The Business Case for Translating Podcasts
Major media companies are proving the business case for translating podcasts and helping to define the future of multilingual storytelling.
At the beginning of April, Amazon Podcasts launched in Italy, and with its launch came the release of two Wondery podcasts exclusively translated into Italian. The first was Dr. Death, a widely popular medical true-crime podcast that topped podcast charts around the world, and the second was Bunga Bunga, a podcast particularly relevant to the market for its portrayal of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s rise and fall.
The news of these translations came against the backdrop of similar announcements over the past year. Last October, Sony-backed Somethin’ Else announced that they would be translating Unheard: The Fred and Rose West Tapes into Spanish, German, and Danish. In November, iHeartMedia announced that they would be working with the podcast platform Podimo to translate Forgotten: Women of Juárez into three languages. And in February, Spotify announced that it would be launching in 85 new countries and adding 36 languages to its platform.
Major media companies are proving the business case for translation in podcasting and helping to define the future of multilingual storytelling. This growing trend will impact the way that creators approach new projects and has the potential to extend the reach and longevity of existing podcasts.
One of the companies at the heart of podcast translation is the Copenhagen-based podcast platform Podimo. “Something like 95% of our listeners are listening in their own language,” says Jake Chudnow, Podimo’s UK Managing Director of Programming and Partnerships. “We’re consistently seeing that even if a listener in Denmark or Germany or Spain is proficient in English, they still prefer to listen in their home language.”
In response to these insights, Podimo has created a slate of original podcasts in different languages to appeal to its international audiences. Alongside these originals, they have also made significant investments into translating popular podcasts as a key part of their overall growth strategy. They are working with iHeartMedia, Somethin’ Else, and Wondery to translate podcasts into Spanish, German, and Danish for South American and European audiences.
Translating podcasts word for word isn’t enough. They must also find a way to translate the creative vision and emotional impact of these stories.
“I think even the most local of stories can have broadly relatable themes,” says Chudnow. “Dr. Death, as an example, took place in Dallas. But if you’ve listened to the show, the fear of putting your life in a doctor’s hands reaches well beyond the boundaries of Texas.”
Translating a podcast with multiple guests and adapting the format to suit different audiences can be a strenuous and expensive task, but for Podimo, the initial cost is worth the opportunities that translating proven podcasts provides. They saw this when they partnered with Somethin’ Else to translate The Immaculate Deception, a powerful podcast series about fertility fraud. Had Podimo created the podcast from scratch, “that show would have taken months and months, if not longer, to research,” says Chudnow. “Translating is not a cheap process, but you do have the benefit of [starting with] a story that has already been told and crafted beautifully.”
Translating podcasts that have proven to appeal to a wide audience allows Podimo and the companies it partners with to build on the success of existing podcasts and to target an even broader international audience without the unpredictability and risk that comes with creating something new. When it comes to long-form investigative podcasts like Forgotten: Women of Juárez, a story that took years to research, report, and produce, the cost of translation is but a small expense in service of a much larger strategy — a strategy with the potential to draw in millions of international listeners.
The business case for translating podcasts is clear. Podcast listenership is growing globally, many listeners prefer to listen to podcasts in their own languages, and translating popular podcasts can yield much larger audiences for a fraction of the cost that creating market-specific originals can. But how are big audio companies actually translating podcasts?
“Translating is not a cheap process, but you do have the benefit of a story that has already been told and crafted beautifully.”
While the stories at the heart of the popular podcasts that have been translated in the past year have a broad appeal, translating podcasts word for word isn’t enough to create the kind of international successes that big audio companies are investing in. They must also find a way to translate the creative vision and emotional impact of these stories. “We don’t just translate transcripts of our shows. We really focus on authenticity and localizing them,” says Max Cutler, the Founder of Parcast and Head of New Content Initiatives at Spotify.
Cutler emphasizes two key aspects of their translation strategy: localizing content and working with creators from within each market to do so. “I think it’s very easy for us as a big company, a corporate company from America, to come in and just kind of dictate our storytelling. But that’s not going to fly anywhere. It’s not authentic,” Culter says. “We want to make sure we’re culturally sensitive and culturally relevant.”
First, Spotify works out which stories will appeal to which markets. As Culter puts it, “Stories relevant in the Nordics may not be relevant in Mexico.” Then they localize the content to feel authentic to different markets. “If you’re just translating a script or a podcast, it’s not going to really grow an international audience. It’s going to maybe, you know, be for the bilingual audience,” in the country the podcast originated in. To ensure that translated podcasts truly reach international audiences, Spotify works with local creators to adapt and localize their podcasts. “By working with producers that are actually in Brazil or in Mexico,” (markets that Parcast now has a combined 25 shows in) “we’re able to expand the reach of a brand like Serial Killers that much more. […] [It’s] a strategy that also avoids us from making cultural mistakes.”
As well as directly translating podcasts, Parcast has also worked with local Spotify teams to adapt and localize existing podcast formats. A key example is the way that Today in True Crime has been adapted to the Nordic region. Throughout the week, the podcast shares translated versions of stories from the original English-speaking version of the podcast, but every Friday, Nordic creators tell their own stories,” says Culter. “So it’s not just international stories, but it’s also local stories. […] That’s been incredibly successful for us.”
“There’s a wealth of existing worlds that haven’t been translated yet.”
Podimo is also working to adapt successful formats into localized franchises. “One of our most successful franchises is called Murder in the North,” says Chudnow. “It was a show that was born in Denmark and did reasonably well. And when we translated it into German, it became our most listened to show in Germany for many, many months. We then followed it up with a new season called Murder in the Mediterranean, and we’re thinking about how to expand that franchise even further. So in that instance, we’ve seen a certain degree of those translated shows being really successful in both driving new audiences and then also delighting our existing Podimo listeners in the places where we’re live.”
So is translating popular podcasts helping big audio companies grow their international audiences in a meaningful way? “The very short answer is yes,” says Chudnow. The cost of hiring talent to translate and produce these podcasts has given U.S. companies like iHeartMedia, Wondery, and Somethin’ Else the opportunity to reach millions of non-English speaking listeners across the globe, and it has enabled Podimo to attract more international listeners to its listening platforms and monetize podcasts with market-specific advertisements and brand partnerships. “There’s a wealth of existing worlds that haven’t been translated yet,” says Chudnow. “I think where there’s another opportunity to grow is creating the show knowing that it’s going to be born in one language, but almost simultaneously translated into others.”
Translations will also play a significant role in the future of podcasts at Spotify. “I see it being a huge part of our overall business,” says Cutler. “Because Spotify is so devoted to getting into all these different markets, we can take the creative risks and the financial risks to some degree in the podcast space to make sure we launch relevant content in every market we’re at. […] It’s not gonna happen overnight, but I think we’re able to do it.”
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