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fevereiro 25, 2020 |

Top 7 Best Practices For Video Translation 

Are you planning to use video content to capture and retain the attention of an international audience? Then, you’ll have to integrate video translation services into your workflow, as well. The only thing better than video content is a localized video that connects with people in a language they’re used to speaking.

You’re probably aware of how useful this marketing tool is. As much as 88 percent of video marketers state that video content generates positive ROI. From Facebook and YouTube to LinkedIn and Twitter, almost any channel today supports this type of content. You can use visual content for marketing videos, product videos, tutorials, and pretty much everything in between! 

When you also translate your content correctly, you increase your chances of higher engagement whether you share videos on social media or directly on your website. 

Here are some video translation best practices that can help you and your translators make better videos in foreign languages.  

1. Create Content with Your Global Audience in Mind

Creating videos for multilingual audiences requires a cross-cultural approach. Start with building international buyer personas of your ideal clients who are going to watch the videos. This way, you know who to target with the content, and it becomes easier to communicate with your public. 

As a guideline, you should eliminate cultural references. This includes most metaphors, idioms, comments on religious topics, or talk of sports that aren’t popular in the target regions. Also, try to exclude any information from your video that could change from country to country for any reason. 

Last but not least, the video transcripts and footage should be simple to facilitate understanding and translation. Scripts by nature contain a smaller number of words than blog posts, so try to keep the word count down. 

Also, note that sophisticated words won’t make your brand look smart. Instead, they’ll turn your translation into a nightmare for linguists. And that often ends with an incorrectly translated version of your content. 

2. Subtitling vs Dubbing in Video Translation

There’s no right or wrong choice when it comes to choosing between subtitling and dubbing for translated videos. Most probably, you’ll use them both, as international customers have different preferences, depending on the languages they speak. 

For instance, Italians prefer dubbing, while the Portuguese are fond of subtitles. It’s a matter of culture and habit, and the smart way is to adapt to the local norms the best way you can. Professional companies that provide localization services can help you decide on the right approach. 

What matters is to keep standards high for sound quality and the voiceover, so you should always hire native speakers for the job. If the narrator is annoying or hard to follow, not only will people stop watching your video, but they might decide they don’t like your brand at all. Up to 75 percent of buyers reject a product due to the video voiceover, so make sure you choose the right one. 

3. Keep the Bottom of the Frame Free From Text

As a general rule of the video global market, most people prefer subtitling to dubbing. So, even if you hire voiceovers for the first steps of video localization, you’ll have to use subtitles sooner or later. 

For this reason, you shouldn’t add text to the bottom of the screen. This way, if you want to add subtitles, people can see everything in the video without any distractions. 

Place important visuals and any text in the first two-thirds of the screen for maximum visibility.

4. Allow People to Read Subtitles

Another best practice in a video translation project is to keep a slow rate of speech when recording the voiceover. This way, you leave enough time for foreign viewers to keep up with the subtitles. 

Ideally, your voiceover shouldn’t say, on average, more than 190 words in a minute. It may seem like too few, but remember that video content also relies on visuals to tell the story. 

Not only does a slower narrative enable people to read subtitles, but it also helps people to understand and appreciate your message. Fewer words make communication more explicit, which is also helpful for translators. 

5. Always Provide Metadata for Translation

You shouldn’t forget about providing the language service provider with guidelines for translating metadata. In video translation, all these details need to be localized to increase the visibility of your content online.

In other words, when you publish your translated videos on various platforms, you’ll need localized titles, descriptions, and tags for each target language. So, make sure your translators receive the original metadata, together with a series of local keywords that perform well in the markets that you target.

6. Never Ignore Cultural Differences

Cultural sensitivities are more visible in videos than in plain text, so make sure the footage doesn’t offend any target audience. Unfortunately, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when you create video content for multinational audiences. It mostly depends on your industry and the type of products and services you sell. 

“Neutral” images rarely capture attention. On the other hand, if you’re too bold, you’ll have to change the footage every time you want to use the video in a new market. When planning your video content strategy, try to involve people from more countries in the creative process. This way, you can find a balance between your brand voice and the local public’s expectations. 

7. Separate Your Content

When translating video content, you need to curate a series of technical details that help translators work better and meet deadlines. Besides the original video, translators also need context and access to a series of files. 

First, you need to send voice and music tracks separately, to make it easier for the language service provider to edit a new translated version of your video. Then, make sure you make all the video files and editable images available, together with an accurate script and a file with the on-screen text that needs to be translated. 

If you’re organized, the video localization project will be a breeze. Language experts will get all the content they need in time, and you won’t have to deal with lost files and missed deadlines. 

Final Thoughts

Successful video localization allows you to publish your most engaging content simultaneously in more countries and reach a broader audience. It can help you increase brand awareness, boost conversion rates, and improve revenue. 

The key to success is to have a reliable partner for such a project. A professional language service provider can help you translate and localize your videos in tune with what your clients need. Over time, you’ll see improved ROI and a better relationship with your local clients.