How Translating Audio Transcriptions Can Boost Your ROI
The continued rise of online video marketing over the last several years means there has also been an increase in need for audio transcription services.
Transcribing the audio for your company’s videos has several benefits, both internally for your company’s records and future projects, as well as externally, as you continue to grow your online presence.
Translating audio transcriptions adds another layer of benefit for your company, allowing you to reach a more diverse audience across multiple platforms.
Here are a few ways translating your audio transcriptions can boost your organization’s ROI.
What is audio transcription and how would you use it?
Audio transcription is the process of converting the speech in any audio or video file into written text.
This process can be done for any type of media that contains audio. Some examples include:
– The speech your CEO gave at a national conference
– Meeting notes
– The subtitles/closed captions you add to your marketing videos
– A rendering of what you covered in a podcast
The possibilities for audio transcription are endless, and they can vary depending on what your company’s specific needs and goals are.
These transcriptions can be used internally if you need to send meeting notes to someone who was out of office, or if you would like to file the speech away and utilize the written text as a base for future company communications, blog posts, podcasts, advertisements, etc.
They can also be utilized externally by uploading the written text of video subtitles or the full transcription of your podcast online so it is more easily discoverable to those searching for information on the topics you’re covering.
How a professional transcription and translation service can boost your ROI
One of the most effective ways to expand on your audio or video content’s reach is to utilize subtitles and/or closed captioning.
English-language closed captions are helpful for many users, not only for those who are hearing impaired.
If, for example, someone wants to watch your video while in a public setting where they can’t turn up the volume, closed captions allow the user to continue watching the video while it is muted. Without closed captions, this user would have to click away, reducing your video’s impact/reach.
Many people also prefer to have captions available in case they misunderstand a word when listening.
In fact, people are more likely to watch your video from start to finish if captions are available!
Subtitles provide a similar benefit. If the video’s audio is only available in English, but the user has the ability to add subtitles in their native language, you increase your ability to reach a whole new audience.
Captions and subtitles are a great way to help a user find your video content when paired with a multilingual SEO strategy (more on that below!).
Because captions and subtitles are something a search engine can “read,” videos with these features are more likely to come up in search engine results.
The same can be said for podcasts. Podcasts that provide value are a great way to reach new audiences, but search engines can’t find your podcasts if you don’t include text that the search engine can utilize to find them.
Transcriptions are a great way to do this. And if the transcription is translated, your audience reach will expand even more. Even if the podcast audio is not available in another language, having the transcription available for users to review will help drive traffic to your site.
Not only will your content be more discoverable by utilizing transcriptions and translations, but it also allows for more traffic and sharing potential. These transcriptions and translations give users the opportunity to share on more channels if it is also available in text form, which results in even more visibility for your brand.
More visibility means more potential customers and more growth for your brand as you expand your audience. This reach can help increase the ROI you see when investing in transcription and translation.
Automated machine transcription versus professional transcription services
When it comes to producing audio transcriptions, there are many different options available.
Transcription software allows you to upload your audio or video file and receive a written transcript of the file quickly and automatically. Some of these software options will even translate the text into the language of your choice automatically.
As appealing as this seems, there is definite risk associated with using automated transcription software.
Some audio is difficult for a machine to decipher, so you are more likely to end up with a final text with various errors throughout. It will also have a more difficult time determining where to place proper punctuation than a human counterpart would, thus increasing the likelihood that the transcription may be difficult to read or comprehend.
And even if the English transcription is flawless, the automatic translations it produces will almost certainly be mediocre at best.
Erroneous translations resulting from machine translation can seriously damage your brand’s reputation with those who speak the target language. Not only that, but if an error is serious enough, it could land your company is legal trouble.
Professional transcription services leverage qualified experts who are able to ensure your audio transcriptions are accurate and authentic.
A qualified translation team can then handle translating the audio transcriptions into your requested languages so you can rest easy, knowing that your content is accurate and authentic in all languages.
Many times, working with a professional translation agency can serve as a one-stop shop for requesting both the original audio transcription, as well as the translation in as many languages as you need.
Since you are far less likely to encounter an error in your transcriptions this way, your brand reputation will not be impacted negatively by the quality of the transcriptions you produce.
Tips for making sure your translated transcriptions reach your multilingual customers
Investing in a quality, professional transcription and translation of your audio and video files will go a long way when it comes to reaching multilingual audiences. However, it isn’t the only step you need to really connect with this audience online.
Plan your multilingual SEO strategy to really ensure you are reaching the right target audience.
Multilingual SEO covers both translating content into other languages and optimizing that content in such a way that it drives search traffic in those other languages. Developing a multilingual SEO strategy for your translated content is what helps customers find your content.
After all, what good is translated content if no one in your target market can find it?
Use keywords in the text surrounding your audio and video options that your foreign-language consumers will likely use in their search terms, including terms they may use in a voice search.
Ideally, host this content on a version of your website that has been translated for maximum audience reach. This way, it is easy for your viewers to navigate your website once the search engine has taken them to your content.
If you have not yet translated your website but have created media with captions or transcripts in languages other than English, we recommend looking into ways to begin translating your website in a budget-friendly way. This will help you long-term as you continue to provide foreign-language content.
Continuing to focus on ways to expand your visibility and reach using audio and video marketing is a great way to grow your business in 2021. Translating your audio transcriptions can help you achieve this goal, and ATS is here to help when you decide to take that important step.