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informelle Ebene

English translation: informative (informational) level

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
German term or phrase:informelle Ebene
English translation:informative (informational) level
Entered by: Beth Jones

12:50 Mar 9, 2008
German to English translations [PRO]
Marketing - Marketing / Market Research / Corporate Design guidelines
German term or phrase: informelle Ebene
I'm translating the CD guidelines for an Austrian company for international use. The German is rather ungrammatical/"salopp" in spots and I tend to think this is one of those cases.

This term is used repeatedly throughout the text and I think (swear) the author is conflating informal and informational. The client wants the project by tomorrow, but has so far blithely ignored my requests for clarification.

CONTEXT (shows a sample page for an advert with the 4 levels & how/where these should be arranged):
"Das XYZ Gestaltungssystem
Das XYZ Gestaltungssystem setzt sich aus 4 wesentlichen Kommunikationsebenen zusammen:
Emotionale Ebene
Mit der emotionalen Ebene wird ein direkter emotionaler Bezug zum Verbraucher hergestellt.
Informelle Ebene
Mit der informellen Ebene werden sachliche Inhalte kommuniziert.
Technische bzw. Produktebene
Hier werden Inhalte illustriert, bzw. veranschaulicht.
Logobalken
Blauer Balken und Logo zeichen das Dokument als eine Publikation der XYZ Group aus.
Zeilenabstand: 12pt
Bild- und Schriftelemente können frei im Raster platziert werden, sollen aber klar erkennbar Inhalten zugeordnet sein...."
Vermaßung angegeben in mm.



No printed or online German or English dictionary I can find anywhere conflates ‘informal’ with ‘informative/informational’ in this fashion -- but isn’t that actually what they mean?
I.e. “Informativ” and not “informell” (which= "informal" = u.a. "Zwanglos") ?

Thanks for any clarification from CD/marketing experts,
Beth
Beth Jones
Austria
Local time: 05:46
information(al) level
Explanation:
I think you are entirely right in thinking that the client meant "informational" and simply got the word wrong. (Is this partly a result, I wonder, of the German tendency to use the short form "info" - add an adjectival ending and you arrive at something not far from "informell").

Your hypothesis is borne out by the definition in the text - "Mit der informellen Ebene werden sachliche Inhalte kommuniziert" - which is quite clearly a definition of "information".

I would have the courage of your convictions and go with a translation conveying "informative/informational" - with a note along the way to the client saying why you have done this.
Selected response from:

Armorel Young
Local time: 04:46
Grading comment
DING!!
Thank you all for playing!
I really appreciate your insights and support. Given all comments and caveats and contexts (& still no word from the client), I've decided to go with the following wording to make the deadline:

"Emotional Level
A direct emotional connection with the consumer is established at the emotional level.

Informative Level
Factual content is communicated at the informative level.

Technical or Product Level
This is where the content is illustrated or depicted."
THANK YOU ALL AGAIN.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +3information(al) level
Armorel Young
3informal level
Erika Berrai-Flynn


Discussion entries: 3





  

Answers


27 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Informelle Ebene
informal level


Explanation:
Siehe Punkt. Formelle/informelle Organisation im ersten Link.


    Reference: http://www.zfu.ch/service/fartikel/fartikel_03_uzk.htm
    Reference: http://www.hs-augsburg.de/~seifart/Orga/Orga_Kapitel_2_Babst...
Erika Berrai-Flynn
United States
Local time: 05:46
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

46 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
Informelle Ebene
information(al) level


Explanation:
I think you are entirely right in thinking that the client meant "informational" and simply got the word wrong. (Is this partly a result, I wonder, of the German tendency to use the short form "info" - add an adjectival ending and you arrive at something not far from "informell").

Your hypothesis is borne out by the definition in the text - "Mit der informellen Ebene werden sachliche Inhalte kommuniziert" - which is quite clearly a definition of "information".

I would have the courage of your convictions and go with a translation conveying "informative/informational" - with a note along the way to the client saying why you have done this.

Armorel Young
Local time: 04:46
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 119
Grading comment
DING!!
Thank you all for playing!
I really appreciate your insights and support. Given all comments and caveats and contexts (& still no word from the client), I've decided to go with the following wording to make the deadline:

"Emotional Level
A direct emotional connection with the consumer is established at the emotional level.

Informative Level
Factual content is communicated at the informative level.

Technical or Product Level
This is where the content is illustrated or depicted."
THANK YOU ALL AGAIN.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  BrigitteHilgner: I wholehearedly agree. Unfortunately I encounter many cases where clients are unable to express themselves correctly in their native language.
11 mins
agree  Steffen Walter: The author meant to refer to the "informationELLE Ebene".
4 hrs
agree  Peter Manda (X): Ja, das scheint ganz gut informeliert gewesen zu sein ...
19 hrs
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