Who Benefits from Using Closed Captions?
As the space for content creation continues to grow, the sheer amount of information on the best practices, trends, and must-dos has become more than a little overwhelming and quite dizzying. Producing high-quality videos is no longer enough to succeed, whether you’re developing marketing material or educational resources. You must also address the questions of whether or not they are inclusive and accessible and if they will help you reach and engage your intended audience.
Through the use of closed captions, you’ll be able to give the abovementioned questions a resounding yes as it is an effective and clever way to ensure that all of your bases are covered. But if you’re still unconvinced that captioning solutions are worth the investment, we’ve laid out a few convincing reasons why it can be beneficial to your endeavors.
Videos with Closed Captions Will Benefit Those Who Have Impaired Hearing
There’s no denying the fact that those who suffer from hearing loss and disabilities can have a severely limited experience when it comes to viewing videos. With over four hundred and sixty million people all over the world with impaired hearing, you stand to attract a sizable market by making use of closed captions in your videos. You’ll also be compliant with ADA guidelines since access isn’t only a universal right – it is a law.
Overcomes the Language Barrier
Apart from those who have problems with hearing, you’ll also be able to reach out to those whose primary language isn’t English. Language barriers are an issue when it comes to video content. And through closed captions, you’ll be able to effectively translate the dialect of the content to something that viewers will be able to understand. And as a result, it will keep them more engaged than they would have been otherwise.
It Supports Learning Literacy
For people who may be in the process of learning English, media that is captioned can aid in the acquisition of vocabulary, word decoding and recognition, and listening comprehension. Through captioned videos, every student will have access that they require in learning materials. But it doesn’t stop there. Incorporating text into a video will naturally lead to better engagement which, in turn, will improve their literacy skills organically.
It Benefits Everyone
The reality is that even people who are native English speakers and don’t have a hearing disability can benefit from captioning. There is plenty of studies and research that suggests that video captioning improves not only memory and comprehension but the attention that we give to the content. Whether you’re a student or a professional, hearing impaired or not, we are all better engaged to videos that are captioned than those that aren’t.
With the sheer number of advantages and benefits that captions yield, it comes as no immediate surprise that many continue to acquire solutions like closed captions by Verbit. Not only can it help improve viewer engagement and widen reach. But it also gives those with disabilities access to content that they otherwise wouldn’t have.
