With the proliferation of the internet and mobile devices, videos have become one of the most effective marketing tools in today's world. Videos can retain the attention of viewers for longer periods, are engaging, and can be used to tap into a wider audience base. Marketing videos can be product videos, demo videos, explainer videos, or even customer testimonials.
Though people do love to watch videos on social media websites like Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube, many of the viewers watch them on mute. This is because most people, in this fast-paced world, watch them in public spaces, like when commuting or resting in a park. This makes watching videos with sound a tad uncomfortable. This is where subtitles come in. Using subtitles in marketing videos has numerous advantages. Some of them include:
Create a smooth and coherent viewing experience
Increased engagement is one of the biggest benefits of incorporating subtitles into marketing videos. Videos with subtitles typically attract more viewers compared to videos without subtitles. In fact, studies have shown that on social media websites, videos with subtitles have better chances of getting more views, comments, and likes. This is because many people scroll through such videos while doing other tasks like working or studying. They may also be commuting or sitting in a crowded park while scrolling through the videos. So, they may keep the video on mute to avoid intrusion. But without subtitles, a mute video will make no sense. So, such users may not watch your video without subtitles. Ultimately, subtitled videos give your company a competitive advantage over your competitors and draw in your potential customers.
Videos become inclusive
Adding subtitles is also a great way to make your videos accessible to people who are deaf or have hearing impairments. There are around 28 million people in America who have some form of hearing disability. Adding subtitles to your marketing video will have a huge impact on your audience base. Making marketing videos inclusive will paint your brand in a better light amongst the audience. It will show the audience that your company is empathetic and willing to cater to the needs of all kinds of people. It also increases the visibility of the brand.
Improve comprehension
Since most people watch videos while commuting or doing other work, there is always a chance of miscommunication or decreased comprehension. People may not have paid attention to what the speaker was saying when they scrolled mindlessly through the videos. But having subtitles will easily grab their attention, and they will be able to read whatever they may have missed hearing. Also, viewers tend to remember concepts or ideas presented in videos better than in other forms of information sharing, like documents. Adding subtitles along with the videos will make them even more memorable, remaining in the minds of the viewers for a long time.
Can attract multitaskers
Multitasking has become the norm in the modern world. The newer generation now does a lot of things at the same time, like chatting with friends, listening to music, and scrolling through social media all at the same time. One major effect of this multitasking is decreased concentration. So, the video needs to be extremely engaging and attention-grabbing to catch the fancy of the younger generation. While a video with unique content can grab eyeballs, adding a caption to it will be like a cherry on top. Videos with subtitles will help such multitasking viewers focus their attention on the video and comprehend what is being shown.
Can help gain a global audience
English is a very common language spoken by a lot of people across the world. But it also has a number of different regional accents that may decrease the level of comprehension when spoken. Adding subtitles to videos will help you attract the attention of people who understand English but have difficulty following the accent used in the video. If you are targeting an audience that does not understand English, you can add subtitles in the target language and still keep the video in English. This will enhance the overall experience of the viewer.
Advantageous for SEO
SEO plays a big role in improving the online presence of your brand and its visibility. SEO also helps you increase the organic traffic to your website, which in turn can lead to conversions. The SEO efforts required for marketing videos are a bit different from general SEO strategies. Adding subtitles is a great way to improve the SEO of your video. Your video cannot be viewed by search engines. However, crawlers can analyze and assess the text files, including subtitles. So, they can quickly index the captions or subtitles of your video and look for significant keywords to rank it. Consequently, adding subtitles increases your likelihood of ranking better.
Beneficial for engagement metrics
Your marketing video's ability to engage viewers directly affects how well it performs in search results. A video that performs better receives more clicks, and has a lower bounce rate will undoubtedly rank higher compared to other similar videos. Including subtitles in marketing videos can significantly increase viewer engagement. Having relevant keywords in subtitles will help you better match user inquiries. Your videos will have a reduced bounce rate if they provide the information the viewer is seeking. Subtitled videos can also generate curiosity in the minds of people and further improve engagement metrics.
Studies have shown that closed subtitles increase views and watch time by around 12%. It is also important to use relevant keywords when making subtitles for your marketing videos. You can also place your marketing videos on popular web pages like landing pages, home pages, or even blogs to get a better ranking.
It is not particularly difficult to add subtitles to marketing videos. It simply takes some time, patience, and a bit of effort. Adding subtitles to marketing videos will improve accessibility, increase engagement, and even boost SEO. Consistently posting unique content with subtitles will also help you build a loyal community of viewers.
