Everyone wants to strive in the global market which is very much possible with the right strategies and practices. Media localization is an extensive process and demands creative professionals to work on it in a way that retains the original intent and charm of the content.
Media localization has emerged as one of the major trends of recent times. Also referred to as audiovisual translation, it is a broad term now and a lot of media categories fall under its umbrella.
Media all across the globe has evolved for the better. Though traditional methods do exist and are accessible to a certain extent, adapting modern practices has become significant to keep up with the advanced world and internet technology.
Media localization deals with the need to adapt the media and audiovisual content according to the linguistic, cultural, and technical requirements of a new region and audience.
Media localization can be taken as a process that deals with the adaptation and modification of a media product which could either be audio, or video content, and making it meet the linguistic, technical, and cultural requirements of a particular region.
It is pretty much understandable that a media product that is well accepted in its home region might need some changes, tailoring, and tweaking for another region and there is a probability that it might not excel that way even after all these modifications. It is an important factor to consider while working on media localization.
Examples may include creative media, social media content, a TV serial, video or radio content, as well as podcasts which are getting quite popular these days.
Media localization has become a broad term due to different meanings, intentions, and a lot of creativity (leading to the creation of different genres involved) in the mainstream media. A few important components that contribute to media localization making it a genie of digital worlds are:
Translation is the foundation of every type of localization, and media localization is no different. Accurate and creative translation is a prerequisite to effective media localization. However, translating the media content can have some of the most difficult challenges to handle.
Dealing with a media product and its translation in a way that it doesn’t lose its charm, intent, and message can be tough and tricky. Therefore, professional translation services play a significant role in maintaining the content’s original tone and a defined style that belongs to that particular media type.
Cultural aspects are primarily important in media localization. Any piece of media whether it’s a reel, video, movie, or a seasonal show, cannot be truly localized without tailoring its content according to the target audience's cultural norms. Cultural variations make regions and nations stand out among others.
Many times how do you deliver and say it carries more weight and significance than what you say? Media adaptation according to the cultural context is vital to make expansion effective. The cultural references might demand tweaking with the relevant punch of humor and visual elements so that they strike the right chord with the audiences and locales should be able to resonate with it better.
All three practices are important components of media localization. Subtitling, dubbing, and voice-over are three imperative pieces of puzzle that complete each other. Localizing media content is particularly challenging due to these factors.
The companies are striving hard to reach wider audiences and masses while working on their social media handles, websites, digital platforms, and mainly YouTube channels. The audio and video content does not work as it is and the makers have to opt for the subtitles and dubbing in relevant languages along with voiceovers where necessary.
The subtitling process deals with the addition of the text to the video content. It can either be in the same language (caption), or different other languages. For example, the content could be Spanish or Korean, originally demanding subtitles in English or other important languages to facilitate the maximum viewers.
Adding subtitles with the help of video translation services helps the makers preserve original content, and the authenticity of the content does not get compromised.
The dubbing orbits around re-recording where the makers opt for it during the post-production process. They add more sound effects, and many times additional recordings are initiated to lip sync and mixed with original production. The need could arise either to record content in other languages or to add new sounds to the previous audio tracks of the video projects.
A voiceover is another post-production technique in multi-media content that deals with the addition of a voice that is not part of the main narrative and rather accompanies the on-site characters with something important.
As media localization mainly orbits around the subtitling, dubbing, and voiceover content, technical issues are likely to be there. These are important to be considered for smooth media localization.
All three are technical practices, and hence it is imperative to be aware of the technical challenges that may occur during the process:
This challenge particularly relates to subtitling, which is a technical and challenging process. It demands the text to be displayed accurately with the relevant and proper display. The font size needs to be good enough to be legible for the viewers with a reasonable style. Selection of the font and style can often create challenges.
Also, it needs to be constant for the different screen sizes across the different devices. There is a particular character limit defined by the industry specialists and it is important to ensure readability. Moreover, it is also imperative to be mindful of the right placement of the content to prioritize the video content and viewer preferences.
This one goes for subtitling, dubbing, and voice-overs. Any mismanagement or disruption in the timing and synchronization can ruin the whole effort. The timing needs to be precise and spot on with the right alignment of the subtitles, dubbing, and voiceover. Timings should be precise or else there is no point in carrying out these practices.
