Video translation is creating subtitles, translated voiceovers, or dubbed audio for your existing videos. This also includes translating any on-screen text that may appear in the video.
Video translation requires careful planning. Using neutral language and avoiding slang or cultural references will help ensure the final product is accurate.
1. It Increases Engagement
When you translate video, it makes it easier for your customers or employees to understand what you’re promoting, helping them build trust and convert. It can also help you stand out by removing communication barriers.
A professional translator knows how to keep the meaning of your original video in the translation and adapt it for your new audience. They can even work with voice actors to provide the best possible result. They can consider regional nuances, cultural references, and idioms to create natural-sounding and clear audio.
Subtitles can increase a video’s viewing time by 40% and are an important part of your SEO strategy. However, the subtitles must be properly transcribed and timestamped to sync with your footage. It is also important to avoid wordy text, as this can confuse and mislead your audience. It is best to use simple sentences and avoid idiomatic expressions, as these can be interpreted differently.
It would help if you also considered whether your videos contain visuals, as these may need to be translated. This is especially important for videos with complex graphics and diagrams and if you have any locations or cultures requiring specific graphic elements. Create a knowledge base of terms and phrases used throughout your videos, making the translation process more efficient.
2. It Increases Conversions
Whether it’s a step-by-step instructional video, a brand awareness campaign, or a high-impact product demonstration, videos are the most effective way to engage and inform audiences. And while many businesses generate video content in English, reaching a global audience requires translation and localization.
Video translation aims to convey your message across language barriers without losing the meaning and impact behind the original audio recording. To do so, the video must be designed with subtitles in mind: this includes properly pacing the speaker to allow for short pauses for text, ensuring enough screen space for the translation to appear, and coordinating the timing of on-screen text and a translated voice track.
While it may seem simple, planning for video translation requires time and attention to ensure a quality result. This is especially important when working with professional translators who can provide feedback throughout the process, ensuring the final product meets your expectations and is culturally appropriate for your target audiences.
In addition, a good translator can help you avoid common mistakes in video translation that could negatively affect search engine rankings or hurt your brand reputation. A few wrong words in a video translation can seriously impact your website traffic and conversions.
3. It Increases Search Engine Optimization
Visual media is highly shareable in this digital age, and videos are especially effective. In fact, according to research from Polymedia, adding subtitles or transcriptions to your video content boosts engagement by up to 40%! Additionally, embedding translated videos on your website improves SEO by ensuring your content is crawled and indexed by search engines in multiple languages.
Despite the popularity of videos, many businesses need to make their content available in English to take advantage of their potential reach. By taking the time to translate your videos, you can expand your sphere of influence to new international markets and increase your overall number of views.
A well-localized video reaches local audiences as effectively as an original piece of content, and it can help you build trust with customers. By removing language barriers, you can connect with your audience emotionally, leading to increased customer satisfaction and sales.
When working with a professional translation agency to translate your video, ensure the translators are native speakers of the target language and have expertise in your business sector. Using a service can yield inaccurate results, and even just one mistake can negatively affect your search rankings and brand image.
A professional can ensure that your video translation is accurate and will capture the nuances of the local spoken language to help you rank higher in international searches.
4. It Increases Social Media Engagement
Embedding video translation into your website is the next step in expanding your business’s digital reach and boosting global sales. Your videos can help you rank higher in search engine results, attracting more visitors to your website without additional content creation. This can be especially effective if you target Latin American and EMEA markets, the two largest video consumption regions in the world.
The best way to ensure your video content is translation-ready is by establishing clear goals and working with an experienced language service provider. They can provide feedback throughout the creative process, saving you time and money in the long run. They will also know how to leverage VSEO tactics best to ensure your videos are discoverable in different languages.
As the world becomes more diverse and a single market is no longer enough to drive a brand’s growth, video translation is essential to any marketing strategy. Reaching new international audiences through localized videos is a powerful way to increase engagement and foster brand loyalty.
Using simple sentences in your video scripts can help make it easier for translators to preserve the tone of voice and the meaning behind your on-screen text. Avoiding slang and cultural references will also help you create a more universal message that will resonate with your audience across the globe.
