Why should you add boring captions?

Cheerful senior mother and adult daughter using smartphone together, sitting on a bench at a park

Cheerful senior mother and adult daughter using smartphone together, sitting on a bench at a park. Accessible captions by Subcap.

Captions play a vital role in making video content accessible to a wider audience, but unfortunately, many captions still fall short in terms of accessibility. In this blog post, we revisit the crucial topic of accessible captions, discuss Subcap’s commitment to accessibility over flashy features, and highlight Meryl Evans’ tweet and video on the importance of proper captioning.

Why Accessibility Matters:

Inaccessible captions create barriers for individuals with hearing impairments and those who rely on captions to understand video content. By focusing on accessibility, you help provide equal access to information and entertainment for all viewers.

Subcap’s Commitment to Accessibility:

Subcap is dedicated to supporting accessible captions. While some users may suggest animations or karaoke-style captions, Subcap prioritizes accessibility over these flashy features to ensure that captions are easy to read and understand by all viewers.

 

Meryl Evans, a deaf professional and advocate for accessibility, shared her thoughts on the importance of proper captioning in a tweet and video:

“Captioning should be more than just an afterthought. Quality captions make a world of difference for deaf and hard of hearing people like me. Let’s work towards making captions more accessible for everyone. #AccessibilityMatters”

In her video, Meryl talks about Hormozi captions, emphasizing the significance of accurate and timely captions for better understanding. She says “The best captions are boring. They let the video be the star.”

 

Best Practices for Captioning Videos for Accessibility with Subcap:
  1. Customize for Readability:

Subcap allows you to tailor the font, size, and color of your captions to ensure they are easily readable by all viewers.

  1. Choose a Clear Font:

Select a simple and easy-to-read font. Avoid using decorative or intricate fonts that may be difficult for some viewers to decipher.

  1. Keep it Plain and Readable:

Ensure your captions are presented in a clean and clear format that is easy for viewers to follow and understand.

  1. Subtitles in Blocks:

Display subtitles in blocks or phrases, rather than one word at a time, to improve readability and comprehension.

  1. Mixed Case Letters:

Use mixed case letters instead of all uppercase letters for a more comfortable reading experience.

  1. Punctuate and Capitalize Properly:

Proper punctuation and capitalization help viewers understand the flow and meaning of the dialogue. Include commas, periods, and other punctuation marks where appropriate.

  1. Use Clear and Concise Language:

When captioning your video, avoid using jargon, abbreviations, or acronyms that may be confusing for some viewers. Opt for clear and concise language that is easily understood by all.

  1. Synchronize the Captions:

Ensure that your captions are synchronized with the audio, allowing viewers to follow along easily. Captions that lag behind or run ahead of the audio can make it difficult for viewers to comprehend the content.

  1. Include Non-Speech Elements:

Caption relevant non-speech elements such as music, sound effects, and background noises that contribute to the context or atmosphere of the video.

 

By focusing on accessibility, you can make a significant difference in the viewing experience for all users, including those with hearing impairments. Embrace Subcap’s commitment to accessible captions and follow these best practices to ensure your video content is both engaging and inclusive.

If you like to read our previous blog post about this, here:

The Best Way to Caption Videos for Accessibility

5 Tips for TikTok Growth

TikTok is becoming more and more popular every day. Although it began as a lip-syncing app, it is now one of the best platforms for influencers and content creators. It can also be a powerful tool for brands. But first, you need to get more views on your videos.

Don’t worry. We’ll go through how to grow your TikTok account in this post.

 

#1 Post as much as you can

 

 

TikTok differs from the other social media platforms in so many ways. If you post too frequently on Instagram or Facebook, your followers might get annoyed. However, TikTok doesn’t work like that. TikTok shows your videos not only to your followers so even with only a few followers, your content can be viewed by thousands of people. Each video will be displayed to a different group of people, so you increase your chances of becoming viral. The more you post, the more you increase your chances. TikTok is promoting people that are very active on the platform.

 

#2 Participate in challenges and trends

 

TikTok app image on the phone

 

If you start seeing something on your For You Page frequently, it means it’s a trend. By joining trends, you can increase your exposure. You should also add popular songs or sounds to your videos. 

Trends come and go quickly on TikTok, so if you want to try one, act fast! Tap the Discover option at the bottom of the app to see the latest trending hashtags, sounds, and effects on TikTok.

 

#3 Add captions

 

Use text overlays to explain what’s going on or provide additional information. However, if you are just talking on the video, it’s better to use auto-captions.

The attention span on TikTok is very brief and people will scroll if they are not interested. Also, did you know that 80% of people watch videos without sound? If you have captions, you can catch people’s attention.

So that’s great but how do you add captions? I have good news because it’s so easy. Just download Subcap and it captions everything automatically. You can also easily edit, change fonts to make them customized.

 

#4 Find a niche

 

Writing comment on TikTok

 

The majority of well-known TikTokers stick to a particular niche. They create content that shows their talent and skills in their niche. Such targeted content, of course, not only attracts the right followers but also generates a lot of engagement.

Whatever your niche, there’s a space on the platform for you and your audience. It’d be a good idea to research the top creators in your niche and see what they post and what kind of content worked really well. You can get inspired by checking their most viewed videos.

 

#5 Call to action and make people comment

 

On TikTok, comments increase watch time. While someone is writing a comment, the video keeps playing in the background. So, the more comments you get, the better the video performs. Don’t forget to engage with the commenters, so you can encourage longer conversations.

I’m sure you’ve seen buttons on many websites or apps that say things like Read more, Take me there, Sign up, Do it, etc. These are known as CTAs, which are buttons that simply ‘call’ you to take an ‘action.’ CTAs motivate your viewers to interact with your content by taking actions such as clicking a button, signing up, liking, sharing, or commenting.

 

Make sure to check out our other posts!

How to Be More Accessible on Social Media

7 Tips for Increasing Your Social Media Engagement