However, timing and accuracy often emerge as challenging factors. Many times voiceover is not synched properly and a lot of artists mess up with subtitles by not making proper placement. Moreover, punctuation and spacing are also important factors and need to be taken care of in subtitling and dubbing. Also, the artists should make necessary gaps while dubbing to deliver the dialogues as per the situation.
Software and tools are primarily important and the most technical aspects of key components of media localization. So it is important to make a smart selection of the relevant tools and utilize the specialized software for the subtitle creation, edition, and formatting. The file formats and their selection can also be challenging.
Hence, make sure you know the industry-standard subtitle file formats such as SRT, VTT, etc. Moreover, the automation also needs to be smooth for the tasks, including timecoding and formatting. Likewise, relevant tools for dubbing and voiceover should be used to avoid complications.
Stringent and robust quality assurance is a need of the time now. The quality assurance process needs to be according to the standard practices. Media localization is overall a creative challenge as well as an extensive process. It is not a one-step process and has different aspects to look into and maintain quality in.
It should be sent for a second and third eye review. The linguists and experts should be invited to watch and scan for errors, if any, before launching the final product.
With the world getting more connected and digitalized, media localization has become an important pillar of the localization industry. People from the past not even in their wildest imaginations thought that media products could be localized. However, the media landscape has been under rapid transformation and localization has become a need of time due to the ongoing trend of globalization and internationalization.
The media products are no longer confined to their home regions and these are being created, curated, and developed for a global audience.
Following are the key factors that have helped the media to strive in a globalized landscape and contribute every single day to make it better.
This era, which is also referred to as the digital era has been witnessing massive inventions over the decades. Traditional media rarely exists and has limited practice now and companies have to switch to digital platforms to compete in this fast-paced digital arena. The TV channels have initiated their live channels on giant video streaming platforms such as YouTube and others.
Moreover, they have their social media handles and streaming services as well to mark their digital presence.
People across borders can follow the media and audiovisual content of other regions, all hail to the advanced connectivity and digital innovations. This has also made it easy for media agencies and companies to reach global audiences with the help of their social media handles, YouTube channels, Instagram stories, and TikTok content.
Also, media localization boosts the potential of your content to reach global audiences.
The creative media has also been the talk of the town because it helps with a better cultural exchange. People can have a better exposure to different cultures. Media helps them build a positive narrative. This has also been possible due to an effective localization considering the cultural relevance of the target audience.
The fragmentation which has been witnessing an outburst of proliferation is also because of excessive media channels, right social media localization, and online platforms which have also paved the way for the fragmented audience, where they are empowered to make choices according to their taste and preferences.
The plethora of digital avenues has also empowered individuals with the freedom to explore new and unconventional job roles. We have TikTok artists, content creators, Instagram influencers, and vloggers on YouTube who are creating and distributing content of different niches, highlighting the need for media localization more than ever.
Many of them create their content with an approach of reaching a global audience which makes them put little effort into translating or localizing their media for a new audience later.
Thus the process of localization has become significant for global reach. According to this process, already existing media content is scanned for different cultures and languages to effectively reach global masses. The media content is then further localized while considering the market norms and practices of the intended audiences to perfectly resonate with their needs.
The importance of media localization is evident and is no more a secret. Localizing your media brings you enormous benefits. You get to reach a wider audience and strengthen your brand reputation while facilitating the user with an enhanced experience.
Here are a few reasons putting great emphasis on why you should opt for media localization.
Media localization turns out to have amazing benefits if localized correctly. The first and foremost is reaching a wider audience. Everyone wants to compete in the global market and reach maximum people.
The localization of the media products, whether it’s a video, an audio project, or a podcast, localizing it for different audiences with the translation into the relevant languages yields great outcomes, increasing the revenue generation.
Every company wants to grow and excel as a business. The companies and enterprises have been working on their new media projects while focusing on the clientele that is global and no longer limited to their home regions. The creative media and its localization support businesses in a different way.
For instance, if you are a production house, an ad agency, or a creative artist coming from a diverse market in the USA, and producing your content in the English language only, it can make you miss out on other 349 languages approximately which are spoken in the States.
Likewise, if you belong to the world’s most diverse capital city, i.e., London, and deliver your media product in British English only, you are missing a lot of audiences inside your home city let alone the Kingdom. There are more than 250 languages spoken in London and hence you have to address the linguistic needs for most of them, if not all 250.
Therefore, localizing your media products effectively while considering the language barriers and dialects of your home country can also help you with better domestic growth while making your overseas expansion even smoother.
