Marketing
AI for subtitles and captions in many languages
Let an AI tool create the first draft of subtitles from the audio, then have a person correct names, numbers and product terms. Translate the corrected file, not the raw one, into the languages your customers speak, and have a native speaker check the most important videos. Put captions on the image for social clips, since many people watch without sound.
Effort:
Low
Time saved:
Often 50–70% less time than typing subtitles by hand (estimate)
The problem today
Many people watch video with the sound off, and tourists or foreign buyers may not understand Greek, yet typing subtitles by hand takes far longer than the video itself. Large media companies, hotel groups and manufacturers already use AI to caption and translate video at scale. An SME can get most of the benefit with a captioning tool, a translation tool and a short human check.
How it works, in plain words
It works like a fast typist who listens to your video and writes down every word, but sometimes mishears names and numbers.
What goes in: your video file with clear audio, the spoken language and a word list of product names, place names and technical terms.
What the AI does: it turns speech into timed subtitle lines, exports them as a file (usually SRT) and, in a second step, translates the corrected file into other languages.
What a person checks: someone corrects names, numbers and prices line by line before translation, and a native speaker reviews the most important translated videos.
What comes out: captions burned into social clips and separate subtitle files per language for YouTube, your website or training platforms.
It struggles with noisy audio, overlapping speakers and strong accents, and machine translation never guarantees the right meaning.
How it could work for businesses like yours
Illustrative examples, not client case studies.
A diving center on Rhodes with seasonal staff
Visitors come from Germany, Italy, Scandinavia and Israel, but the safety briefing video exists only in Greek and English. The center would caption the Greek version with AI, correct the diving terms with its instructors, then translate the file into four languages and have native speakers check them. It would track how many questions instructors still answer before each dive.
A 5-person social media agency in Kavala
Captioning client Reels by hand takes hours every week. The agency would let AI create first drafts, keep a word list per client for brand and place names, and proofread every line before export. A realistic first target could be roughly half the captioning time, to verify in a one-month pilot.
A 9-person handmade jewelry e-shop in Nafplio selling to Germany and Italy
Its product videos explain materials and care, but foreign shoppers cannot follow the Greek voice-over. The team would correct the Greek subtitles, translate them into German and Italian with a translation tool and upload a separate file per language. They would compare watch time and product page conversion in those markets before and after.
How to do it, step by step
Start with clean audio. Use a clip-on microphone, a quiet room and one speaker at a time. Better audio means far fewer corrections later.
Generate the first draft. Upload the video to a captioning tool and choose the spoken language. Export the subtitles as a file (usually SRT), so you can edit and reuse them.
Correct with a word list. Keep a list of your product names, place names and technical terms. Check these, plus numbers and prices, line by line.
Translate the corrected file. Run the corrected subtitles through a translation tool and keep lines short. Have a native speaker review the videos that matter most, such as ads and safety training.
Publish the right way per channel. Put captions on the image for Instagram and TikTok. Upload separate subtitle files for YouTube and your website, so viewers can switch language.
Tools to consider
CapCut: fast auto captions with styling options for social clips. Caveat: accuracy in Greek depends heavily on audio quality, so always proofread.
Microsoft Clipchamp: browser-based editor with auto captions and simple editing. Caveat: check that your spoken language is supported for auto captions before you rely on it.
DeepL: strong translation of subtitle text between Greek, English and other European languages. Caveat: it translates text, not timing, so check that translated lines still fit on screen.
YouTube Studio: lets you upload subtitle files in several languages for each video. Caveat: its automatic captions are not available or reliable for every language, so upload your own corrected file.
Data protection and GDPR
Subtitles turn what people say into searchable text, so treat them as personal data when the video shows staff, customers or guests. Get consent from people who appear, and remove names or details they did not agree to share. Upload videos only to tools with a data processing agreement, and don't send internal recordings, such as meetings or interviews, to free consumer apps. Delete raw files you no longer need. Translated captions must not change the meaning of claims about products or safety. For training material with personal data, check with your DPO or legal advisor.
Mistakes to avoid
Publishing raw auto captions, so a misheard product name or price appears in every language.
Translating before correcting, which copies each error into every version.
Writing subtitle lines that are too long to read before they disappear.