Captions: the number, and what it hides
On-screen text carrying the spoken content of the ad.
Why captions matters
Most paid social is watched on mute. An ad that does not work silently does not work.
What this looks like with real numbers
Watch your best ad with the sound off. If you cannot tell what is being sold in the first three seconds, most of the people you are paying for cannot either, and they will not turn the sound on to find out.
What it does not tell you
Platforms describe captions as recommended rather than required, which reads as optional and is not. Burned-in captions also survive the platform's own caption toggle being off.
The mistake people actually make
Relying on the platform's auto-captions. The viewer can switch them off, they mis-hear product names, and they ignore your safe zone entirely.
Questions, answered.
How do you calculate captions?
Not a metric — a production requirement. On-screen text carrying the spoken content of the ad.
What goes wrong with captions?
Relying on the platform's auto-captions. The viewer can switch them off, they mis-hear product names, and they ignore your safe zone entirely.
What does captions not tell me?
Platforms describe captions as recommended rather than required, which reads as optional and is not. Burned-in captions also survive the platform's own caption toggle being off.
Change the creative, not the dashboard
On-screen text carrying the spoken content of the ad.