An effective multimedia campaign has certain prerequisites that need to be fulfilled. One of these is videos that suit the customer base that you are trying to target. Video Localization makes sure that the videos you promote are suitable for the customer base, and resonate with the culture of the country that you are trying to target. Video localization is an effective tool that, when used properly, can result in a significant increase in sales and response. There are many ways to localize a video, but before we get into those, we’ll first discuss why localization is important.

Why is video localization important?

Video localization might seem like a lot of work. Wouldn’t it be better to make a new video from scratch, one that fits the new locale perfectly? In some cases that might be true but the problems with making a whole new video are many. The first is the time that it can take to organize the whole shoot. Hiring actors, producers, directors, a camera team, etc. can take a lot of time. If you’re going for immediate results, then you should think about localization.

The budget factor is also one that needs to be considered. It can cost a lot of money arranging a new shoot, whereas if you just localize a preexisting video, you can save a lot of your budget and spend it on more important facets like marketing or research.

How can you localize multimedia?

Multimedia localization can be achieved in a variety of ways. These ways differ in many ways, but there are three main factors that differ between them. These three factors are:

  • Time spent on localization
  • Budget spent on localization
  • The overall response from the localization

These three factors are important when considering video localization because they will ultimately determine which technique you will opt for when you localize any form of multimedia. The major ways that multimedia can be localized through are:

  • Translating
  • Dubbing
  • Transcribing

Translating:

Translation services are mainly done through subtitles. To better explain all the ways you can localize videos we will take an example. Let’s consider your company is of American origin and you want to spread to Mexico. The languages in this example will obviously be English and Spanish. Let’s suppose that you make a video in America and it is completely in English. When you go about localizing it for Mexico, you can translate English into Spanish and present the translation as subtitles. This way you can keep the original audio and just include words at the bottom of the screen.

In this process, you will need two key people. The first will be a translator, one that is proficient in both English and Spanish. It is highly inadvisable to use Google Translate for the actual audio because each language’s grammar structure works differently and directly translating audio can have disastrous consequences. In matters of languages, it is best to stick to a professional, one that you can trust to do the job well. If the translation is done unprofessionally, it can have a severe negative impact on your company. It can make people’s view of your company negative very easily.

The second person that you will need is a video editor that can put in subtitles correctly. That includes deciding on visible text colors, appropriate placements, and correct syncing. Subtitling a video is not as easy as it seems and is not a job that should be taken lightly. If you are looking for the best results, then you need a professional editor to get the job done right. Subtitling is usually reserved for places in which the original language is still understood, but the native language can make things clearer. It can also show the people that you respect their native language and want to make sure that it is given due credit. Subtitling is useless in cases where the original language is not understood, or if most of the target audience cannot read. That may not seem like a big problem, but if you plan to expand to developing countries, then you need to keep the literacy rate in mind. In places such as Pakistan and Nepal, the literacy rate is lower than the world’s average. Pakistan’s literacy rate is about 68% whereas Nepal’s is 66%. That factor can really affect how well your localization campaign does.

Dubbing:

Dubbing is a very common tool that is most often used incorrectly. As a rule of thumb, dubbing should only be reserved if you are 100% sure that it is the way to go. Dubbing involves recording new audio and replacing it with the original audio. It can go a long way if translating or transcribing is not suitable, but it should be done carefully. Correct syncing is just as important as the actual audio itself. For this to be effective, you will need professional voice talent as well as a decent editor that can transpose the new audio over the original flawlessly.

Transcribing:

Transcribing is when you take the original audio, put it to written words and include it in the video with the original audio. Transcribing is useful when the country understands the original language but would find it useful if it was written instead of spoken. This way is useful if your country has an accent that is hard to understand by non-native speakers. For example, if you bring the Australian accent to a country such as Spain, it will be hard to understand. However, if you just include the transcription, it can be understood by more people, and thus your message can be made clearer.

Who should use Video Localization?

There are many industries that can benefit from video localization. It is most effective if you are going from one developed country into another one. The industries that can benefit most from video localization are the Food & Drink Industry, Telecom Industry, Automobile Industry, and a myriad of others. If your company relies on technology to advertise, and you wish to save the budget spent on making new videos, then localization is for you.

We, at Ulatus, can assist you to execute your localization plan. We can help you with video messages to shareholders, important clients, or your entire client base. Having catered to over 200,000 clients from 125 countries and ensuring a 99.45% customer satisfaction score, we can guarantee high-quality translation with fast turnaround and can customize the localization to your target audience.

Ulatus is ready to assist you with all of your localization needs and ensure that your content can reach anyone, in any language.

If you’re interested in growing your business and building a global customer base, get in touch with Ulatus.