Key points
- Many people watch with the sound off: without subtitles, your video is silent for them.
- Three to five words at a time can be read at a glance. A whole sentence takes effort, and the viewer swipes.
- One word stands out per sentence: larger, in colour. That is the word people remember.
- The text goes where it hides neither your face nor the buttons of the app.
What subtitles are really for
We think first of people who are deaf or hard of hearing, and that reason alone is enough. But subtitles also serve everyone watching on a bus, at the office or next to a sleeping child. For them, a video with no text is a person moving their lips.
They have a second, less known role: they hold the eye. A word that appears at the moment it is spoken gives the picture a steady movement. It is one of the simplest ways to make a video more dynamic without filming anything more.
How many words to show at once
The whole sentence shown as a block is the most common way, and the least readable. The viewer has to choose between reading and watching. Split your sentence into small groups of words that follow the rhythm of the voice.
| Way of working | What the viewer sees | Result |
|---|---|---|
| The whole sentence | Two or three lines at the bottom of the screen | Tiring, the viewer loses the picture |
| One word at a time | Words flashing past one by one | Lively, but exhausting beyond a few seconds |
| Three to five words | A small group of words on one or two lines | Read at a glance, leaves the picture visible |
Cut where the voice breathes. “You get home at eight” then “and the kitchen is waiting” reads better than the same sentence cut in the middle of a group of words.
The strong word: one per sentence
In every sentence, one word carries the meaning: a number, a name, a verb, a negative. Show it larger and in a colour. The other words stay white and smaller. A viewer who reads only the strong words should still understand the idea of the video.
- A number: “two hours”, “three steps”, “40 pounds”.
- A proper name: your product, a town, a brand you are talking about.
- A negative: “never”, “none”, “impossible”.
- The benefit: “free”, “ready”, “fixed”.
Where to place the text, and how large
On a vertical video, the bottom of the screen is covered by the account name, the caption and the buttons of the app. Text placed at the very bottom is hidden. Move it up: the lower third of the picture, above those buttons, is the safest place.
- Talking to camera: below the chin, never over the mouth or the eyes.
- Over a picture or a screen: where it does not hide what you are showing.
- The size: large enough to be read with the phone held at arm’s length.
- The contrast: white with an outline, or a dark, blurred patch behind the words. White text on a pale wall disappears.
The method, step by step
Start from the exact text
Subtitles repeat what is said, word for word. If you wrote a script, you already have it. If not, listen again and write it down.
Fix the errors
A transcription tool gets proper names, numbers and trade words wrong. Read everything through once, slowly.
Split into groups of three to five words
One cut at each breath. No single word left alone on a line.
Choose the strong word of each sentence
Only one. If you want two, the sentence holds two ideas: split it.
Place the text and check on a phone
Watch the video on a real phone, not on the computer. Nothing should touch the edges or slip under the buttons.
Watch once with the sound off
If you understand everything, the subtitles are doing their job.
One sentence, split
- The spoken sentence: “Most people water their plants too much, when once a week is enough.”
- Group 1: “Most people water”
- Group 2: “their plants TOO MUCH”
- Group 3: “when ONCE a week”
- Group 4: “is enough”
Read the two highlighted words alone: “too much”, “once”. The idea of the sentence is there. That is the test for every strong word you choose.
The mistakes that make subtitles unreadable
- All capitals, all in colour. When everything stands out, nothing does.
- Text that lags behind the voice. Half a second of delay is enough to bother people. The word arrives when it is spoken.
- Spelling errors. They show more in writing than in speech, and they make people doubt the rest.
- A fancy typeface. Plain, thick letters are read. Decorated letters are guessed.
- Text that keeps moving around. The eye should find it in the same place every time.
Before you publish a subtitled video
- Each group has three to five words.
- One word stands out per sentence, always in the same colour.
- The text hides neither the face nor what you are showing.
- Nothing slips under the buttons of the app.
- Proper names and numbers are correct.
- The video makes sense with the sound off.
Frequently asked questions
Should I subtitle a video that already has text on screen?
If the on-screen text already repeats everything that is said, no: two texts at once get in each other’s way. If the screen shows only a few words, add subtitles for the rest.
Are the automatic subtitles in the apps good enough?
They are a good starting point, provided you read them through. They get names and numbers wrong, and often show the whole sentence. Fix the text and the splitting before you publish.
Which colour should I choose for the strong word?
A bright colour that contrasts with your picture and recalls your brand. Yellow and orange read well on nearly any background. What matters is keeping the same one.
Should the hesitations be written out?
No. Cut them from the video when you can, and in any case do not write them. The subtitle shows the clean sentence.
With Meratek
How Meratek lays your subtitles
In the Motion tab, the Face motion mode starts from your talking-head video. Meratek listens to what you say, cuts the hesitations and lays the subtitles: few words at a time, the strong word larger and in colour, below your chin so your face stays visible. It also adds the slow zoom and pictures on your sentences.
The price in credits is shown before you start, and one hundred and forty credits are offered when you sign up. Always read the result through: a misheard proper name remains possible, and you remain responsible for what the video displays.
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