memorable across words, images and formats: identity, website, campaign, print, motion. It sits between graphic design and strategy. In my practice it always includes the verbal side, because a brand is also what it sounds like.

What is a verbal identity?

A verbal identity is the voice of your brand: the vocabulary you use and avoid, the tone, the way you greet, explain and sign off, in each language. It lives in a short guide and makes every text, from website to invoice, sound like the same company.

Do you create logos and complete brand identities?

Yes. Logo, colour and typography system, image style, verbal identity and the guidelines that go with them. I work with a strict, high-contrast aesthetic and a small circle of trusted partners for photography, illustration and motion when the project calls for them.

What is art direction, and do I need it?

Art direction is the set of visual decisions that keep a brand coherent: which images, which typography, which rhythm, across every touchpoint. You need it as soon as more than one person produces content for your brand, which is almost always the case.

Can you adapt an existing brand for a new language market?

Yes, that is visual transcreation: keeping the identity and adjusting what does not travel, such as imagery, colour connotations, typography that does not support accents, and of course the copy. The brand stays recognisable and starts feeling local.

Do you work with agencies as a freelance art director or copywriter?

Yes. Agencies bring me in for Swiss market adaptations, trilingual campaigns and art direction on projects where the language layer matters. I can work in your tools and under your brand, on site in Zurich, Fribourg or Basel, or remotely.

05Process and collaboration

How does a project with you start?

With a conversation, in person or online, to understand your brand, your audience and what success looks like. Then you receive a written proposal with scope, steps, timeline and a flat fee. We start once it is signed.

What does a typical project look like, step by step?

Diagnosis of your message and material, contrasting creative directions with their reasoning, your choice, then production of the content and design in all languages, integration into your materials, and a sign-off round before anything goes live.

What do you need from me to start?

Your existing material, even imperfect: website, brochures, presentations, the texts you like and the ones you do not. A short conversation about your customers. And one decision maker who can say yes within a few days.

Can you work with my in-house team or my existing agency?

Yes, and it is often the most efficient setup. I take the language and art direction part, your team or agency keeps development, media or production. Clear roles are agreed in the proposal.

How many revision rounds are included?

Two rounds per deliverable are included in every flat fee, which is enough for almost every project when the brief is clear. Additional rounds are billed at the hourly rate, and I tell you before they start.

Do you work remotely or on site?

Both. I am based in Zurich and regularly on site in Fribourg and Basel. For the rest of Switzerland and abroad I work remotely with short video calls at the key moments: brief, direction choice, sign-off.

Who owns the rights to the work?

You do, once the invoice is paid. All texts, designs and files created for your project are transferred to you for unlimited use. I only keep the right to show the work in my portfolio, unless we agree otherwise.

06Pricing and timing

How much does transcreation cost?

Transcreation is billed per project or per hour, never per word, because a five-word slogan can take a day and a full page an hour. My hourly rate starts at CHF 190; a short campaign in three languages typically starts around CHF 1,500 and a complete website copy at CHF 4,000. Every project gets a flat quote before it starts.

What are your rates?

Hourly rate from CHF 190, half day from CHF 750, full day from CHF 1,400. Projects are quoted as a flat fee after a first call, so you know the total before you commit.

Why is transcreation more expensive than translation?

Because it is a different job. A translation is produced once from a source; a transcreation is written, tested against the brief, rewritten and argued for, often in several options. You pay for creative work and for a result that performs, not for a word count.

Do you offer flat fees or do you bill by the hour?

Flat fees for projects, hourly or daily rates for ongoing support and on-site work. A flat fee is better for both of us: you control your budget, I can take the time the work needs.

Is there a minimum project size?

No. Some of my most useful work is a half-day review of a website's three language versions. If a question can be solved in two hours, I will tell you so.

How fast can you deliver?

A slogan or a short text in three languages: a few days. A campaign: two to three weeks. A website: six to ten weeks. Urgent work is possible when my calendar allows it, with a surcharge agreed up front.

Do I pay a deposit?

Yes, fifty percent at signature and the balance at delivery for projects; monthly invoicing for ongoing work. Invoices are in CHF, in EUR on request.

07AI and tools

Do you use AI in your work?

Yes, as a tool: to explore directions, to check consistency, to speed up volume work. Every text is then reread, rewritten and approved by me. The creative decisions and the responsibility stay human, and I say so in writing in every proposal.

Why not just use machine translation for my website?

Because machine translation is good at being correct and bad at being convincing. It produces the same sentence in every language and misses the register, the rhythm and the cultural cues that make a Swiss reader trust a brand. Use it for internal documents; do not let it speak for you.

Can you review AI-generated texts?

Yes. It is a growing part of my work: taking a draft produced by a tool and turning it into something a Swiss audience would actually believe, in each language. It is usually faster than starting over and much better than publishing as is.

Do you train or evaluate language models?

I have worked on evaluating and refining large language models for precision and tone, which gives me a clear view of what they do well and where they fail. That experience goes into every project where AI is part of the workflow.

08About Studio Nona

Who is Studio Nona?

Studio Nona is the studio of Nona Fragnière, communication designer and transcreator, based in Zurich. One person, three native working languages, and a small circle of trusted partners. It is not related to other studios with a similar name abroad.

Where are you based, and where do you work?

I am based in Zurich and work on projects in Fribourg, Basel and across Switzerland, as well as remotely for clients abroad who need the Swiss market done right.

What kind of clients do you work with?

Swiss SMEs, cultural institutions, start-ups and agencies that need their message to work in several languages. Past work includes Freitag, Coople, Localsearch, Tutti and Google Street View, as well as smaller brands and ateliers.

How can I contact you?

Through the contact form, by email or on WhatsApp. I answer within one working day, and a first conversation is free and without obligation.