Multi-Language Audio vs Multi-Language Channels
Published by Ditto Team · 3 min read · 10 months ago
As content creators, we're always looking for ways to reach a wider audience. One of the most effective ways to do this is by making our content accessible in multiple languages. Recently, YouTube introduced a new feature called Multi-Language Audio (MLA) that aims to make this process easier. However, it's important to understand its pros and cons before deciding if it's the right choice for your channel.
Pros of YouTube's MLA
- Easy to Manage Comments: With MLA, all comments are consolidated under one video, regardless of the language. This makes it easier to manage and respond to comments since they are all in one place.
- A Single Community: Instead of fragmenting your audience across multiple channels, MLA allows you to build a single, diverse community. This can lead to richer interactions among your viewers and a stronger sense of community.
- Simplified Analytics: Having all your views on one video makes it easier to track performance and viewer engagement. You can get a holistic view of how your video is performing without having to aggregate data from multiple videos or channels.
Cons of YouTube's MLA
- Limited Customization: Currently, you can't customize thumbnails, channel metadata, or in-video changes for different languages. This could limit the appeal of your videos to non-English speaking audiences.
- Limited Availability: The MLA feature is not yet available to all channels. YouTube is gradually rolling it out, so some creators may have to wait before they can use it.
- Limited Analytics: At the time, you won’t get the same depth of analytics you would from launching a separate channel.
Note on multi-language channels
When creating a new multi-language channel be sure to get in contact with Youtube to let them know your channel is not duplicate content.
Ditto’s Take
Given these pros and cons, we recommend using separate channels for different languages unless your content isn't affected by these constraints. Ditto aims to fill in this gap to make managing multi-language channels simple and seamless without any limitations. With channel editing, metadata translation, and many exciting new features coming soon. But don’t worry because when YouTube's MLA feature becomes more robust, Ditto will have the tooling to make a smooth transition over to one channel.
Conclusion
While YouTube's MLA feature is a step in the right direction, it's clear that it still has some way to go before it can fully cater to the needs of all creators. In the meantime, Ditto will offer a viable seamless alternative for creators looking to reach a global audience with multi-language channels. As always, the key is to stay informed and choose the solution that best fits your needs. The world is full of people waiting to hear your message. Don't let language be a barrier.