Overview
This article explains how to use manual and AI-powered translations within Knak. If you use Smartling or TransPerfect for translation, refer to the dedicated help articles instead:
Translation Process Demo
Translation Options in Knak
You can translate assets using:
AI Translation (Knak Translations)
Manual Translation
Connected Integrations (TransPerfect or Smartling)
Each method has benefits depending on your goals.
Pros and Cons of Each Method
Translation Type | Pros | Cons |
AI Translation | Fast. Easy to scale. Ideal for early-stage reviews. | May require proofreading. Not ideal for complex nuance. |
Manual Translation | More accurate. Captures tone and context better. | Slower. May require coordination with external teams. |
**Third-party Tools - |
|
|
Transperfect or Smartling** | More robust translation solutions for business-critical content. | Dependent on integration setup and sync cycles. |
How to start the Translation Process
Important note: If your asset contains module variations and it's not a locked module, all the variations including the ones that are toggled "off" will also get translated.
Navigate over to the translate tab in the builder.
Click Use Knak Translations to use Manual or AI translations.
Select your source language for your asset then press Continue.
Select the language(s) you would like to have your asset translated to.
In the Source Selection step, choose Manual Translation or AI Translation.
After selecting, press the confirmation button and the status for AI Translations will change to Translations Requested for the variants, and manually translated Variants will display the status Manually Translating.
When translations are completed, the status for the AI Translated variants will change to Completed. You’ll receive a confirmation notification in Knak.
If enabled, you’ll also get email notifications and Slack notifications.For manual translations, the status doesn’t automatically mark as completed.
Instead, the status updates based on the Approval or Review workflow in Knak. If changes are requested or the asset is approved, the translation status reflects that.
Managing Translation Variants - Updating Out of Date Variants
Translation variants have a parent-child relationship - if a design element is changed in the parent, you can push the changes down to the child. This mean less manual updating between variants for you - and that you can make design changes in the email and it will flow to the all the language variants.
The Update Out of Date Variants button will:
Add new elements
Update changed elements
Remove deleted ones
Note: You must resend translations for updated or new text blocks.
Troubleshooting & FAQs
Merge Tag Errors in Translations
Use the text editor’s dropdown to insert merge tags.
Do not paste tags manually—they may not be recognized correctly by the translation engine.
Unassigned Dynamic Content
You may see unassigned dynamic content after pushing changes. This happens because:
Local segments are specific to each email.
Pushed content updates the text, not the segments.
Solutions:
Create and assign new segments in the translated email.
Use global segments for reusable conditions.
What Gets Translated in Knak AI
✅ Translated Content
Text in content blocks
Email subject lines
Preview text
From name in email settings
Image alt text
Meta descriptions
❌ Not Translated
Technical elements:
Custom HTML, CSS, merge fields
Tracking codes
Asset/system IDs
Form elements:
Form embeds
Thank-you page URLs
Form settings
Email settings:
From/reply-to addresses
Folder names, campaigns, schedule
Design elements:
Layout, colors, fonts, images
Button styling (text is translated)
Need more help? Contact support via live chat within Knak using the chat bubble in the bottom right corner or email support@knak.com