Use this workflow whenever you need a video and its captions in more than one language. French is used as the example throughout; the same steps apply to any target language MarketScale supports.
Why use a caption file instead of burning text into the frame?
Viewers stay in control. A caption file lets each viewer turn captions on or off. Burned-in text is permanently on the frame for every viewer.
Accessibility standards expect toggleable captions, not text baked into the picture.
Fixes stay cheap. Catch a typo in a caption file and swap the file. If you catch it after burn-in, the video needs a full re-edit.
Search engines and AI answer engines can only read text, not pixels. A caption file gives them something to index. Burned-in text is invisible to both.
How to localize a video into multiple languages
These steps use French as the target language. Repeat for each additional language you need:
Finalize the original-language video first. Do not burn any text in yet.
Open Media Studio and click Request Translation for the target language (for example, French). MarketScale delivers the translated version to your workbench.
Upload the translated video into a folder. Keep the original and every language version together in one project folder so your library stays organized as you add languages.
Open Media Studio for the translated version and open the Transcript / Subtitles panel. Download the transcript as a caption file (SRT or VTT). Review the file before using it anywhere: AI-generated captions and translations most often get proper nouns and technical terms wrong.
Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each additional language.
Publish the video with its caption file attached wherever it is hosted. Most players, including the MarketScale player and YouTube, let viewers toggle captions on or off.
Where to upload your caption file
Both SRT and VTT work on most platforms. Quick reference for where each one goes:
Platform | Recommended format | Notes |
YouTube | SRT or VTT | Both supported. Upload under video settings → Subtitles. |
Vimeo | SRT or VTT | Both supported. Upload under video settings → Distribution → Subtitles. |
Wistia | SRT or VTT | Both supported. Upload under the video's Customize panel → Captions. |
SRT | SRT only. Add when posting a video natively to LinkedIn. |
Common pitfalls
Burning in captions before the translation is finalized. Any later correction means a full re-edit instead of a file swap. Lock down the caption file first.
Skipping QA on AI-generated captions or translations. They are rarely perfect on the first pass. Check proper nouns and technical terms before publishing or burning in.
Assuming Request Translation also produces captions or subtitles. It dubs the audio track only. Captions always come from a separate step: download and review the transcript from the Transcript / Subtitles panel in Media Studio.
Not organizing translated versions into folders. Once there are three or four languages, an unorganized account makes it hard to find the right file fast.
Expecting on-screen graphics (title cards, lower thirds) to translate automatically. They do not. Supply the translated copy and submit a Request Edit Now or Request Revision to rebuild them.
If burned-in text is required
Some placements require text burned into the frame. If that applies to your project, finalize and QA your caption file first, then submit a Request Edit Now or Request Revision. In the Additional Notes and Files field, attach the reviewed caption file and note that it should be burned in as on-screen text. A thorough QA pass is especially important here: mistakes are expensive to fix after burn-in.