The video content has been making headlines for a long time now and the search engines have also started to pay heed to the video content. Opting for media localization helps you with the better optimization of SEO in the target language. It assists you in addressing the queries of the people most effectively.
As the media content contains keyword research and integration, it gets easier for the search engines to incorporate the already localized keywords.It further enhances the visibility of the video content in engines using localized content that is already part of the media content.
The tailored media content gets relevant to the search engine algorithms which further leads to better and higher rankings. Taking care of the SEO techniques in media localization also leads to better cultural adaptation, respecting local customs and preferences, and increasing content engagement and shares.
Cultural sensitivity is one of the most important aspects of media localization. A media product is not localized effectively if you don’t consider the cultural aspects of the target region. It is the main crux of global marketing. Social media localization also ensures that the content is not just translated linguistically but the cultural aspects have also been taken care of.
This may further include the language dialects, cultural nuances, local market norms and traditions along with the local language accent and cultural relevance, which in return can come up with a much stronger and more impactful content.
Media localization often deals with social media content as well. A plethora of businesses and individuals look forward to increasing the engagement of their social media content. Social media has become an important part of our lives now, initially executed for some socializing and bonding outside homes and families, it has become a strong medium to promote businesses now.
However, the competition is fierce there as well and it is very tough to hold and retain potential clients. Thus, a simple translation does not go well in this regard, and adapting the content according to regional trends, and presenting your products in a way they like in their culture is important.
Moreover, the integration of the elements that are popular among target audiences helps with it. Thus, for better engagement, effective media localization is important.
Going through three main successful examples of media localization can motivate you to opt for better strategies and localize your content for your intended audiences seamlessly.
Netflix has been offering a wide range of language options, working on multilingual content which also includes subtitle translation, dubbing, and relevant initiatives. This is one of the biggest successful stories of media localization which has been acknowledged all across the globe.
Netflix is a global entertainment giant that supports more than 37 languages and is accessible in 190 countries. Netflix dubs and offers netflix subtitle translation for a majority of the shows. Netflix's localization strategy is the key to its international success.
A few of the Netflix shows that have been dubbed in other languages and have won critical acclaim are:
La Case de PapelNarcos: MexicoSquid gamesEliteThe influencerDesperate LiesThere is a huge audience on Netflix for Korean, Spanish, and other non-English content and shows for which Netflix with the collaboration of the makers goes the extra mile to facilitate their viewers in their preferred languages.
Airbnb is another significant example of media localization. An American company that started with few rooms is a business of around 6 billion USD. Founded back in 2008 by the locals of San Francisco they are a rental company operating online for short and long-term stays in different countries. They work as a broker while charging their commission from every booking.
They offer their platform in a multilingual pattern and also adapt their content according to the relevant culture making sure that their customers have the best rental experiences and comfort outside their homes. They accept payments in the local currencies for their user’s convenience and the platform also showcases its property listing and descriptions according to the regional demands.
Spotify, which is a Swedish audio streaming and media service was started in April 2006 globally. It is used worldwide by millions of people due to the fine localization that they have opted for to lure more listeners. Spotify supports 74 languages and has localized its interface according to the popular music of the respective region.
It works as a digital music collection that also deals with multiple multimedia formats such as podcasts, videos, and songs. Spotify is particularly a choice for many because it offers music choices according to regional demands.
There are millions of songs from different regions available on this platform. There are up to 626 million monthly users and more than 246 million people have taken the subscription. The 2023 revenue of Spotify was around 13.25 billion euros with 15 offices around the globe.
All these examples highlight the importance of media localization and how cultural adaptation, audience understanding, and technological capabilities can contribute to achieving successful media localization.
Media localization deals with the localization of creative, video, audio, and media content which is a challenging process. This is hectic and extensive, and demands experience and expertise to make your digital content engaging for the global audience.
This practice has become important to increase revenue, have a better cross-cultural understanding, and for better SEO ranking. Three of the main media localization components are translation, cultural relevance, and subtitling along with dubbing and voiceovers.
Netflix, Airbnb, and Spotify are three of the important and successful media localization examples. However, it is important to collaborate with a professional localization company for positive outcomes.
If you are looking for an experienced and reliable LSP for media localization, Mars Translation is your go-to option. With a global network of skilled translators, voice-artists, latest tools and technologies, and a stringent quality control process, we have what it takes to localize any type of media content for boosting your global reach.
Get in touch for free consultation now!
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