Closed Captioning Services

How We Ranked the Top Companies for Closed Captioning Services

We looked into hundreds of companies and managed to narrow down the list using our strict evaluation methodology. Keep reading if you want to know about how we chose the best providers for different types of closed captioning in the industry.

Company’s Reliability

There are hundreds of captioning companies out there and all of them claim to offer high-quality service. To verify which claims are legitimate and which are not, we looked into their previous work and customer satisfaction levels before even considering them for our list.

Services Offered

In addition to closed captioning services, we made sure that the companies on our list offer additional services so that they are able to better accommodate your needs and offer a more comprehensive package.

Translation

Sometimes besides captioning videos, translation is also needed. This is why we wanted most of the companies to be able to offer this service as well.

Transcription

Some individuals or companies might also require transcription. We made sure that all vendors on our list can offer quality results in this area too.

Subtitles

Offering quality subtitle service was also high on our list when we were researching all the companies within the industry.

Live Captioning

Live captioning services can be crucial for some organizations, such as providing video captions during a live broadcast of an event or program with a delay of just a few seconds.

Accuracy Rate

A standard for a 99% accuracy rate exists in this industry. We want to believe the best in everyone when they say that there is only a 1% chance of error or leniency of 15 errors per 1,500 words, but we can’t just take this at face value.

We, therefore, looked into the techniques and metrics the vendors use to measure their accuracy as well as the consistency in the caption quality for more complex files. Offering a quality closed captioning service was more important to us than everything else, so the accuracy rate was high on our list for evaluation.

We are proud to say that all the companies we choose can deliver from 98% to 100% accuracy rate.

Closed Caption Synchronization, Placement, and Completeness

The accurate synchronization of closed captions to the visuals is also essential for a good service. Captions should be placed properly without blocking the visuals and should appear in the corresponding visual frame of the video. To verify that, we looked into some of the videos the companies have already worked on and made sure that they provide synchronization from beginning to end.

Turnaround

Do you need a captioning services outfit that will be able to finish a task within the next couple of days or hours? No problem! We got you covered.

Most of the companies on our list found themselves there partly because they offer great turnaround options. We know that time is a precious commodity and that’s why we made sure that the companies we chose can excel even with tight deadlines.

We, however, also picked some providers of captioning services that work with extended turnaround options. On the flip side, they offer discounts for more flexible deadlines which is a good bargain if you are not in a rush.

Project Complexity

Shorter projects aren’t always easier, just like longer projects aren’t necessarily more difficult. The complexity of a project depends mostly on its topic. More advanced subjects such as physics, math, medicine, or law can be tricky for those who offer caption service but lack formal knowledge in these areas. We, therefore, made sure that the companies on our list can deliver excellent results even if they have to caption a video that uses unique terminology known only to those who work in the industry.

File Security

Knowing that your content is safe can put your mind at ease while waiting for the final results. To ensure this, we looked into every company’s way of storing information and we made sure that they use secure servers. Your files will be visible only for those who work with your files and who already signed a strict confidentiality agreement.

Project Management and Communication

Smooth workflow with honest communication is the best combination for all companies regardless of the industry. The same rule applies to all companies providing captioning services as well.

The vendor should be able to offer you several methods to upload a video, inform you regularly about their progress as well as let you know the second the captions are ready. You should also be able to have bulk downloads of multiple caption formats and have the option to edit errors in the transcripts in case they were missed.

Respecting the deadline is also crucial as well as timely informing their clients if any changes should arise.

Client Reviews and Testimonials

It’s very well known that the companies display only the comments of their most satisfied clients. Even though it’s inspiring to read about their biggest successes we also wanted to find out the opinion of all others. That’s why we tried to read as many client reviews as possible from a variety of sources to determine whether the closed captioning company does what they say they do.

While we found some negative comments for the companies on our list, the majority of reviews were from clients who were satisfied with their work and that would contact them again in case they need their services in the future too.

User Support

We chose only companies with reliable user support and a dedicated team that can help you at any time. We firmly believe that if you ever experience a crisis, you will receive valuable assistance as fast as possible.

Pricing

The cost of closed captioning is pretty straightforward. Most of the companies charge based on the duration of the video they will work with, usually per minute. Also if your video lasts 5:30 minutes you won’t be charged fully for the last minute, you will only pay for the 5 minutes and 30 seconds you have.

Some companies might charge more for services such as speaker identifications, certain caption formats, or multiple speakers. This is not a bad thing as long as the company is honest about all its closed captioning services rates from the get-go. Others offer bulk discounts for more content.
In any case, during our research, we made sure to only include providers that offer good value for money. We also took into account the industry standards and steered clear of firms that deviated too much from it in either direction.

Tips for Hiring a Good Closed Captioning Company

If you have reached this point, chances are you are already considering several companies from our list that could be a good fit for your business. But how to choose the best one? Follow the next steps and you will be able to get closer to making the right decision for you and your content.

Define Your Goals and Priorities

If you want to choose the best closed captioning company, you need to know exactly what you need. If you are stuck or can’t figure exactly what you require, consider the following questions:

• How many minutes or hours need to be captioned?
• Do you need a turnaround time or is your schedule flexible?
• How complex is your content? Does it require specific industry knowledge? Is the quality poor?
• Are there any heavy accents that might make the transcription difficult?
• Do you require video closed captioning only or do you need a related service too?
• Do you need to be able to edit the captions before you get the final product?

After you have a comprehensive list of all your needs make sure to rank them by priority.

Consider If the Company Is a Cultural Fit

Culture is another thing to consider when choosing the captioning services firm. Not all providers have a team that will fully understand your needs and will be able to deliver the best results based on your content.

Choose Value over Price

Don’t rush into choosing the cheapest outfit. Make sure to understand exactly what they offer for the price listed and learn if it contains everything you will require before committing to a company.
We also recommend that you send a short video to at least two or three companies to compare their level of accuracy. This way you can learn more about their closed captioning services before letting them work on more complex content.